EBAA, CBAA and IBAC Call on the International Business Aviation Community to Help Develop an Alternative Measure to the EU-ETS
Several national business aviation associations and the International Business Aviation Council (“IBAC”) reiterated their opposition last month to emissions regulation under the European Union’s Emissions Trading System (“EU-ETS”).
The announcement came in Toronto, Canada at CBAA 2012, the annual convention hosted by the Canadian Business Aviation Association (“CBAA”). According to the joint press release, Fabio Gamba, CEO of the European Business Aviation Association (“EBAA”), told the conference participants that he shared their frustrations over the EU-ETS’s flaws. Gamba emphasized that in addition to the distinction made between commercial and non-commercial operators and how the de minimis rule is applied, the EU-ETS focused more on punishing those who emit CO2, rather than encouraging them to find avenues to improve their carbon footprint.
“There’s no denying that aviation emissions will grow over time despite the sector’s constant technological and operational improvements and its formal long-term commitment to reducing the impact of aviation on the environment,” Gamba said at the event. “And although business aviation emits less than 2% of air transport emissions – and less than .04% of total man made emissions – we confirm our sector’s role in helping to combat global warming.”
Despite the general consensus that the system would hurt the business aviation industry, Don Spruston, Director General of IBAC, cautioned that too much resistance may lead to retaliation, which would hurt all parties involved. This statement came on the heels of China announcing its plan to possibly impound European aircraft as a penalty for China’s three national airlines being reprimanded for not submitting greenhouse gas emissions data to the EU.
Instead, the EBAA, CBAA and IBAC called on the rest of the international business aviation community to join the worldwide effort to develop a new global agreement under the leadership of the International Civil Aviation Organization. As mentioned in earlier posts, this viewpoint appears to be in line with the position of the National Business Aviation Association, as well as many commercial aviation industry groups.
Special thanks to Sullivan & Worcester’s Joshua Walfish, Marketing Intern, for assistance in preparing this post.
