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IATA DG and CEO Giovanni Bisignani urged attending governments at the Second Ministerial Conference on Global Environment and Energy in Transport in Rome to recognize and support the commitments of IATA and ICAO in driving aviation’s approach to climate change. “Aviation is at the forefront of industries taking a responsible approach on climate change. In 2009, aviation emitted 625 million tonnes of carbon--equal to 2% of manmade CO2. We are working together to reduce that with the cooperation of governments,” he said. He cited the historic resolution at the recent ICAO Assembly (ATWs Eco-Aviation Today, Oct. 15).

But Bisignani pleaded with governments: “We could do much more if governments were more committed. For decades we called on European governments to manage airspace with a Single European Sky. This alone would cut aviation’s emissions by 16 million tonnes annually. Europe is united, but its skies remain fragmented. The lack of political will to move this forward is a costly disappointment for airlines and for the environment.”

He reminded governments that the air transportation industry is ahead of all other global industries and regulators in setting targets for reductions in emissions. However, to achieve the targets, “industry and government must work together. The Kyoto Protocol entrusted ICAO to manage aviation’s international emissions. Christiana Figueres, the Executive Director of the UNFCCC, confirmed and encouraged ICAO’s leadership role, and the cooperation between ICAO, IATA and UNFCCC is outstanding.”

US Dept. of Agriculture moved to promote the production of biofuel from renewable sources in every part of the US. Addressing the National Press Club in Washington in late October, Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a series of measures, saying that domestic production of renewable energy, including biofuels, is a national imperative. "By producing more biofuels in America, we will create jobs, combat global warming, replace our dependence on foreign oil and build a stronger foundation for the 21st century economy," Vilsack told media.

He announced several measures, including publication of a final rule to implement the Biomass Crop Assistance Program. Under the rule, USDA will resume making payments to eligible producers. The program had operated as a pilot pending publication of the final rule. Authorized in the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008, BCAP is designed to ensure that a sufficiently large base of new nonfood, nonfeed biomass crops is established in anticipation of future demand for renewable energy consumption.

Vilsack also announced jointly with FAA a five-year agreement to develop aviation fuel from forest and crop residues and other "green" feedstocks in order to decrease dependence on foreign oil and stabilize aviation fuel costs. Under the partnership, the agencies will bring together their experience in research, policy analysis and air transportation sector dynamics to assess the availability of different kinds of feedstocks that could be processed by bio-refineries to produce jet fuels.

Boeing VP-Environment and Aviation Policy Billy Glover called the five-year agreement "welcome news for the commercial aviation industry, which sees sustainable biofuels as a key element of its plan to lower carbon emissions." He noted that Boeing is working with USDA and the Air Transport Assn. on the "Farm-to-Fly" initiative, "which seeks to encourage production of sustainable aviation biofuels through US agricultural policy. The USDA-FAA partnership will further help in that regard."

ATA President and CEO James May said, "After formally launching the ‘Farm to Fly’ initiative just three months ago, [Agriculture] Secretary Vilsack has taken a leadership role in this significant endeavor for aviation and for rural America." He added that the programs "will provide investors, farmers, bankers and US energy companies with the confidence to invest in these proven, green technologies."

VerifAvia(UK) Ltd. received ISO14065:2007 accreditation from the UK Accreditation Service to provide greenhouse gas verification for the aviation sector under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. ISO14065:2007 is an international standard that specifies the principles and requirements for bodies that undertake validation or verification of GHG assertions. It is used by most national accreditation bodies to certify companies that want to provide EU ETS verification services.

Since January, the 2,500 or so aircraft operators included in the EU ETS have started to monitor their aircraft emissions and tonne-kilometer data according to their approved monitoring plans and the EU ETS regulations. The annual emissions and tonne-kilometer reports must be verified by an independent accredited verifier before being submitted to the relevant EU competent authority. The aim of verification is not only to ensure with reasonable assurance that the reported data is free from material misstatements but also that the procedures in place conform to the regulations.

Inventor Richard Hales credits his son’s boyhood love of aviation for his new patented FreeWind technology to harness aircraft engine thrust to power electricity-generating turbines. “My young son was totally consumed by aviation since he was three and so I found myself at airports watching jets take off in a rush of wind and ear-splitting noise,” Hales told ATW's Eco-Aviation Today.

His son went on to be a pilot while Hales, an industrial designer, sees the ends of runways as a golden opportunity to harness the exhaust from jet engines. With more than 35,000 jet aircraft taking off every day from 900 US airports and generating thrust at speeds of up to 300 mph, he sees a potent power source for electricity-generating wind turbines.

“There would be an aircraft taking off every 90 seconds from those airports and thus a virtually constant source of wind power to generate electricity to be used in and around the airport,” he says. He suggests that his concept could be incorporated into the many blast fences at airports. He is hoping to secure seed funding to build a prototype.