International aviation emissions deal seriously flawed - Main contents

Today governments, meeting in Montreal, reached a deal on aviation emissions, requiring airlines (in countries that participate) to limit the growth of emissions on 2020 levels, or to offset emissions growth by buying carbon credits from projects around the world.

Importantly, participation in the system is voluntary for most countries, and governments failed to define criteria for the quality of carbon projects, leaving the environmental effectiveness of the deal highly uncertain.

Responding to the ICAO aviation emissions deal, Gerben-Jan Gerbrandy, Member of the European Parliament and ALDE environment coordinator said:

"Yes, we have a deal, but its content is seriously flawed. It’s far from ICAO’s own promise of carbon neutral growth from 2020 onwards. Some of the countries expected to have a major boom in the number of flights over the coming years, stay out of the system for at least the next decade. For those that do take part, it may just help questionable tree plantation projects, instead of truly boosting clean transport."

“On Wednesday this week the world all applauded the entry into force of the Paris Agreement, but only a few days later we forget about our commitment to hold climate change within acceptable levels."

"At the same time, I would like to be constructive and approach today's deal in a positive way. It could be a starting point, provided it doesn't hinder airlines, governments or regions to undertake additional measures. The European Commission should assess the deal and its implications for the EU´s carbon market, in particular on how to address emissions from intercontinental flights."