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SCIENCEWednesday 10 February
U.N. agency proposes greenhouse gas emissions rules for planes
JOAN LOWY er, meaning even dirtier administration. EPA officials
MICHAEL BIESECKER said at the time that the
Associated Press planes can continue to fly. earliest the agency is likely
WASHINGTON (AP) — A to propose adoption of
U.N. panel on Monday pro- Boeing called the agree- ICAO standards would be
posed long-sought green- in 2017.
house gas emissions stan- ment “real progress” be-
dards for airliners and car- Boeing is the United States’
go planes, drawing praise yond industry steps already largest exporter as mea-
from the White House and sured in dollar value. The
criticism from environmen- taken to reduce aviation company vies with Airbus
talists who said they would for the title of world’s larg-
be too weak to actually emissions. est aircraft maker.
slow global warming. Aviation accounts for
The International Civil Avia- ICAO council president about 5 percent of global
tion Organization said the greenhouse emissions, ac-
agreement reached by the Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu cording to environmental-
agency’s environmental ists. ICAO says it’s actually
panel requires that new air- said the agency’s goal “is less than 2 percent.
craft designs meet the stan- But that share is expected
dards beginning in 2020, ultimately to ensure that to grow as aviation grows.
and that designs already “We also recognize that
in production comply by In this photo taken March 24, 2015, an Alaska Airlines jet takes when the next generation the projected doubling
2023. There is also a cutoff off at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in SeaTac, Wash. of global passengers and
date of 2028 for the manu- of aircraft types enters ser- flights by 2030 must be
facture of planes that don’t Associated Press managed responsibly and
comply with the standards. vice, there will be guaran- sustainably,” said Aliu.
The standard must still be The action comes two
adopted by the agency’s House. a global market-based ap- teed reductions in interna- months after U.N. climate
36-nation governing coun- negotiators in Paris left the
cil, but substantive chang- The standards would re- proach to reduce aviation tional carbon emissions.” aviation industry out of their
es aren’t expected. landmark global agree-
The standards would be the quire an average 4 per- emissions,” the White House Environmentalists also ment to combat global
first ever to impose binding warming.
energy efficiency and car- cent reduction in fuel con- said in a statement. complained that ICAO The proposed standard
bon dioxide reduction tar- covers the full range of
gets for the aviation sector. sumption during the cruise The standards announced has been working on inter- sizes and types of aircraft
When fully implemented, used in international avia-
the standards are expect- phase of flight starting in Monday don’t set the bar national standards for 18 tion today, but reserves
ed to reduce carbon emis- the strictest standards
sions by more than 650 mil- 2028 when compared with high enough, said Dan years and is now proposing for planes weighing over
lion tons between 2020 and 60 tons, ICAO said. The
2040, equivalent to remov- planes delivered in 2015. Rutherford, aviation direc- to give aircraft manufac- larger planes are respon-
ing over 140 million cars sible for about 90 percent
from the road for a year, However, planes burn the tion of the International turers another dozen years of international aviation
according to the White emissions.q
most fuel during takeoffs Council on Clean Transpor- to comply.
and landings, while cruising tation, since they require “These dangerously weak
at high altitudes is already reductions of only about a recommendations put the
the most fuel-efficient pe- third of what is expected Obama administration un-
riod. to be technically possible der enormous pressure” to
The agreement is the first with the more fuel-efficient take greater action, said
of two important opportu- planes that will be in pro- Vera Pardee, a Center for
nities this year to reduce duction when the standard Biological Diversity attor-
carbon emissions from takes effect. ney who has sued the U.S.
aviation. The second op- The newest Boeing and Air- government over aviation
portunity will come later bus designs already meet emissions.
this year when ICAO tries to the proposed efficiency Last June, the Obama ad-
ministration proposed reg-
reach an agreement on a standards, due to de- ulating aircraft emissions,
saying they are a threat
“market-based approach” mands for fuel savings from to human health because
they contain pollutants that
that would use economic the airlines, environmental- help cause global warm-
ing. But a final U.S. decision
incentives to further reduce ists said. In the meantime, on adoption of internation-
al standards is likely to be
aviation carbon emissions. the manufacturers get to left to the next presidential
“Today’s agreement is an continue selling older, less
important signal that the efficient designs for years
international community is to come. Airliners in use
well-positioned to rise to the now are exempt from the
challenge of implementing new standards altogeth-
