The position of the scientific community is clear - we will avoid a climate catastrophe only if we globally achieve climate neutrality, i.e. a state of balance between emitting and absorbing greenhouse gases. One of the main assumptions of the European Green Deal (EGD), developed by the European Commission, is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transport by 90%, so that the EU economy becomes climate-neutral by 2050. Such high targets are one of the most serious challenges facing the transport sector. The only way to achieve them is technological transformation and following the path of sustainable development.
Achieving this target will not be easy, however, as the emission reduction rate in the transport sector is falling more slowly than expected. Due to the increasing mobility of people, carbon dioxide emissions from transport have increased[1].
One of the key documents of the European Green Deal in this topic is the "Strategy for Sustainable and Smart Mobility". It underpins the green and digital transformations and makes the EU transport system more resilient to future crises, and aims to guide work over the next few years. As indicated in the European Green Deal, thanks to a smart, competitive, safe, accessible and affordable transport system, emissions will be reduced by 90% by 2050[2].
The strategy identifies a total of 82 initiatives in 10 key areas of action ("flagships"). These are:
Brussels has identified many areas that will have a direct and very profound impact on the transport sector - while giving relatively little time for their implementation. In addition, the document aroused much controversy on the part of individual European Union Member States, including Poland. In its current form, some of its provisions are inconsistent, inconsistent with the assumptions of the climate law and discriminate against some Member States.
In order for the aforementioned climate-neutral scenario to be achieved, all types of transport will have to be involved in its implementation: road, rail, air and water. Each of them should become more sustainable - but what does that actually mean? In simple terms, it is supposed to be effective transport, meeting the expectations of society, economically beneficial, and at the same time minimizing the harmful impact of means of transport on the environment.
From the point of view of reducing emissions, electrification and alternative fuels are among the most important elements of the decarbonisation of transport. Equally important is the constant improvement of the materials used in the production of vehicles, so that they become lighter and more durable. This will not be possible without access to appropriate financial instruments, both at EU and national level, necessary to achieve this goal.
There is no doubt that the EU and national administration should support all scientific and innovative projects aimed at achieving the greatest reduction of emissions in transport. One of the solutions regarding the possibility of obtaining funds in the field of research and innovation is the EU program Horizon Europe, as well as national funding programs.
One of the constituent concepts of the European Green Deal are the so-called green supply chains. As part of this idea, they are designed in such a way as to minimize the total total environmental impact of the product throughout its life cycle: from design, through production, packaging, sale, use and recycling. All this taking into account the processes of storage and transport, which should meet the appropriate environmental standards. In addition, an important change that the new regulations are to lead to is the increase in the flow of information at each stage of transport of individual products. Legislative work on the EU Sustainable Chemicals Strategy is of particular importance for the distribution challenges faced by chemical companies. This document is an important step towards achieving zero pollutant emissions for a non-toxic environment announced in the European Green Deal. Regardless of the Strategy currently being introduced, chemistry is an industry that has been taking steps to reduce the impact on the environment in the area of transport of its products for a long time. The Polish Chamber of Chemical Industry together with the Warsaw School of Economics implemented the ChemMultimodal Project in 2016-2019.
– It was aimed at presenting the idea of combined transport of chemical products and pointing out its advantages. Thanks to the cooperation between chemical producers, carriers, logistics operators, as well as public authorities, the share of combined transport in the chemical sector increased by 10%, while reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 5% - said Dr. Eng. Tomasz Zieliński, President of the Management Board of the Polish Chamber of Chemical Industry.
Undoubtedly, all entities from the TSL (transport-forwarding-logistics) and chemical industries face the challenge of implementing changes related to the implementation of the European Green Deal policy, imposed by the EU authorities, and then by the Polish legislator. The European Green Deal is a huge challenge for companies in the chemical industry, but it is also worth treating it as an opportunity for the development and implementation of various, often innovative technological or organizational solutions. Achieving the goal of climate neutrality will require actions in all sectors of the economy, including investments in environmentally friendly technologies and the introduction of cleaner and cheaper forms of transport.
The issues that transport will face, related to the assumptions of the European Green Deal, have been extensively discussed in the analysis of the Polish Chamber of Chemical Industry and the Łukasiewicz Research Network - Institute of Logistics and Warehousing entitled "Challenges for the transport and logistics sector under the European Green Deal (EGD)", prepared especially and available for the needs of PIPC Members.
Low-emission transport will also be the topic of discussion during the 8th Polish Chemistry Congress, which will take place on June 16 in the form of an all-day online television program. Participation in the event is free for all registered. Details and registration are available at: https://www.kongrespolskachemia.pl/.
Article prepared by the Polish Chamber of Chemical Industry.
[1] Data from the European Environment Agency: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/pl/headlines/society/20190313STO31218/emisje-co2-z-samochodow-fakty-i-liczby-infografika
[2] https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/pl/ip_20_2329
