The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) and CLECAT, the European freight forwarders’ association, want an emissions measure that will create a more sustainable business environment for airfreight.
FIATA and CLECAT are hopeful that the International Civil Aviation Organization will agree on the details of a solution in the coming week at the ICAO General Assembly in Montreal.
“We have good reason to be optimistic, as ICAO secretary general Raymond Benjamin at the assembly’s opening news conference assured us that he is confident when the session closes on Oct. 4, ICAO’s member countries will have reached a global accord,” said FIATA’s past president William Gottlieb, who is representing the freight forwarding industry in Montreal. “We look to the ICAO Assembly to demonstrate the willingness of governments to progress on tackling aviation CO2 emissions. We are hopeful that this will bring to fruition a global agreement, which has been discussed for several years in keeping with the global aspirational goal of carbon-neutral growth, including global market-based measures, to help reduce emissions.”
The EU’s recent attempt to include international aviation in its Emissions Trading System (ETS) has been placed on hold. FIATA and CLECAT said governments need to keep this in mind and seek to settle differences in order to avoid further regional legislation.
Under the EU system, intercontinental flights to and from European airports are exempted from the ETS, but under the draft resolution, which is up for agreement by ICAO, the EU would be permitted to re-include intercontinental flights, including those to and from third-party countries. But the emissions covered would be restricted to those in EU airspace, rather than the whole flight, as directed under the original EU legislation.
The European Commission has accepted the compromise under the draft ICAO resolution, in hopes of a final global deal.
“Our associations are hopeful that an overall agreement with the goal of carbon- neutral growth from 2020 can be reached,” Veronique Corduant, chairwoman of CLECAT’s working group on sustainable transport, said. “The environmental challenge of the airline industry is a global challenge. Global issues must be addressed globally, and now is the time to do it.”
The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) and CLECAT, the European freight forwarders’ association, want an emissions measure that will create a more sustainable business environment for airfreight.
FIATA and CLECAT are hopeful that the International Civil Aviation Organization will agree on the details of a solution in the coming week at the ICAO General Assembly in Montreal.
“We have good reason to be optimistic, as ICAO secretary general Raymond Benjamin at the assembly’s opening news conference assured us that he is confident when the session closes on Oct. 4, ICAO’s member countries will have reached a global accord,” said FIATA’s past president William Gottlieb, who is representing the freight forwarding industry in Montreal. “We look to the ICAO Assembly to demonstrate the willingness of governments to progress on tackling aviation CO2 emissions. We are hopeful that this will bring to fruition a global agreement, which has been discussed for several years in keeping with the global aspirational goal of carbon-neutral growth, including global market-based measures, to help reduce emissions.”
The EU’s recent attempt to include international aviation in its Emissions Trading System (ETS) has been placed on hold. FIATA and CLECAT said governments need to keep this in mind and seek to settle differences in order to avoid further regional legislation.
Under the EU system, intercontinental flights to and from European airports are exempted from the ETS, but under the draft resolution, which is up for agreement by ICAO, the EU would be permitted to re-include intercontinental flights, including those to and from third-party countries. But the emissions covered would be restricted to those in EU airspace, rather than the whole flight, as directed under the original EU legislation.
The European Commission has accepted the compromise under the draft ICAO resolution, in hopes of a final global deal.
“Our associations are hopeful that an overall agreement with the goal of carbon- neutral growth from 2020 can be reached,” Veronique Corduant, chairwoman of CLECAT’s working group on sustainable transport, said. “The environmental challenge of the airline industry is a global challenge. Global issues must be addressed globally, and now is the time to do it.”