Planes are bad for Mother Nature, but Ships might Kill her

"Global emissions of carbon dioxide from shipping are twice the level of aviation" Intertanko

The last six years have been hard. The world is suffering from the 'war Of terror', but another victim goes unheard. That victim is Mother Nature. In a new report issued by Intertanko, the last six years has seen unprecedented growth in CO2 emissions from the world's largest tanker operators. In fact, those emissions are DOUBLE that of airplanes.

Intertanko says its figures are the most realistic estimation of the current levels of CO2 from ships

It says that growth in global trade coupled with ships burning more fuel to deliver freight faster has contributed significantly to the increase.

Dragos Routa, the technical director of Intertanko, told the BBC the figures were a work in progress but the levels of emissions had risen sharply

While there are few accurate measures and even fewer restrictions on the amounts of carbon dioxide that ships can emit at present, governments in many parts of the world are considering a clampdown as part of their efforts to tackle global warming. bbc

From Intertanko, the effects could be remedied, but the industry must take long term steps...

A switch from residual fuel to marine diesel oil (MDO) means a comprehensive and practical strategy for an efficient and long-term reduction of air pollution from ships
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It deals with the cause of this pollution rather than the effect – i.e. rather than limiting the rulemaking development to cleaning up the pollution itself

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INTERTANKO believes that Governments wish to see a significant reduction in overall air pollution from ships as required under MARPOL Annex VI. Therefore, they should not ignore that out of all the options on the table

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This way, all ships would reduce their total air pollution on a global basis, while at the same time allowing new engines to become even more efficient, less polluting and with lower CO2 emissions.
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The added bonus to ship operators is that running a ship on distillates makes the technical operation of that ship cheaper, more efficient and straightforward. Intertanko

I wonder whose 'table' they are looking at? It can't be the same 'table' of greed, corruption, and profits that the world is functioning by.

See also:

U.S. Coast Guard unveils plans for 'Base' in the Arctic

Same Players. Different Scandal.

U.S. Coast Guard unveils plans for 'Base' in the Arctic

"I'm not sure I'm qualified to talk about the scientific issues related to global warming," the Coast Guard commandant, Admiral Thad Allen, said in an interview. "All we know is we have an operating environment we're responsible for, and it's changing."

Here we go...again, back to the Law of the Seas. The hunt and protection for oil is on....again. The rush to 'own' the newly melted 'arctic sea lanes' are in progress. The Coast Guard has announced they will build a small base 'probably' near Barrow, Alaska, the United States' northernmost town.

initially [the base]...

would be seasonal and would initially have just a helicopter equipped for cold-weather operations and several small boats.

But given continued warming, that small base, which could be in place by next spring, would be expanded later to help speed responses to oil spills from tankers that the Coast Guard believes could eventually carry shipments from Scandinavia to Asia through the Bering Strait. Such a long-hoped-for polar route would cut 5,000 miles or more from a journey that would otherwise entail passage through the Panama Canal or the Suez. iht

aahh so the real reason arises...Oil. It's always about the 'oil'..

new activity abetted by warming seas, Royal Dutch Shell is preparing for exploratory oil drilling off Alaska's Arctic coast beginning next year.
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the Coast Guard icebreaker Healy, provides fresh evidence that the United States has much at stake in the region. The sonar studies found hints that thousands of square miles of additional seafloor could potentially be under American control. That floor might yield important deposits of oil, gas or minerals in coming decades, government studies have concluded. iht

Damn oil. It's always about the 'oil' . And because oil is involved..Mr. Bush, the 'resident in the oval office' has deemed it appropriate to chime in.

after years of fights in Congress, the United States appears poised to ratify. The treaty has the support of President George W. Bush, but ratification requires approval by two-thirds of the Senate.
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The commander of the Coast Guard's Alaska district, Rear Admiral Arthur Brooks, said in a telephone interview that the expansion of open water as summer sea ice pulls back means that "almost everything the U.S. does will be doable in the Arctic, we think."
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"Having a safe, secure and reliable Arctic shipping regime is vital to the proper development of Arctic resources, especially now given the extent of Arctic ice retreat we witnessed this past summer..."We can have such a regime only through cooperation, not competition, among Arctic nations. Denial of passage through international waterways, even though they may be territorial waters, and burdensome transit requirements will not benefit any nation in the long run." Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Sullivan iht

One thing America does exceptionally well is 'exploit'. Exploitation is what the Arctic has coming. Damn it..it's always about the 'oil'. The classy, all jazzed up advertisements by the major oil companies are a farce. The only way they'll invest in 'sustainable' resources is when they've depleted the planet of all her 'blood..oil'.

Evil Edwin Meese from the Heritage Foundation


Same Players. Different Scandal.