ENVIRONMENTALISTS are ramping up pressure on global regulators to put in place methane emission targets for ships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG).
This comes in response to the publication of a study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) that found LNG does not deliver the emission reductions required under the International Maritime Organisation's greenhouse gas strategy, and could even worsen shipping's climate impact, reports London's Lloyd's List.
It challenges accepted industry views that using LNG in shipping cuts greenhouse gas emissions by one-fifth, and raises fresh questions over the longevity of vessels propelled by the fossil fuel.
Investments in LNG, from fuel infrastructure and newbuildings, lock shipowners into another fossil fuel, making it more difficult to switch to low and zero-carbon alternatives, environment groups said in their submission to the IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC).
However, LNG is shaping up as the most commercially viable alternate fuel to reduce shipping's carbon footprint.
In the submission, the Clean Shipping Coalition, Pacific Environment, World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace ask the MEPC to account for all greenhouse gases, including methane, in future phases of technical design indices for new vessels.
WORLD SHIPPING
This comes in response to the publication of a study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) that found LNG does not deliver the emission reductions required under the International Maritime Organisation's greenhouse gas strategy, and could even worsen shipping's climate impact, reports London's Lloyd's List.
It challenges accepted industry views that using LNG in shipping cuts greenhouse gas emissions by one-fifth, and raises fresh questions over the longevity of vessels propelled by the fossil fuel.
Investments in LNG, from fuel infrastructure and newbuildings, lock shipowners into another fossil fuel, making it more difficult to switch to low and zero-carbon alternatives, environment groups said in their submission to the IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC).
However, LNG is shaping up as the most commercially viable alternate fuel to reduce shipping's carbon footprint.
In the submission, the Clean Shipping Coalition, Pacific Environment, World Wildlife Fund and Greenpeace ask the MEPC to account for all greenhouse gases, including methane, in future phases of technical design indices for new vessels.
WORLD SHIPPING