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| Silver Lining at Copenhagen: Nations Inch Toward Consensus on Shipping Fundamentals |
| By AWT Staff |
 Though the Copenhagen Accord was viewed as a disappointment by most independent observers, the Bunker’s Drafting Group, whose mission was to develop a consensus plan for shipping, made significant headway on the fundamental responsibilities of shipping nations and the treatment of vessels in the likely event that targets for shipping are set. |
| According to Peter Hinchliffe, the Marine Director for the International Chamber of Shipping, during the first week of discussions, the Bunkers Group was at loggerheads over two competing principles: “Common but Differentiated Responsibility” (CBDR) versus “No More Favorable Treatment” (NMFT). |
| Under some emission-control schemes, CBDR would imply lower and more permissive targets for developing countries. NMFT, the principle generally embraced by the IMO, would insure common treatment for all ships and nations. The intent of NMFT is to leave unchanged underlying fundamentals of shipping and not introduce disincentives that would alter vessel distribution or global trade. Under NMFT, the flag under which a ship steams would have no bearing on either taxation or credits. |
| By the second week, a consensus was forming to uphold “No More Favorable Treatment.” Though the draft document never reached the larger assembly – itself floundering on the issue of CBDR – headway on this issue provides a basis for upcoming talks during 2010 by both the IMO and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The IMO has scheduled an important meeting of its Marine Environmental Policy Committee (MEPC) for March in Mexico City, while the UN will again grapple with targets, climate change, CBDR and other issues at a meeting in Mexico in November. |
 Peter Hinchliffe offered insight on the importance of NMFT: “A unique feature of shipping is that fleets and ships cannot be neatly linked to individual countries or even the two categories of countries (Annex 1 and developing countries).” Owners as well as charterers may be of different nationality; ships may be registered under a different flag; and the origin as well as the destination of goods commonly differ. Because of this, trying to implement differential responsibility would have posed an administrative nightmare. It might even have disrupted global trade. |
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| Speed Matters: Time for an Accelerated Effort on Fuel Savings and Greenhouse Gas Reduction |
| Commentary from Skip Vaccarello, AWT CEO |
| The implementation of a plan for the shipping industry to reduce greenhouse gases faces a number of challenges which were reflected in the animated talks at Copenhagen. These challenges include setting emission targets for shipping, design standards for new vessels, approved operational measures, market and non-market systems to implement targets, and the need for investment in clean-ship technology. |
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| Skip Vaccarello |
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| There is no need to wait for the world community to act on overall emission targets before resolving some of these fundamentals. Det Norske Veritas, an audit and risk assessment firm, recently concluded that using current technology alone, shipping could realize a 30 percent decrease in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. |
| This is encouraging and deserves close consideration. It only makes sense that a strategy for shipping focuses on proven and cost-effective technology that can realize an immediate gain. Such an approach would have the added benefit of encouraging investment in new technology that is also efficient. |
| In accelerating current timetables, the IMO and the UNFCC should also make sure that other transport sectors reply in kind with concerted action. In the coming year, close coordination should be developed between shipping, aviation, rail and trucking. This would prevent modal shifts that create imbalance and undermine world trade. |
| It is important that the IMO move forward in promoting ship and fleet fuel-efficiency plans. The plans could be mandated or voluntary. Either way, they would specify in an operational manner, much like ship-safety plans, what each vessel would do to reduce fuel consumption. |
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