Climate solution: Sails make a comeback in shipping, to dent its huge carbon footprint

Had he continued working aboard fuel-powered cargo ships, Yann Jourdan reckons he'd be earning perhaps four times what he now gets as captain of a sailboat that instead uses the wind's clean energy to transport goods across the Atlantic.

- AGENCIES

But the hit to Jourdan's pay is buying him peace of mind. When his 3-year-old son, Marcel, grows up, the burly French mariner wants to be able to explain what he did to make a dent in the shipping industry's huge carbon footprint.

The international merchant fleet of more than 100,000 ships transports more than 80% of global trade. But it's also responsible for about 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Without a quick switch from dirty fuels to cleaner energies, its pollution is forecast to soar.

Mariners pushing for wind power say investors used to view them as something of a joke. But as they pioneer a comeback for sail-powered cargo ships, they're having the last laugh.