Aviation industry agrees to CO2 emissions reduction scheme

Members of the International Civil Aviation Organization have agreed to measures aimed at enabling the aviation industry to reach carbon neutral growth from 2020.

   The International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) members have agreed to measures aimed at enabling the aviation industry to reach carbon neutral growth from 2020.
   The agreement follows last month’s decision by the G7 transportation ministers to issue a statement in support of the adoption of the global market-based measure for addressing CO2 emissions.
   On Thursday, 190 country members of ICAO, including the United States, formalized the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) at the organization’s 39th Assembly in Montreal in an effort to help achieve carbon-neutral growth in the industry.
   However, CORSIA does not actually require that airlines reduce their carbon emissions. Instead, starting in 2021 when the scheme goes into effect, companies will “offset” any increases in emissions through a system of credit buybacks in environmentally friendly projects.
   “The measure is structured in a way that is both pragmatic and has a high-level of emissions reduction, including an approach to phase-in countries to encourage the broadest participation possible,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement. “Moreover, it provides flexibility to countries that have limited capacity or that need technical assistance to participate.”
   ICAO members say these carbon emission reductions in aviation can be reached through the use of new technologies, air traffic improvements, and alternative fuels, but questions remain about what offsets can be used for the program, and whether they will need to be certified by the UN in order to qualify.
   The organization also said the agreement is crucial, given the international aviation sector is expected to grow 5 percent each year beyond 2020, translating into about 3.3 billion tons of CO2 emissions for the period from 2020 to 2035.