Panama canal will become the world's green route

In September 2009, the Authority of the Panama Canal (ACP for its acronym in Spanish) established theComité Interdepartamental de la Ruta Verde del Canal(Interdepartmental Committee of the Canal's Green Route), with the objective of integrating all the ACP initiatives to position the Canal as the world's maritime green route.

The Green Route is a strategy for the reduction of emissions in the world's maritime industry; the promotion of sustainable development in the hydrographic basin of the Panama Canal; and the establishment as a low carbon agency.

The carbon footprint represent the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions generated by an entity in a one year period, and constitutes the main cause of climate change. Thus, companies in the world have outlined the essential objective of reducing the levels of emissions.

The reduction of the carbon footprint may be accomplished through valid measurements and the application of energy efficiency practices, management of materials and inputs, investments in projects to reduce emissions, and purchase of carbon credits.

This initiative is supported by CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, which has worked with different environmental investment projects and in the migration to low carbon economies.

CAF's contribution will support the Green Route by training the different ACP units in measuring the footprint, which will lead in the future to the implementation of a carbon footprint software.

Measuring the carbon footprint is an initiative that contributes to sustainable development both in the area of economics as well as the environment of the Panama Canal, and the mitigation of more than 100 million tons of CO2 have been estimated between 2015 and 2025.