Carbon emissions quotas will be levied on airlines following an agreement between EU ministers. The system will force airlines to meet limits on the amount of carbon dioxide they produce either by cutting their emissions or by buying credits from other industries.
The trade body representing airlines, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), recently said it did not expect the plans to work and US representatives are already threatening legal challenges, claiming that a global solution is the only way forward.
Stavros Dimas, the EU’s Environment Commissioner, said airlines would be included in the EU emissions trading scheme from 2012, and that the cap on emissions would be set at the average level from 2004-2006.
Hilary Benn, UK Environment Secretary, said: “This is a bold step by Europe, in the week after the Bali agreement, which shows the EU leading in the fight against dangerous climate change.
“By including aviation in the EU emissions trading scheme with a tough cap, we are ensuring that airlines which do go above their limit will need to cancel out their emissions elsewhere through the trading scheme.”
The regulations still have to go through the European Parliament but are expected to be passed next year and will apply to all flights between EU countries and flights taking off from or landing in an EU country.
This will apply to the entirety of intercontinental flights, not simply the part of the journey in European airspace, and airlines will be regulated by the EU country in which they run the majority of their flights. Any airline in breach of the regulations face legal action.
