As you no doubt know by now, transportation accounts for about 13% of worldwide GHG.
Figure SPM.3. (a) Global annual emissions of anthropogenic GHGs from 1970 to 2004.5(b) Share of different anthropogenic GHGs in total emissions in 2004 in terms of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2-eq). (c) Share of different sectors in total anthropogenic GHG emissions in 2004 in terms of CO2-eq. (Forestry includes deforestation.)
In the US, the proportion for transportation is much higher: 29%. In India and China, transportation accounts for about 5% each of total GHG; in Germany, 20%, in Japan, 22%.
Let’s take a quick look at some recent developments.
European Union – Aviation included in EU CO2 trading scheme is the headline from EurActiv last week. The European Parliament voted its approval of moving aviation under its GHG cap-and-trade system in 2012. As the article reports, “The move was immediately criticised by the aviation industry as well as the United States.” However, the EU fully intends to negotiate an international agreement and may attempt to create a bilateral agreement with the US.
The EU has been moving steadily toward bringing down aviation’s emissions. I wrote about this last December at Aviation and the EU. See also my article on sustainability at US airports and a useful video from the EU, both referenced at the December post. Although the burden of GHG emissions from aviation is still only about 3% of the total worldwide, that proportion is growing rapidly.
Airline Industry – As I found when I wrote the article about airports, the industry is also working very hard indeed to get emissions down. One big reason: Cost! With jet fuel prices going up by the day, it behooves the industry to maximize efficiency. That translates into more fuel-efficient planes and engines, faster and more direct routing of planes, better maintenance, and even alternative fuels. The “FT” had a special report yesterday on the aerospace industry. See this from them on the environmental side. Among other things, companies like Virgin Atlantic are experimenting with alternative fuels. They used a biofuel blend in a test flight last winter. See their release. See also Rolls-Royce, British Airways to Test Alternative Airline Fuels from GreenBiz. On air traffic control, you can check out the fascinating video from the EU at my post from just about a year ago.
Shipping – Like aviation, seaborne shipping accounts for a relatively small percentage of GHG, but it is growing. Making Ships Green, in Port and at Sea, is an article from the “NY Times” I’ve been saving for you for a few months. Just as I found in writing my article on airports, ships, like planes, are hooking up to a local electricity supply when they’re in port in order to save power and reduce emissions. In Sweden, where acid rain continues to be a big concern, this approach eliminates the particularly noxious pollutants from marine bunker fuel. They’re hooking up in Belgium, LA and Long Beach too. But acid rain is not the only consideration. The article reports: “James J. Corbett, an associate professor of marine policy at the University of Delaware, is the co-author of a study published in December that attributed 60,000 cardiopulmonary and lung cancer deaths each year globally to shipping emissions and forecast an increase to nearly 85,000 deaths by 2012 under current trends.” See also this report, “Green Harbours,” from the Hong Kong nonprofit Civic Exchange. (And try More Cool Stuff from me from March with the picture of the freighter with the kite for supplementary power.)
Transportation of Food – I’ve been sitting on another “NY Times” article from a few months back waiting for the right context to flag it to you. See Environmental Cost of Shipping Groceries Around the World in which one expert, Paul Watkiss, an Oxford University economist, is quoted: “We’re shifting goods around the world in a way that looks really bizarre.” He wrote a recent European Union report on food imports. See Watkiss’s slide show, “Food Miles and Sustainability,” here.
The “NYT” article goes on to talk about regulation, particularly from the EU, being in the offing. There’s also a good little video about the exotic mangosteen and how it finds its way to your taste buds if you’re in Europe or the US.
On the other hand, see also Do food miles matter? from the terrific “Environmental Science & Technology” from April. The study cited says ” that transportation creates only 11% of the 8.1 metric tons of greenhouse gases (in carbon dioxide equivalents) that an average U.S. household generates annually as a result of food consumption. The agricultural and industrial practices that go into growing and harvesting food are responsible for most (83%) of its greenhouse gas emissions.”
More about what we eat and how it affects the global climate system here soon.
Electric Cars – This, my friends, is where the rubber meets the road. We can really, truly have zero-carbon surface transportation with electric (or fuel cell) cars powered by renewables. I wrote about this at Electric Cars Looming on the Horizon in May and at Future Car from April.
Now Renault, Nissan Plan to Electrify Portugal is the word from GreenBiz. The release from Nissan quotes Prime Minister José Socrates: “Portugal has become a leading country in renewable energy. This agreement with Renault-Nissan will place Portugal also on the front line in terms of sustainable mobility with zero-emission vehicles.”
