By Pedro Piris-Cabezas and Glenda Chen
Airport activity emits a noxious cocktail of air pollutants, including ashy particulate matter, sulfur oxides, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides. Among them, PM emissions from aircraft turbines often fly under the radar yet have an outsized impact on regional air quality and public health.
By Istvan Bart, Climate Director
Last week, Virgin Atlantic became the first commercial airline to fly across the Atlantic ocean using 100% sustainable aviation fuels , demonstrating the incredible potential of clean, alternative fuels for flight. We need more planes flying on SAF, because if aviation were a country, it would be one of the world’s top 10 sources of greenhouse gas pollution.
Last week, the third Conference on Aviation and Alternative Fuels, also known as CAAF/3, hosted by the International Civil Aviation Organization — the United Nations agency charged with international aviation cooperation — committed to a more sustainable future for global aviation by adopting the new ICAO Global Framework for Cleaner Fuels. This development builds on ICAO 2022 General Assembly’s adoption of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
One of the Inflation Reduction Act’s key provisions is a powerful tax credit to spark the development and adoption of clean, low-carbon aviation fuels. Climate pollution from aircraft is often overlooked, but if aviation were a country, it would be among the top 10 greenhouse gas emitters.
The Biden administration is about to make a crucial decision on which fuels should be eligible for the tax credits. Getting this right is critical to whether this government subsidy will be money well spent.
