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When I asked our esteemed editor for his thoughts on what subject I might contemplate this month, he came back with “COP 26, MEPC and EU ETS - this is it!” Judging by the coverage COP26 is getting in the media prior to the world’s leaders and their entourages jetting into Glasgow, expectations for anything dramatic to come out of this gathering seem mixed. This is, after all, the 26th such meeting and the problems of climate change have not got any easier, even if awareness of the problem is running at a higher level. Perhaps the runway at Glasgow airport where all these presidential jets will be landing should be named the ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’. What can shipping hope for in the coming few weeks? Whilst the industry is going to be well represented in Glasgow, I sadly fear that we may come away disappointed. I don’t know of anyone who does not recognise the problem and wants a solution, but with so many governments being lobbied by their own domestic vested interests, consensus other than a general ‘we must do something’ seems unlikely. It will be an easy option to continue to slap shipping with an increasing regulatory burden when it won’t affect jobs and potential votes amongst the vested interests back home. The lobbying by South American meat producers, Australian mining interests and countless others will far outweigh what the fragmented shipping industry can muster. The recent efforts made by shipping to clean up whilst still remaining one of the most efficient and environmentally friendly industries on the planet will continue to go largely unnoticed. Carbon neutrality is becoming a more difficult target the more the world tries to achieve it Simply put, carbon neutrality is becoming a more difficult target the more the world tries to achieve it. As we approach this supposed game changer conference, China’s October coal production is likely to reach 11.6m tons per day and the reality is that the fastest growing economies such as India and China are just not going to be able to wean themselves off their coal addiction. I recall as a child winters in northeast England where the acrid smell of burning coal hung in the air as every home had a coal fire roaring. That had become a distant memory until I visited China in winter a few years ago and that smell again pierced the nostrils and turned my shirt collar black by the end of the day. The West has exported its most polluting industries to the East, but if they want the East to continue to provide their goods at the prices they are currently willing to pay, they must accept that it requires a cheap and reliable source of power generation, and right now that means coal. Whilst presidents and prime ministers will make grand statements drafted by their underlings who have been at the receiving end of entreaties from lobbyists, industries like shipping must work to come up with their solutions on their own. This is an industry which has spawned countless great technical advances and at a conference last week, a leading shipmanager again put forward one solution for the future: nuclear-powered ships. The technology is there, we now have to ensure it is even safer than its already enviable safety record, as well as undertaking a major marketing campaign to get public acceptance. Perceptions can change. Along with the smell of burning coal in northeast England, another childhood memory was the careers lecture from the National Coal Board with the theme ‘Coal: The Fuel of the Future’.

COP26? Don’t expect much

Whilst he hopes to be proved wrong, our special correspondent is not optimistic of great things coming from COP26. Shipping must continue to plough its own furrow on climate change.

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