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Government agrees:air travel is serious climate threat
16 April 1999
Under strong influence of the US fossil fuel lobby, oil producing nations (including Saudi Arabia,Venezuela and China) protested against future policies such as fuel taxes, emission charges and emissions trading to control and reduce air transport's growth. However, despite their interventions, the 250 delegates approved both the scientific content of the three year study and the menu driven pollution control and reduction measures outlined in the report.
The IPCC Special Report says:
. Air transport is responsible for about a 3.5% contribution to global warming today;
. This is forecast to rise to between 4-15% by the year 2050;
. Despite fuel efficiency gains and other technological and operational improvements, harmful emissions from air transport will rise significantly as air travel growth continues;
. A range of measures, including charges and levies, better engine and airframe technology,air traffic management improvements, and the substitution of short distance air travel by rail are put forward for consideration by Governments to cut aircraft emissions.;
Simon McRae, Aviation Campaigner at Friends of the Earth said
"This Report is a vital step forward in identifying the alarming contribution air transport makes to climate change. Under all air traffic growth scenarios put forward in the report aviation greenhouse emissions will continue to grow, despite the optimistic operational and technological efficiency improvements put forward by industry. Only a reduction in demand for air travel will reduce overall aviation greenhouse emissions
"Injecting massive amounts of harmful greenhouse gases directly into the atmosphere is a major climate change problem. The science is proven. The forecasts of air transport's growing contribution alarming. Urgent action is needed now to get this major problem under control."
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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust
Last modified: Jul 2008
