The pandemic-driven shopping spree is having at least one unintended consequence: emissions from shipping are on the rise again.
Bored at home, consumers ordered everything from washing machines to Peloton exercise bikes, fueling a global trade in goods and boosting demand for ships to deliver them. With so many orders on the books, the container fleet is speeding up at sea, burning more fuel, according to Cargill Inc., the world’s top agriculture trader.
The increase in shipping emissions comes just as the world faces a natural gas shortage that’s forcing electricity producers around the world to use more dirty coal and even fuel oil.
