Investing in zero-carbon shipping will only benefit the UK economy

The shipping industry contributes around 2% of all global carbon emissions – a figure comparable to the entire CO2 emissions of a country the size of Germany.  In many ways that isn’t surprising: shipping powers the world economy, and carries 90% of all international trade. But although people understand the link between trade and prosperity, they quite rightly demand it is done in a responsible and environmentally friendly way.

Globalised trade has brought rapid growth and helped see a remarkable fall in extreme poverty around the world, but it is not without negative consequences. Scientists say that to stave off potentially dangerous levels of warming later in the century, global emissions need to decline quickly to near-zero. CO2 emissions last about 100 years in the atmosphere once emitted, which means that the benefits of reducing CO2 emissions today will be stretched over a century into the future.

That’s why the decision made on Friday by the International Maritime Organisation to cut shipping’s carbon emissions by at least 50% by 2050 is so important.