Shipping And Pollution

There's an interesting article in today's UK Daily Mail about the pollution caused by global shipping, which vastly outweighs all the pollution caused by every vehicle in the world put together. But while 'gas-guzzling' cars get bad publicity and their owners are often accused of anti-social behaviour in buying and running them, the large shipping companies operate in almost complete obscurity, and more than 64,000 deaths related to shipping pollution go unchallenged. Free from public scrutiny, the shipping industry continues to supply world demand for consumer goods in a highly questionable way, by allowing itself to burn the dirtiest of all fuels- bunker fuel.

Of course, if country of origin was allowed to be more clearly displayed in retail stores, people could have the choice as to whether to support this level of pollution or not, simply by choosing more carefully the countries they buy products from.  Perhaps that latest shiny gadget wouldn't look so enticing if it was covered in soot and sulphur? You can read more on these issues in the CO2 Issues page on the lower menu bar, where there are other articles on this subject. They provide thought-provoking resources for schools and colleges.