Hot on the heels of the bumper 581 page communication from the EU Commission on its decarbonisation plans comes a mere 221 page communication from the Department for Transport Decarbonising Transport: A Better, Greener Britain.
This deals with various sectors, and contains various commitments as regards the domestic maritime sector.
Commitment. “We will plot a course to net zero for the UK domestic maritime sector, with indicative targets from 2030 and net zero as early as is feasible We will establish, following public consultation in 2022, an ambitious ‘Course to Zero’. This consultation will explore the technical, operational and policy options available for Government to accelerate decarbonisation in this sector to achieve net zero by no later than 2050 or earlier if possible. Following consultation, we will establish ambitious indicative targets for the domestic maritime sector recognising that we have ground to make up, covering 2030 and onwards. These targets will guide the design and enable us to measure the success of future policy interventions. We will embed this course in our Clean Maritime Plan (CMP), as part of a planned review and refresh which is due to start in 2022 and include within the CMP the long term interventions needed to achieve full decarbonisation.”
Commitment. “We will consult on the potential for a planned phase out date for the sale of new non-zero emission domestic vessels Following the conclusion of the current Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition and the Course to Zero consultation, we will consult in mid-2022 upon the potential for long term decarbonisation to be accelerated through carefully designed, well signposted measures to phase out the sale of new, non-zero emission domestic vessels, building on the experiences of the steps being undertaken today in other modes of transport.”
Commitment. “We will accelerate the development of zero emission technology and infrastructure in the UK We have recently launched a £20 million funding package – the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC) – to support and accelerate research, design and development of zero emission technology and infrastructure solutions for maritime and accelerate decarbonisation.”
Commitment. “We will consult this year on the appropriate steps to support and, if needed, mandate the uptake of shore power in the UK
We will consult in winter 2021 on how government can support the wider deployment of shore power, including consideration of regulatory interventions, for both vessels and ports, that could drive deployment as we transition to a net zero world, and bring forward appropriate measures.”
Commitment. “We will extend the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) to support renewable fuels of non-biological origin used in shipping We consulted in March 2021, on a potential expansion of the RTFO to include some advanced maritime fuels in order to support their deployment.109 The RTFO mandates that a certain proportion of road fuel must be from a sustainable renewable source. Maritime fuels currently have no equivalent system, which we aim to change. We recently announced that we will make renewable fuels of non-biological origin used in shipping eligible for incentives under the RTFO.”
Commitment. “Internationally, the UK will press for greater ambition during the 2023 review of the International Maritime Organisation Initial Greenhouse Gas Strategy and urge accelerated decarbonisation.
The IMO will review its strategy in 2023 and as set out in the recent G7 Climate and Environment Communique112 the UK will be seeking to increase ambition to ensure that international shipping plays its part in delivering decarbonisation. We will promote close alignment with the Paris temperature goals and challenge the international community to deliver on the IMO initial strategy commitment to ‘phase out’ emissions from the international sector as soon as possible.”
Commitment. “We will ensure we have the right information to regulate emissions, and to judge the effectiveness of the steps we are taking in the UK and at the IMO We will review, and if appropriate amend, the operation of the UK’s existing monitoring, reporting and verification system for greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping, to ensure it is fit for purpose and delivering the information we need to decarbonise the maritime sector. We will keep the measurement approach to the UK’s international shipping emissions under review and consider the appropriateness of fuel or activity-based measures. Additionally, we will consider how similar information can be collected for the domestic fleet, in order to provide a better evidence base for future policy interventions.
We will include the UK international aviation and shipping emissions in the Sixth Carbon Budget The Government has set the Sixth Carbon Budget to include the UK’s share of international aviation and shipping emissions, as recommended by our independent climate advisors, the Climate Change Committee (CCC). This allows those emissions to be accounted for consistently with other emissions included within the Sixth Carbon Budget. In line with the CCC’s recommended method for CB6 and UNFCC reporting, the projections for international shipping emissions represent the estimated emissions from fuel sold in the UK for use in international shipping.”
It is noteworthy that shipping is not included in the UK’s ETS and international shipping enters the stage only in the last of the above mentioned commitments.
