Page 12 - Linkline Autumn 2019

Aviation and the Environment: Steps to the right direction
Article written by Dublin City University Students of the BSc in Aviation Management and Piloting Studies Year 2 students as part of the module Sustainable Aviation and under the guidance of Dr Marina Efthymiou.
Why we love aviation!
Aviation is one of the most important global industries, one that connects people, cultures and business across the globe. It brings the world’s people and cultures together like no other form of transport. Airportoperators and airlines are major employers in the Irish aviation industry, helping to employ up to 35,000 people in Ireland in 2014. Indirectly through the process of purchasing good and services from local suppliers, another 30,000 jobs are supported. From a study on the economic benefits of aviation done by Irish Association of Travel Agents (IATA), it was found that nearly 11000 jobs were created and supported by the increasing spending power from the wages paid by the aviation corporations. Moreover, the money spend in Ireland by the tourists helps to support an additional 100,000 jobs. It was estimated that in 2014, the air travel industry contributed 10 billion gross value to the GDP of Ireland and another 12 billion was raised from the tourism industry. Which means that 8.7% of the country’s GDP was generated from the aviation industry. In conclusion, the aviation industry has contributed a lot to the surrounding society and the local economy.
But, there is always a but!
Despite the positive social and economic contribution of aviation, it is accepted that, as with most industries, air transport contributes negatively in some way to the environment. Today climate change is one of the greatest global challenges ever to face humanity and requires unprecedented levels of cooperation amongst all governments, commercial enterprises and other stakeholders. Human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and the agricultural industry are increasing the levels of the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. These gases trap more heat than is needed which results in the overall global warming of the earth. Over the last hundred years, the global average temperature has increased by 0.8 degrees. That may not seem like a lot but when you consider that a 3.0-degree increase will destroy food production ecosystems leading to the starvation of millions of people, then the issue becomes very serious indeed.
Air transport emissions have increased by 75% since 1990 and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has stated that emissions will be 70% higher in 2020 than in
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