The freight sector— which includes trucks, trains, marine vessels, airplanes, and other modes — provides a vital service delivering foods, goods, and resources. But, the movement of freight also affects our economies, communities, and local and global environments in profound ways.

The freight sector is growing: more freight, weighing more, is being moved by more modes farther and faster with each passing decade. As globalization, urbanization, and global economies continue to expand, the freight sector will too, consuming more fuel and releasing harmful emissions. To better understand the impacts of global freight movement, consider that the freight industry transports trillions of dollars’ worth of goods every year to every corner of the globe and back, largely by burning millions of gallons of diesel fuel, which emits greenhouse gases and other pollutants. 

These emissions are responsible for significant environmental and economic impacts:   

The Global Green Freight Project was initiated by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition as part of a large-scale effort to reduce the climate and health impacts and improve the energy and economic efficiency of transporting goods and materials.

Objectives

The goal of the Global Green Freight Action Plan is to facilitate collaboration among governments, the private sector, and civil society to enhance the efficiency of global goods movement in ways that significantly reduce climate, health, energy, and economic impacts. The Action Plan encompasses an evolving set of actions aimed at engaging stakeholders in support of three main objectives: aligning and enhancing existing green freight efforts; developing new green freight programs; and incorporating measures to control black carbon emissions into green freight programmes.


What we're doing

  • Information exchange and collaboration between existing initiatives and relevant stakeholders
  • Development and harmonization of tools, methodologies, and procedures for use across green freight programmes
  • Guidance and capacity building for green freight programme implementation
  • Adoption of technologies and strategies
  • Improved information and increased awareness on black carbon and freight
  • Integration of black carbon into green freight programmes' supporting tools, methodolgies, technologies and strategies

Project updates

Related documents

Tags
Pollutants (SLCPs)
Black carbon
Themes
Heavy-duty vehicles and engines

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