CO2 emissions from aircraft _{in the EU grew by 34% between 2005 and 2019}

• They are believed to increase 27.8% by 2050 aggravating global warming if no action is taken.
• The sector was responsible for around 3.8% of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2017.

CO emissions₂ of the planes that took off from the European Union increased by 34% between 2005 and 2019, and although they fell drastically in 2020 and 2021 due to the restrictions linked to the covid pandemic, they will grow by 27.8% by 2050 aggravating climate warming if no measures are taken.

This is reflected in the European Aviation Safety Agency’s (EASA) European Aviation Safety Environmental Report 2022, presented today by the European Commission, the third edition of a comprehensive three-year study on the environmental impact of a sector responsible for around 3.8% of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2017.

“Long-term trends show that the EU will host 12.2 million annual flights in 2050, with CO emissions.₂ potentially increasing to 188 million tons (compared to 147 million tons in 2019), unless environmental protection is generalized in the sector, “says EASA.

However, there is a virtuous scenario in which emissions could be reduced by 69% by 2050, a horizon in which the EU has committed by law to achieve climate neutrality, that is, to emit only the_CO2 that it is able to absorb in its territory.

“The aviation sector has taken some steps to address its environmental and climate impacts, but growth projections require broader and more decisive action,” EASA said at a time when some key regulations to decarbonise the aviation sector, such as the Refuel EU package, are being negotiated.

Aviation has gained in energy efficiency in recent years, which has allowed average carbon dioxide emissions per passenger to be reduced by 2.3% annually from 2005 to reach 89 grams in 2019. In addition, between 2005 and 2019, flights from the EU increased by “only” 15%, but both the reduction in emissions per passenger and the moderate increase in flights is diluted by the 90% increase in distances traveled.

One of the big bets to make the sector sustainable are Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), obtained, for example, from reduced cooking oil and with much less climate impact than kerosene.

Currently, SAF accounts for less than 0.05% of jet fuel, partly because there is hardly any production and because it is at least five times more expensive than traditional hydrocarbons.

However, legislation currently being negotiated in Brussels, which is expected to become law next year, aims to force planes to carry 2% SAF in their warehouses by 2025 and that proportion to rise to 63% in 2050.

The community technicians say they are “quite confident that the proposed amounts can be achieved” as long as there are investments in the energy sector, which they hope will arrive once there is a legal framework after the regulations are approved.

“It will be clearer than kerosene and for it to be used you have to create demand,” explain European sources, who stress that there is “great consensus that these fuels are going to be the future of decarbonization.”

Noise and air pollution

In 2019, a total of 3.2 million people were exposed to more than 55 decibels of noise and more than 1.3 million people to more than 50 daily moments that exceeded 70 decibels, the study indicates.

This represents an increase of 30% and 71% respectively, although in 2021 the EU set itself the objective of reducing transport-related noise pollution by 30% compared to 2017 and reducing premature deaths caused by air pollution by 55%.

EASA is confident that the gradual renewal of the aircraft fleet could lead to a “total reduction in noise exposure at European airports over the next 20 years”, a trend that will have to be accompanied by more “robust” controls to verify that the political objectives of noise reduction are met.

Energy crisis

Although the report does not analyse the impact of the current energy crisis on aviation, many airlines still benefit from “old prices” contracted in the long term before the crisis and EASA technicians expect ticket prices to increase as those contracts expire.

Source: 20 Minutos