In London, the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) 82nd Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC82) recently concluded, marking a significant gathering to discuss the regulation of maritime shipping. Here’s a comprehensive overview of the key developments from the event. What happened at MEPC82? Youth climate advocates take the stage For the first time in the history of … Read more
Read how activists join Pacific Environment at the UN International Maritime Organization’s conference.
On a perfect San Francisco morning on July 12, history was made. The world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger ferry, the Sea Change, made its inaugural sail from the San Francisco Ferry Building to Pier 41 near Fisherman’s Wharf. The vessel will ferry people the 1.2 nautical miles three times a week for free: a short trip, … Read more
July 15th is Arctic Sea Ice Day, an opportunity to draw attention to the rapid decline of sea ice and wildlife habitat. According to the nonprofit Polar Bear International, “The Arctic is now warming nearly four times as fast as the rest of the planet, causing the sea ice to melt. Sea ice is crucial … Read more
Join Our Business Sponsors Program This World Ocean Day June 8 is World Ocean Day, an annual global celebration of our oceans and all that they provide. It’s a time to reflect not just on the beauty and bounty of our oceans but also on the urgent need to protect these vital ecosystems for future … Read more
An alarming new report published by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) confirms that plastic production is a huge contributor to global climate change. Gone unchecked, the report’s authors estimate that by mid-century, global climate change pollution from the plastics industry could triple, accounting for one-fifth of Earth’s remaining carbon budget. The report comes as … Read more
In a victory for people and climate, the California Air Resources Board amended the Commercial Harbor Craft Rule in 2022, setting the first zero-emissions mandate for ferries in the U.S and requiring cleaner engine upgrades for tugboats and other regulated vessels. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has yet to approve these lifesaving amendments. … Read more
Five years into the start of our initiative to eliminate plastic pollution in Vietnam, I feel immense pride in how much Pacific Environment and our partners have accomplished with our Zero Waste movement. Our goal: minimize single-use waste, reduce consumption, and ensure that products are made to be reused. Each passing year sees our movement … Read more
The third meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-3) for a global agreement to end plastic pollution concluded yesterday at the UNEP headquarters in Nairobi. Despite a clear mandate, Member States failed to reach an agreement on a revised treaty draft and also failed to agree on priorities for intersessional work ahead of INC-4, despite … Read more
By Xuan Thi Quach, Vietnam Country Director Greetings from Nairobi, Kenya, from the third round of United Nations negotiations for a Global Plastic Treaty. There are many challenges to achieving a strong treaty, but today I feel optimistic. I am here alongside hundreds of other plastic activists from around the world. We are united in our … Read more
Pacific Environment awards prize to largest locally managed Marine Protected Area We have just returned from another successful partnership with the Para El Mar MPA Awards (for the sea), a biennial event that aims to recognize and award the outstanding locally-managed marine protected areas (MPAs) and MPA networks in the Philippines. The awards were spirited, … Read more
WASHINGTON, DC [September 28, 2023] — In a letter sent to President Biden on World Maritime Day, 45 organizations called for an Executive Order to decarbonize maritime shipping. The Biden administration has already made significant commitments to eliminate emissions from the shipping industry, as well as to accelerate the development of zero-emission fuels and technologies … Read more
Civil society groups are deeply concerned by the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) failure to firmly align global shipping with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C temperature-warming limit, at the 80th Marine Environment Protection Committee meeting (MEPC 80) this week. The IMO’s 175 member states failed to agree on absolute emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2040, … Read more
Civil society groups are deeply concerned about developments at the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) climate negotiations this week (ISWG-GHG-15), in particular regarding the 2030 and 2040 climate targets that are necessary to put global shipping on a 1.5°C-aligned transition and ensure an equitable transition. The IMO’s 175 member states must urgently listen to climate … Read more
The global shipping industry can reduce emissions by nearly 50% by the end of the decade, according to a new study by CE Delft. These findings come as the UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) is about to reach an agreement on climate targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships in July. Civil society groups call on … Read more
A group of fuel production stakeholders, including H2Carrier and MAN Energy Solutions, today joined Environmental Defense Fund in support for the full decarbonisation of the shipping industry by 2050. The companies call on International Maritime Organization (IMO) Member States to develop policies that incentivize the production and adoption of sustainable fuels, and to adopt ambitious interim targets … Read more
The International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) agreement on shipping climate targets expected next month could be the starting gun for the radical climate action our planet desperately needs. Civil society groups are calling on the IMO member states to urgently support halving climate pollution from ships by 2030 and reaching zero-emission by 2040, at the Intersessional Working Group on Greenhouse … Read more
Washington, DC – U.S. Senators Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Alex Padilla (D-CA) today introduced a pair of bills aimed at reducing air pollution created by the global shipping industry. Whitehouse introduced the International Maritime Pollution Accountability Act, new legislation aiming to decarbonize the emissions-heavy maritime shipping industry, prevent the release of criteria air pollutants in port … Read more
In honor of International Plastic Free Day and ahead of the Global Plastics Treaty negotiations, Pacific Environment has released a report that underscores the serious threats of plastic pollution, and presents a new global model showing how the plastics and petrochemical industries will need to change in order to stay within the 1.5 degree Celsius … Read more
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel Tuesday continued to tout the benefits of the proposed North Slope-to-tidewater gas pipeline and LNG export project, contrary to the Biden administration’s commitment to align its actions with a 1.5 °C pathway. Ambassador Emanuel took the stage during Governor Dunleavy’s Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference. “To push the Alaska gas … Read more