Airline industry becomes first commercial sector to tackle climate change
Q. Which industry finally agreed to reduce its carbon footprint on Oct 5, 2016?- Published on 07 Oct 16a. Aviation
b. Manufacturing
c. Food and Beverages
d. Services
ANSWER: Aviation
Airline industry on Oct 5, 2016 agreed to a framework for reducing the carbon footprint at the UN meeting in Montreal
- It became the first industry and commercial sector to tackle climate change
- International Civil Aviation Organisation president A Rahman called the deal “historic” at the plenary session to cap GHG emissions by 2035 to 2020 levels
- Agreement was reached despite reservations by India, Russia and China
- ICAO announced that after six years of negotiations, a voluntary phase from 2021-2026 will become mandatory in 2027 for states with larger aviation industries
- 64 countries with 85 percent of international aviation activity are participating in the world’s first airline pollution agreement, including US and EU. Only the poorest nations, small island states and countries with global passenger travel of lower than 05 percent will be exempted from the agreement
- Framework agreement is a compromise between the developing and developed world
- Civil aviation produces 2 percent of the world’s carbon emissions
- Agreement is called CORSIA or Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation
- It will slow the growth of emissions from an industry where passengers will double to 7 billion by 2034
- Deal will cost airlines less than 2 percent of their annual revenues
- CORSIA will apply to global passenger and cargo flights and business jets to generate more than 10,000 tonnes of emissions annually
- Airlines operating such planes will have to buy carbon credits to offset growth productions
