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EU snubs ICAO CO2 agreement, will move forward with ETS
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The European Union is pressing ahead with its plan to include non-member-state airlines in its Emissions Trading Scheme from 2012 despite the historic agreement among the 190 contracting states of ICAO to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from aviation, including creating a framework to implement market-based measures to manage aviation GHGs on a sectoral basis.
The achievement, the first for any industrial sector, was formalized in a resolution of the 37th ICAO Assembly, which concluded its deliberations in Montreal on Oct. 8.
Speaking atthe Reuters Global Climate and Alternative Energy Summit in Brussels this week, EU Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard said the Community will press ahead with its ETS. "We will definitely keep fighting for the inclusion of aviation in the Emissions Trading Scheme," she said. "The bottom line is that we are including aviation in the ETS from 2012, and it is our interpretation of the ICAO meeting that we can continue to do so."
The ICAO resolution formalizes last year's "aspirational goal" of achieving a 2% annual fuel efficiency improvement up to the year 2050 and also sets a target of 2013 for a CO2 standard for aircraft engines. Itadditionally seeks a collective medium-term aspirational goal of capping aviation’s carbon emissions from 2020.
The resolution calls for development of a global framework on market-based economic measures by the 38th Assembly in 2013 based on 15 agreed principles. These principles are intended to minimize market distortions, safeguard the fair treatment of aviation relative to other sectors, ensure that aviation’s emissions are accounted for only once and recognize both past and future efforts of carriers.
The agreement was welcomed by aviation stakeholder groups although it fell short of adopting their positions in some key areas. "Governments have taken an historic decision. For the first time, we have globally agreed aspirational goals to stabilize emissions," IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani said in a statement.
"We are pleased to see that ICAO national delegations accept the need for a shared global vision and common goals as well as their willingness to move ahead on the agreed positions…despite some remaining questions that will be addressed in future discussions. The aviation industry has shown that we are committed, proactive and realistic," Airports Council International DG Angela Gittens stated.
IATA, ACI and groups representing aerospace manufacturers and air navigation services providers had presented a proposal calling for a 1.5% annual improvement in fuel efficiency through 2020, carbon-neutral growth between 2020 and 2050 and a 50% net reduction in aviation GHGs by 2050 compared to 2005 levels.
Obviously referencing the ETS, Bisignani added, “In light of this agreement, all states should review any economic measures, planned or implemented, to conform to today’s agreed principles. The only effective long-term solution remains a global approach, which states agreed to work towards under ICAO’s leadership.”
While praising the ICAO agreement, US Air Transport Assn. President and CEO James May expressed "deep disappointment" at the EU's steadfastness on the ETS. "Unfortunately, despite the tremendous step forward in cementing the international framework, the European States indicated their intent to continue to unilaterally impose their ETS and other measures on airlines from other countries,” he said. "We had hoped that an agreement at ICAO would obviate the need for our legal challenge to the application of the EU ETS to our airlines; the Europeans' resolve to ignore international law and key aspects of the new ICAO Assembly Resolution only strengthens our resolve to fight in favor of them."
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Discuss this article 11
Well done EU! Can we believe
By AlexWell done EU! Can we believe something that comes from IATA? Obviously they represent the interests of the airline industry and thru their arm, ICAO, want to give an air of neutrality to this key issue of CO2 emissions. Airlines are dirty and should pay dearly for it, make allowances in their balance sheets and start investing in the right technology and supporting the right projects.
Well done EU! Can we believe
By AlexWell done EU! Can we believe something that comes from IATA? Obviously they represent the interests of the airline industry and thru their arm, ICAO, want to give an air of neutrality to this key issue of CO2 emissions. Airlines are dirty and should pay dearly for it, make allowances in their balance sheets and start investing in the right technology and supporting the right projects.
If the aim of the EU (and
By SteveIf the aim of the EU (and other regulatory authorities) is to reduce carbon emissions, why is air traffic being allowed to increase at a massive rate due largely to the phenomenal growth of LLCs.
Why also is an industry that contributes only 2% of carbon emissions being penalised so harshly compared to low efficiency power stations. ageging trains, ships etc?
And how does carbon trading actually serve to REDUCE emissions ? All it does is allow the most profitable companies to use as much as they can afford.
When is the world going to wake up and realise that this is all just a big con trick to siphon more taxes from airlines who are already under massive financial burdens because of ill-conceived decisions at Government levels?
Apologies for typos above...
By SteveApologies for typos above... that should of course read "LCCs"! and "ageing trains, ships" etc.
