Emissions trading

Despite many of the improvements mentioned elsewhere in this section, at present there is no viable alternative to planes burning kerosene (aircraft fuel), so the climate overall impact of flying will continue to rise in the near future. This is why we support emissions trading, to offset the impacts of this rise.

Emissions trading works by ensuring companies that are less able to reduce their climate change impact are effectively subsidising the improvements of those that can.

The most important aspect of the whole scheme is that climate change impact in the area covered by the scheme (be it a country, region or globally) will reduce overall, whatever the rise in an individual sector of the economy. So while the proportion of human contribution to climate change from aviation could rise, the total amount of human contribution to climate change will fall.

The issue of emissions trading is one that BAA has continued to lead on and lobby for. All departing and arriving flights in the EU are expected to be included in an EU-wide emissions trading scheme from 2012. This timescale reflects the lengthy approval process for legislation at EU and Member State level.

Related news
EU includes aviation in CO2 curbs (BBC, 8 July 2008)