AIRLINES TO ENTER CARBON TRADING SCHEME

Member states are obliged to put in place appropriate legislation for the emissions trading scheme entered into force in February within a year, according to a directive incorporating aviation into the EU.

Therefore, all flights landing or taking off from EU airports will have to buy CO2 allowances under the bloc’s cap-and-trade system under the new directive. Trading officially begins in 2012. The directive aims to cap greenhouse gas emissions from the aviation sector to 3% below the 2004-2006 levels in 2012, increasing to 5% for the 2013-2020 period. Airlines will consequently have to purchase 15% of their allowances via auctions. The EU says auctioning revenues should be used to combat climate change at home and in the developing world, but eventually this is left to the discretion of individual member states. They maintain the global downturn merits a reconsideration of carbon trading for the sector, which could compromise the industry’s profitability. According to new figures external from Eurostat, the number of air passengers grew by 7% in 2007 compared to the previous year. The new carbontrading scheme directly implies our country and Poland, which experienced the largest hikes.