Taking aim at aviation emissions
The European Commission will cap emissions from both domestic and international airlines at 2004–2006 levels.
As of 2012, all flights into and out of the EU will be covered by the EU’s greenhouse gas emissions trading system, under a proposal laid out by the European Commission (EC) in late December. The system is the centerpiece of EU efforts to meet emissions reduction targets agreed to under the Kyoto Protocol on climate change. Including aviation is necessary, EC officials say, to account for the environmental costs of rapidly growing emissions from this sector, which are threatening to wipe out gains made by other sectors. To counter threats of legal action by the U.S., international carriers will be given an extra year to comply.
Air travel currently accounts for only about 3% of total greenhouse gas emissions in Europe, but these are expected to more than double by 2020 under a business-as-usual scenario. Since 1990, aviation emissions have increased 87%. With this measure, EC officials estimate annual CO2 savings of 46% or 183 million tons by 2020.
The EC will set pollution limits based on average aviation emissions in 2004–2006, allocating credits to specific airlines. The airlines will then be able to buy, sell, or bank the credits within the aviation sector to meet their required reductions.
The legislation now moves to the European Parliament and Council of Ministers for adoption, which typically takes 1–2 years.
