Ship owners will, for the first time, have to monitor carbon emissions from ships of more than 5,000 gross tons under a European Union law approved last week, the Guardian reports.
The law takes effect on Jan. 1, 2018. It doesn’t include shipping in the EU’s Emissions Trading System, but it moves the industry in that direction, EU officials told the publication.
International shipping accounts for about 3 percent of global CO2 emissions and could increase to 18 percent by 2050 if emissions aren’t regulated, according to the International Maritime Organization.
Photo Credit: container ship via Shutterstock