Major shippers and carriers have pledged to not use Arctic shipping routes.
Currently, shipping in the Arctic Ocean is currently limited business as receding ice caps allow the opportunity for much shorter shipping routes to Asia. Though, a growing number of shipping lines and major shippers have stated that they will not ship through Arctic Ocean despite potential benefits.
“While recognizing that local and regional shipping is vital to northern communities and indigenous communities, the Arctic Shipping Corporate Pledge invites companies to not intentionally route ships or send goods through the region as part of a potential new global trans-shipment route,” Ocean Conservancy said in a statement.
The Ocean Conservancy has launched the Arctic Corporate Shipping Pledge with Nike in October. Now Ralph Lauren Corporation, Kuehne + Nagel, PUMA, International Direct Packaging, Allbirds, Aritzia, Hudson Shipping Lines and Bureo have also signed the pledge.
“These new signatories reflect a significant intention by consumer and logistics industries, including brands like Ralph Lauren Corporation, which operates more than 500 stores worldwide, and PUMA, which distributes products to more than 120 countries. Logistics giant Kuehne + Nagel alone shipped more than 4.7 million containers in 2018,” Ocean Conservancy said.
The new signatories join other shippers Asos, Bestseller, Columbia, Gap Inc., H&M Group, Kering, Li & Fung, PVH Corp., and carriers CMA CGM, Evergreen, Hapag-Lloyd and Mediterranean Shipping Company.
