By Kate Abnett BRUSSELS, March
By Kate Abnett
BRUSSELS, March 16 (Reuters) – The European Union needs to work with the U.S. authorities to curb aviation’s contribution to local weather change, together with by means of potential air pollution requirements on jet gasoline, a senior European Fee official mentioned on Tuesday.
The EU has mentioned each sector should contribute to its objective of eliminating its web emissions of the greenhouse gases inflicting local weather change by 2050.
That features aviation, whose world emissions elevated over the previous 20 years till the COVID-19 pandemic grounded flights and prompted a brief drop in air pollution final 12 months.
In addition to emitting carbon dioxide, flights contribute to local weather change by producing nitrous gases, soot and water vapour contrails that may trigger an amplified warming impact.
“Traditionally … these non-CO2 impacts have not actually been taken under consideration, and perhaps we might work with the U.S. administration to encourage them to be taken under consideration,” mentioned Damien Meadows, performing head of the Fee’s division for aviation local weather coverage.
An EU examine in November discovered non-CO2 emissions are chargeable for about two thirds of the worldwide warming attributable to aviation.
“If we labored with america we might attempt to elevate gasoline requirements to decrease the quantity of soot components inflicting non-CO2 impacts,” Meadows informed the European Parliament.
Another choice might be to design transatlantic flight routes to minimise their condensation trails, he mentioned.
The Biden administration has given early alerts it can scrutinise the local weather impression of aviation, together with with the appointment of Annie Petsonk because the transport division’s high worldwide aviation official.
Petsonk, an environmental lawyer, labored for years on the non-profit Environmental Protection Fund to push america to undertake extra stringent aviation emissions insurance policies.
In the meantime, Europe is drafting targets, attributable to be proposed within the second quarter of the 12 months, for airways to make use of a minimal share of sustainable aviation fuels. It is usually mulling gasoline tax modifications to hurry the shift away from fossil gasoline kerosene.
(Reporting by Kate Abnett; further reporting by Marine Strauss and Valerie Volcovici; Modifying by Giles Elgood)
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