Climate change is now one of the biggest concerns for so-called developed countries and is on the rise year after year.
The 2015 Paris agreement was decisive in taking action on the issue, with 195 countries approving limiting global temperature rise to 2C by the end of the century and continuing efforts to reduce them 1.5oC.
- What is decarbonization?
Decarbonization is the process of reducing carbon emissions, especially CO2 carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Its goal is to achieve a low-emission global economy that achieves climate neutrality through the energy transition.
Humans by burning fossil fuels for the development of their economy has increased CO 2, one of the greenhouse gases and therefore global warming and climate change.
To achieve neutral emissions, we must go to an energy transition, a structural change that eliminates carbon in energy production.
Decarbonization in maritime transport
Decarbonisation in maritime transport aims to reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) and thus avoid, as far as possible, increasing the planet’s temperature by 1.5 degrees.
It is therefore a question of reducing carbon emissions mainly from CO 2 (carbon dioxide) to the atmosphere.
We know that maritime transport accounts for 80% of world trade and emits about 1000Mt of CO 2 per year, representing 3% of global CO 2 emissions and 13.5% of the European Union.
In addition, ships emit pollutants conducive to global warming such as suspended particles, NOx nitrogen oxides, nitrous oxides N 2O and the so-called indirect greenhouse effect that is sulfur oxide x that produces acid rain that damages crops and forests and causes acidification in the oceans.
The challenge is based on ensuring that decarbonisation does not affect economic growth. The decarbonisation of the maritime sector and related industries must be observed from a global perspective. Shipping, ports and distributors must have a clear commitment to reducing such emissions.
Although dual engines that consume diesel fuels and LNG (liquefied natural gas) are currently being used, which is an intermediate step towards zero CO2 emissions, the problem is that liquefied natural gas LNG leaves a 33% worse mark of GHG than that of coal, if we take into account processing and transport.
IMO (International Maritime Organization) in its GHG reduction strategy set the target of reducing GHG emissions by 40 per cent by 2030 and 70 per cent by 2050
