Shipping Decarbonisation: Why COP26 is deemed important?

 

Maria Sahib is a Consultant with the Micronesian Centre for Sustainable Transport (MCST) 

The 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties has kicked off this week in Glasgow, Scotland. The Presidency theme this COP is based around climate change challenges including:

Adaptation and resilience - to help communities adapt to, and prepare for, the worst impacts of climate change. 

Nature-based solutions - to safeguard and restore natural habitats and ecosystems to preserve the planet’s biodiversity. 

Energy transitions - to accelerate the clean energy transition by encouraging the use of cheaper renewables and storage. 

Clean transport - to clean our air by speeding up the global transition to zero emission vehicles. 

Finance - to encourage our financial systems to be cleaner to unlockgrowth and create green jobs. 

The aim of the climate vulnerable countries, including the Pacific region, is to keep the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees alive. As indicated and stated in interventions at national, regional, and international fora, including theUN General Assembly and most recently at G2, the world must accelerate emissions reductions to achieve the 1.5 degrees goal.

But how do we ensure transitioning to low carbon fuel across sectors while applying adaptation and resilience measures with sufficient funding available? The Green Climate Fund (GCF) is deemed to be the appropriate solution to it all. 

Is it really? How can a country like Fiji or the Marshall Islands, or even developing countries like Argentina or Chile, access GCF when the key to that treasury is held in the hands of few? With only $10B committed, it is a fight for a slice amongst over 150 nations. 

One of the potential homegrown solutions has already been tabled at the International Maritime Organisation and will be the center of discussion at the next Intersessional working groups and committee meetings concerning shipping. The Marshall Islands and Solomon Islands market-based proposal for a $100/tonne carbon levy for international shipping addresses theCOP26 Presidency theme. According to the World Bank funds raised between 2022-2050,potentially, $1 - $1.7 trillion could achieve the 1.5 degree target whilst addressing both in-sector and out-of sector options including: a) financing in-sector climate change mitigation (e.g. financing zero-carbon bunker fuels production and deployment); b) financing maritime transport infrastructure(e.g. improving ports); c) financing broader climate needs; d) financing broader development objectives; e)financing the general fiscal budget) rewarding ships for energy efficiency or lower emissions under a revenue-neutral ‘feebate’ scheme and g) covering administrative and enforcement costs of this mid-term measure.