SEAFARERS across the world are expected to receive additional training by the mid-2030s responding to the shipping industry's efforts to decarbonise vessels, reports the Manila Times.
The Shipping Decarbonisation Action Plan was launched recently at the 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) by United Nations organisations, shipowners and unions in Egypt.
It is in response to findings from new research that three per cent of global emissions come from the shipping industry.
The plan proposed that shipping should transition away from conventional fuels towards alternative low and zero-carbon fuels and technologies.
'These scenarios require some form of retraining the workforce. The good news is that seafarers are prepared and willing to be part of this transition. But [the] crew want to know that the fuels they are handling are indeed safe and that we as an industry have the training pathways established to upgrade their skills,' said International Transport Workers' Federation secretary general Stephen Cotton.
Findings also show that a lack of certainty on alternative fuel options affects seafarer training.
The research was conducted by leading maritime consultancy Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and commissioned by the Maritime Just Transition Task Force Secretariat.
Said International Chamber of Shipping secretary general Guy Platten: 'There is an urgent need to establish the infrastructure and training required to prepare our seafaring workforce, both in developed and developing countries, to help meet our decarbonisation objectives.
'This should be done as of today, so they are ready and able to meet the challenges that new green fuels and propulsion technologies will pose and mitigate any potential health and safety risks for ships, communities, the environment, and seafarers themselves,' said Mr Platten.
SeaNews Turkey
The Shipping Decarbonisation Action Plan was launched recently at the 27th Conference of the Parties (COP27) by United Nations organisations, shipowners and unions in Egypt.
It is in response to findings from new research that three per cent of global emissions come from the shipping industry.
The plan proposed that shipping should transition away from conventional fuels towards alternative low and zero-carbon fuels and technologies.
'These scenarios require some form of retraining the workforce. The good news is that seafarers are prepared and willing to be part of this transition. But [the] crew want to know that the fuels they are handling are indeed safe and that we as an industry have the training pathways established to upgrade their skills,' said International Transport Workers' Federation secretary general Stephen Cotton.
Findings also show that a lack of certainty on alternative fuel options affects seafarer training.
The research was conducted by leading maritime consultancy Det Norske Veritas (DNV) and commissioned by the Maritime Just Transition Task Force Secretariat.
Said International Chamber of Shipping secretary general Guy Platten: 'There is an urgent need to establish the infrastructure and training required to prepare our seafaring workforce, both in developed and developing countries, to help meet our decarbonisation objectives.
'This should be done as of today, so they are ready and able to meet the challenges that new green fuels and propulsion technologies will pose and mitigate any potential health and safety risks for ships, communities, the environment, and seafarers themselves,' said Mr Platten.
SeaNews Turkey