“Cut Shipping’s Black Carbon to Protect the Arctic”: Clean Arctic Alliance Response to ICCI & UNEP Overshoot & Cryosphere Reports
Responding to publication of two reports, Overshoot and the Cryosphere: Averting Global Meltdown and State of the Cryosphere 2026: The Cost of Overshoot by the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), which find that overshooting the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target, which is now inevitable, will cause large-scale, and perhaps irreversible ...
In response to the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) reports on overshooting the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target and the state of the cryosphere, the Clean Arctic Alliance has emphasized the urgent need to cut shipping's black carbon emissions to protect the Arctic.
Sian Prior, Lead Advisor to the Clean Arctic Alliance, stated that the reports confirm that the impact of cryosphere loss intensifies with every fraction of a degree of warming and that humans and the environment face greater risks from the melting cryosphere. The Arctic and Antarctic ice sheets are melting six times faster than 30 years ago.
The shipping industry is responsible for 3% of global GHG emissions and increasing emissions of black carbon and methane, which the Overshoot report highlights as having a disproportionate impact in the Arctic. Dr. Prior called for immediate intensification of efforts to reduce the sector's climate impact through cleaner fuels and decarbonisation.
A polar fuels proposal, aimed at reducing black carbon emissions in the Arctic, is currently under consideration by the International Maritime Organization's Pollution Prevention and Response meeting in January 2027. If adopted by IMO Member States, this regulation would significantly reduce black carbon emissions in the Arctic. The proposal, led by Denmark, Germany, France, and the Solomon Islands, needs support from Arctic countries, particularly Canada, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.
The ICCI and UNEP reports state that time remains to limit the impacts of overshoot by minimizing emissions and accelerating carbon drawdown. They urge a rapid transition away from fossil fuels to manage the risks to the Arctic, including Arctic sea ice and glacier ice.
Black carbon, a short-lived climate pollutant produced by incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, has 16 times the warming impact of CO2 over 20 years. It makes up around 20% of shipping's climate impact and accelerates melting when deposited on snow and ice. Black carbon also negatively affects human health, causing premature death and cardiovascular issues, and has been found in fetal body tissues.
Efforts to reduce black carbon emissions on land, such as banning dirtier fuels and improving air quality, have been insufficient at sea. The Clean Arctic Alliance report on black carbon emissions from ships in the Arctic (2019-2024) provides a detailed analysis of these emissions, their seasonal patterns, vessel characteristics, fuel consumption, and the potential future impact of shipping activity.
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