What will the effect be on aviation emissions?
The environmental impact of the proposal will be significant because aviation emissions, which are currently growing rapidly, will be capped at their average level in 2004-2006. By 2020 it is estimated that a total of 183 million tonnes of CO2 will be saved per year on the flights covered, a 46% reduction compared with business as usual. This is equivalent, for instance, to twice Austria’s annual greenhouse gas emissions from all sources. Some of these reductions are likely to be made by airlines themselves. However, participation in the EU scheme will also give them other options, such as buying additional allowances on the market – that is, paying other participants to reduce their emissions – or investing in emission-saving projects carried out under the Kyoto Protocol’s flexible mechanisms. Providing the aviation industry with these options does not reduce the environmental impact of the proposal since the climate impact of emission reductions is the same regardless of where they a
Related Questions
- Why does the EC propose to include emissions from international aviation and shipping in the Copenhagen agreement?
- Why is the European Commission (EC) proposing to bring aviation into the EU Emissions Trading Scheme?
- Besides the proposed directive, what else is the EC doing to help reduce aviation emissions?
