The
international airline industry has reached deal on limiting carbon emissions,
billed as the first such worldwide deal for a single sector. Critics say
aspects of the plan are unfair - or just too little, too late.
Deutsche Welle, 7 Oct 2016
The
agreement to set limits was adopted by the overwhelmingly by the International
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) at a meeting in Montreal on Thursday.
The deal
was approved by a meeting of the ICAO's 191 member states.
Airlines
that exceed limits, as most are expected to do, will have to buy credits from
other industries to offset their emissions.
To avoid
them having to do so, the ICAO - a UN agency - is pushing for great use of
fuel-efficient engines that run on biofuels, lighter aircraft materials and
route optimization.
"It's
a document arising from compromises and consensus," said Olumuyiwa Benard
Aliu, president of ICAO's governing council.
Malaysia's
aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, who chaired the session said the deal -
to cap carbon-dioxide emissions at 2020 levels by 2035 - was
"historic."
The first
phase of the airline agreement - which is voluntary - covers 2021 to 2027,
while participation will become mandatory from 2028 through to 2035.
Responsibility
for putting the agreement into effect will fall onto individual nations.
India and
Russia sit out voluntary phase
More than
60 states - representing some 8 percent of global air traffic - will
participate in the Carbon Offset and Reduction Scheme for International
Aviation.
Russia and
India have already said they will not join the voluntary phase, and said the
deal placed an unfair burden on emerging countries. However, China - which also
expressed reservations - said it would take part.
The system
is the first global emissions pact to cover a single, specific industry.
However, there has been criticism that the arrangement will fail to
sufficiently reduce emissions from commercial flights.
The fact
that the initial phase is a voluntary one, and that exceptions are in place to
protect smaller aviation markets, has led environmentalists to suggest that the
scheme will not achieve its aims.
"This
agreement is a timid step in the right direction when we need to be
sprinting," said Greenpeace UK Chief Scientist Doug Parr.
rc/bw (AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters)
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