Air transport should aim for 'zero emissions' – IATA

London, 7 June: Airlines should have their own carbon emissions trading scheme and work towards a future where air transport produces no emissions, a top airline industry representative has said.

Giovanni Bisignani, director general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), said: "A growing carbon footprint is no longer politically acceptable – for any industry. Climate change will limit our future unless we change our approach from technical to strategic. Air transport must aim to become an industry that does not pollute – zero emissions."

Addressing IATA's annual meeting in Vancouver on Tuesday, he said aircraft manufacturers must build a zero emissions plane in the next 50 years, possibly through fuel cell technology, solar power and fuel derived from biomass.

"The first target is to replace 10% of fuel with low-carbon alternatives in the next ten years," he said.

Bisignani said current government policies on controlling emissions were irresponsible and inconsistent. He said Europe was rushing to include air transport in its Emissions Trading Scheme, but was dragging its feet on real measures to help the environment.

He called on politicians to push through improvements in air traffic management, highlighting the 'Single European Sky', a project to unify the organisations controlling the airspace in Europe. He said this alone could deliver a 12 million-tonne annual reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. "But it has been a 15-year circus of talks, talks and more talks – with no results."

Bisignani said the International Civil Aviation Organization, a UN agency, should deliver a global emissions trading scheme for air transport that is fair and sets demanding environmental targets. He said such a scheme should be available for all governments to use on a voluntary basis.