Pressure grows on shipping industry to accept carbon levy

theguardian.com:

Pressure is growing on the international shipping industry to accept a carbon levy on ships that would fund climate action in the developing world, with the World Bank among those pushing for the measure at a crucial international meeting this week, the Guardian has learned.

A levy on the greenhouse gas emissions produced from shipping would encourage companies to upgrade their fleets, run them more efficiently and seek cleaner fuels and technologies.

Shipping accounts for more than 3% of global carbon emissions, but is regarded as one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise, as ships run on heavy, dirty, high-carbon fuel oil.

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO), made up of 175 governments, is hosting meetings in London this week at which the contribution of shipping to the climate crisis will be a key focus. Many nations are concerned that the sector has done too little to address its impact on the climate.

A proposal from the World Bank, seen by the Guardian, would require shipping companies to pay into a fund based on the amount of carbon their fleets emit. Those funds could be spent on reducing emissions from shipping, but the World Bank is pushing to see them directed instead towards projects that could help reduce emissions in poor countries.

At previous IMO meetings, some countries wanted any revenues from a carbon levy to be recycled for spending only within the maritime transport sector. But the World Bank’s research has found that would be unfair, as many developing countries that are landlocked or have small fleets would not benefit. Using a share of a shipping levy “to finance broader climate aims in these countries could thus help to support a more equitable transition”, according to the bank.

The IMO will