Apologies for typos above...
By SteveApologies for typos above... that should of course read "LCCs"! and "ageing trains, ships" etc.
Apologies for typos above...
By SteveApologies for typos above... that should of course read "LCCs"! and "ageing trains, ships" etc.
After 11 years of complete
By FrankAfter 11 years of complete inaction at ICAO and it's "Gentlemen's Club" of IATA, the only thing that could stir them into ANY action whatsoever was the threat of the EU ETS being imposed upon them. The ICAO agreement of 2 weeks ago is too little too late and therefore the EU is rightly intent on proceeding. Inevitably they will water down the scheme a little, to show some apprciation for a very weak global agreement.
But the detractors should think of what is the alternative to an ETS system which has the market forces helping set prices at around EUR 15 per tonne of CO2 and which half od EU manjor industries are ALREADY for 5 years in the this scheme successfully!? Well, the alternative is to let the politicians unleash the tax man onto them and charge a so-called green (departure) tax of EUR 50 or more per tonne of CO2. Think I am joking or scaremongering? Just be bothered to read some of the comms coming from the EU these days. EU ETS is tame and is relatively business friendly compared to the alternative of the big and greedy tax ogre. And most people dont realise is that perhas as much as EUR 10 of the EU ETS CO2 price actually goes into a CO2 reduction scheme somewhere in the world, audited by the UN. As for taxes, well zero will go anywhere for the environment.
Be careful what you wish for.
After 11 years of complete
By FrankAfter 11 years of complete inaction at ICAO and it's "Gentlemen's Club" of IATA, the only thing that could stir them into ANY action whatsoever was the threat of the EU ETS being imposed upon them. The ICAO agreement of 2 weeks ago is too little too late and therefore the EU is rightly intent on proceeding. Inevitably they will water down the scheme a little, to show some apprciation for a very weak global agreement.
But the detractors should think of what is the alternative to an ETS system which has the market forces helping set prices at around EUR 15 per tonne of CO2, and which half of EU major industries are ALREADY for 5 years in the this scheme successfully!?
Well, the alternative is to let the politicians unleash the tax man onto them and charge a so-called green (departure) tax of EUR 50 or more per tonne of CO2. You think I am joking or scaremongering? Just be bothered to read some of the comms coming from the EU these days.
EU ETS is tame and is relatively business friendly compared to the alternative of the big and greedy tax ogre. And most people dont realise is that perhas as much as EUR 10 of the EU ETS CO2 price actually goes into a CO2 reduction scheme somewhere in the world, audited by the UN. As for taxes, well zero will go anywhere for the environment.
Be careful what you wish for.
Apologies for errors above
By FrankApologies for errors above and double posting. Here is correct version....
After 11 years of complete inaction at ICAO and it's "Gentlemen's Club" of IATA, the only thing that could stir them into ANY action whatsoever was the threat of the EU ETS being imposed upon them. The ICAO agreement of 2 weeks ago is too little too late and therefore the EU is rightly intent on proceeding. Inevitably they will water down the scheme a little, to show some apprciation for a very weak global agreement.
But the detractors should think of what is the alternative to an ETS system which has the market forces helping set prices at around EUR 15 per tonne of CO2, and which half of EU major industries are ALREADY for 5 years in the this scheme successfully!?
Well, the alternative is to let the politicians unleash the tax man onto them and charge a so-called green (departure) tax of EUR 50 or more per tonne of CO2. You think I am joking or scaremongering? Just be bothered to read some of the comms coming from the EU these days.
EU ETS is tame and is relatively business friendly compared to the alternative of the big and greedy tax ogre. And most people dont realise is that perhas as much as EUR 10 of the EU ETS CO2 price actually goes into a CO2 reduction scheme somewhere in the world, audited by the UN. As for taxes, well zero will go anywhere for the environment.
Be careful what you wish for.
i am so sorry that the EU
By Anonymousi am so sorry that the EU does not respect the only international body that governce aviation .what are they looking for ? are their states still member in the ICAO ? yes they are ; but what have they done to encourage ICAO to issue an EU acceptable decision, does they attend ICAO meetings to present their strength in ignoring the global decisions . am sure that the EU with this ignorance to the international agreements put a big stone in its way to progress.
I wonder if you have been
By TomI wonder if you have been using those "dirty airlines" recently when you went to your last vacation or business trip. Furher, no branch came even close to airline industry in term of environmentally friendly approach. Still, there are too many like you that are collecting cheap points in politics by going on airlines, while usually their own activity is far worse than airline business.
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