\n <\/figure>\n \n \n The world\u2019s first \u2018carbon-neutral\u2019 cargo ship is already low on gas<\/a>\n <\/p>\n Of course, a mega ship that forces hundreds of others to idle indefinitely \u2014 or take a much longer route around Africa \u2014 is no boon at all to the efficiency of the greater shipping industry. Shipping analysts have told news outlets<\/a> it may take days or weeks to remove the 224,000-ton Ever Given from the storied canal. In the meantime, the debacle is bringing attention to a multitrillion-dollar industry that normally slips under the public\u2019s radar.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cargo ships are a significant source of global greenhouse gas emissions \u2014 nearly 3 percent annually \u2014 but for many people they remain out of sight and out of mind, said Aoife O\u2019Leary<\/a>, the London-based director of international climate for the Environmental Defense Fund. \u201cIt takes a big disaster for the shipping industry to come into the public eye,\u201d she said, adding that she worries that the lack of attention on the industry during normal times means it face less public pressure to reduce overall emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That might help explain why industry regulators are moving slowly to clean up cargo ships, nearly all of which run on fossil fuels. The International Maritime Organization, part of the United Nations, adopted its decarbonization goal in 2018, though it\u2019s unclear how the organization will enforce the rules. Achieving those targets will ultimately require replacing oil and gas with zero-carbon fuels such as ammonia or hydrogen. Systems involving each are in very early stages of development, according to experts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the meantime, shipbuilders are looking for ways to improve upon today\u2019s freighters. Beyond magnifying their cargo-carrying capacity, ships like Ever Given also tend to use lightweight construction materials and hydrodynamic designs, allowing them to glide more easily through water and thus reduce fuel use. Many new vessels can also plug into shore-side electrical power once docked, reducing air pollution from their oil-burning engines. Other new ships include \u201csaver fins,\u201d or steel blades that guide the flow of seawater toward the propeller, improving fuel efficiency and reducing ship vibrations. A handful are installing spinning rotor sails<\/a> and high-flying kites, using wind to cut down on engine use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite such upgrades, the shipping industry overall isn\u2019t doing enough to make the global fleet more energy-efficient, O\u2019Leary said. The International Maritime Organization has adopted design standards for newly built vessels, but she said they largely reflect the status quo in shipbuilding and don\u2019t necessarily encourage companies to take more aggressive steps. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mega ships are also an example of the complicated and interconnected nature of the global shipping industry. Companies can design and build bigger, more efficient ships, but those vessels can\u2019t transit well-worn shipping lanes without major accommodations.\u00a0\u201cThere aren\u2019t very many ports that can even handle a ship this size,\u201d Captain John Konrad, founder of the shipping news site gCaptain.com<\/a>, said of Ever Given.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Canal and port authorities worldwide have invested heavily to dredge deeper and wider channels and to install bigger loading cranes. The Egyptian government spent $8.5 billion in 2015 to expand the Suez Canal and allow for two-way traffic. Panama recently completed a $5.25 billion, nine-year expansion of its canal system, which connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Dredging isn\u2019t just costly; it requires using diesel-burning machinery to dig and scoop the bottom of rivers, bays, and channels. In Texas, environmental groups have expressed concerns<\/a> that a $1 billion project to deepen the Houston Ship Channel will exacerbate toxic air pollution in nearby communities by using \u201cold, cheap dredges.\u201d Add to that, tugboat operators need to upgrade their own fleets with more powerful diesel engines in order to pull mega ships safely to shore or guide them through narrow passages, Konrad said.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n And while it\u2019s rare for a mega ship to block a canal, disruptions to shipping traffic can have real environmental consequences. Last May, dozens of oil tankers were forced to idle off California\u2019s coast<\/a> for weeks due to the turbulent global oil market. As they waited, the vessels ran their auxiliary engines, generating the equivalent daily carbon footprint of driving roughly 16,000 passenger cars. Depending on their fuel type, anchored vessels also emit sulfur dioxide and particulate matter, contributing to smog and local air pollution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the Suez Canal, more than 300<\/a> container ships, bulk carriers, oil tankers, and other vessels were waiting to enter or continue transiting the waterway as of Saturday. Their engines will keep humming in standby until Ever Given finally moves out of the way.<\/p>\n This story was originally published by Grist<\/a> with the headline About that ship jammed in the Suez Canal …<\/a> on Mar 27, 2021.<\/p>\n