Cutting airplane emission a formidable challenge

If global aviation were a country, it would be the 7th highest carbon emitter in the world, suggests a recent study. Another indicates that the greenhouse gases that airplanes spew are equal to the amount that Germany emits.
Currently, airline carbon emission is around 2% of the global total. And if this is not checked, it might triple by 2050. Growing commercial aviation industry could contribute 27% of allowable emissions between 2015 and 2050.
Without addressing the aviation pollution, the climate goal that the Paris Pact envisages will never be achieved. Starting Tuesday, the UN International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) will meet in Montreal for 10 days and try to rope in as many countries as possible to back the proposed deal — first-of-its-kind — that aims to reduce pollution in the skies caused by airplanes.
The proposed agreement will put caps on aircraft emissions. It targets to keep the net emissions from international flights from exceeding 2020 levels. Those who exceed the limit will have to buy credits from other companies that have
reduced their carbon pollution. There are clauses to improve the efficiency standards for new airplanes too.
However, the deal relies on voluntary participation during the first six years. Thus, it is becoming increasingly difficult to bring the holdout countries — mostly the emerging economies — on board. Some major polluters have said that they would opt out of the accord until it becomes mandatory. The deal-makers have to convince the countries sitting on the fence to join in and shed their ambivalence.
The world urgently needs a global agreement that sets uniform standards rather than a patchwork of national rules which vary from one country to
another. Well laid-out targets, certification standards that focus on aircraft design to make it more fuel-efficient, changing flight patterns with stress on takeoff and landing as well as a robust common system for carbon credit are some ways to slow down the emissions. It is a formidable challenge, and one that needs a collective effort and global synergy.
Solar Impulse 2 — in which Abu Dhabi-based Masdar had a huge role to play —travelled the globe on solar energy. Solar-powered air travel is no more a flight of fancy. Experiments are on at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
(NASA) to test the viability of electric planes. Bio fuels to fly aircraft are also in trial stages. More R&D is required to make these functional. The alternatives will take time to become the order of the day. Till then, a strong international agreement that cuts airplane emission is vital for a clean future. And the Montreal meeting offers the best chance to do it. A global market-based mechanism that tackles aviation pollution effectively while keeping intact the competitiveness is the need of the hour.
Marcie Keever, legal director for Friends of the Earth, puts it rightly, “People should not have to choose between mobility and a healthy climate.” We can find a way where both are not compromised. The ICAO with cooperation from the stakeholders can make it happen. It can pave the path towards a responsible
air travel.
Over to Montreal!