Canada and the United States have come to an agreement regarding the future of a major commercial waterway running through both countries.
The agreement for a so-called Green Shipping Corridor Network Initiative in the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway System was achieved at the COP27 United Nations Climate Change Conference this year and announced by Transport Canada on Monday.
Through the new initiative, Transport Canada, the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of State will work with provincial and state governments, Indigenous groups in both countries, local communities, private-sector figures and non-governmental leaders to facilitate consultations with ports and other stakeholders while establishing the corridor network.
At the #COP27 World Leaders Summit, 🇨🇦 and the 🇺🇸 announced the #GreatLakes – St. Lawrence Seaway System, Green Shipping Corridor Network Initiative to benefit this unique commercial waterway reaching into the heartland of North America. https://t.co/F77FHlKJMA pic.twitter.com/Bbyx24HB0p
— Embassy of Canada US (@CanEmbUSA) November 8, 2022
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The Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway System is a commercial waterway containing over 110 ports that stretches through North America. Over 200 million tons of freight travel on the 3,700+ kilometre stretch every year.
Transport Canada says “green” shipping corridors are essential for promoting the adoption of zero-emission technologies and fuels that will allow the shipping sector to achieve its goal of preventing global temperature from rising more than 1.5 degrees celsius.
The organization also says the new initiative will enable Canada and the U.S. to establish various green corridors throughout the region by convening stakeholders and assisting with analyses and assessments related to alternative energy, fuel and power options.
According to Transport Canada, the initiative adds to work that had been previously launched under the “joint statement by the U.S. Department of Transportation and Transport Canada on the Nexus between transportation and climate change” that was issued at the end of February last year.
The organization says the two governments view the initiative as a critical element in accelerating the development of infrastructure and fuels required to facilitate a transition to environmentally conscious shipping on both sides of the border while creating the necessary jobs to make the so-called green development a reality.
Lastly, Transport Canada says the initiative might expand to aid green shipping corridors running along the coasts of both countries, leverage the knowledge and experience from other similar initiatives around the globe and assist with regional and global efforts that are well underway already.
Photo via Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway System.
