Editorial: Shipping pressures and impacts on the marine environment

Other text in scientific journal, 2025

Maritime shipping plays a pivotal role in the global economy and 80 percent of the international trade volume is, at some point, transported on a ship (UNCTAD, 2024). Since the mid-1970s until early 2020s the seaborne trade volumes have more than tripled (UNCTAD, 2023), with concurrent increases in shipping pressure on the marine environment, stimulating research within the marine sciences community. Although shipping is often considered an energy efficient mode of transport, it is well known that every ship gives rise to a range of pressures on the marine environment, from biological, to chemical, and energy pollution (e.g., Hannah et al., 2020; Jalkanen et al., 2021). This Research Topic covers investigations of all these pressure types, while also addressing regulatory and policy aspects. In addition, the Research Topic can inform future development, e.g. the opening of new shipping routes in the Arctic, providing support on how to prevent or minimize shipping pressures and impacts in the area.