Climate Change News
Below are news items on climate change – many with relevance to aviation
Climate Change Bill to include aviation and shipping
The government has agreed to include aviation and shipping in an ambitious push to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Ministers said they would give "due regard" to projected emissions from the two industries when setting budgets for carbon reduction in the future. More than 50 Labour MPs pressed for the sectors to be included in the Climate Change Bill, which sets a target to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050. The government agreed to redraft its bill. (BBC)
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MPs rebelling over climate bill and aviation’s exclusion
The government is fighting to head off a backbench rebellion over its plans to exclude aviation and shipping from the UK's greenhouse gas targets. 56 Labour MPs are demanding the sectors be included, enough to defeat Brown when the Climate Change Bill goes to a Commons' vote next week. They want an amendment to the Bill to state that if emissions from aviation and shipping continue to grow, the government must compensate with extra CO2 cuts elsewhere. (BBC)
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Committee on Climate Change advises the Government to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions in the UK by at least 80% by 2050
The Committee on Climate Change today published its interim advice to Government on what the long-term target should be to tackle climate change. The CCC recommended that emissions from harmful Greenhouse Gases be reduced by at least 80% by 2050. The CCC said that the 80% target should apply on average across all sectors of the UK economy and is achievable at affordable cost of between 1-2% of GDP in 2050. See the CCC letter and press release.
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Deal clinched on capping aircraft emissions (start of aviation within the EU ETS)
MEPs and national governments, represented by the EU's current Slovenian Presidency, reached a landmark deal on 26th June on the details of plans to include aviation in the EU's ETS as of 2012. The deal would require all flights, both within the EU as well as international ones arriving or leaving the bloc, to participate in the Union's carbon cap-and-trade scheme as of 2012. The deal still needs to be formally approved. (Euractiv)
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Air travel in the tropics causes more warming
A typical flight in the tropics has a greater impact on global warming than a flight in temperate latitudes. In mid-latitudes ozone and methane reactions with nitrogen oxides cancel each other out and you get zero net warming. But the brighter sunlight in the tropics is very efficient at converting nitrogen oxide to ozone, whereas methane destruction only increases marginally. This effect is worse at an altitude around 35,000 feet. (New Scientist)
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Cost of tackling global climate change has doubled, warns Stern
The author of an influential British government report in 2006 arguing the world needed to spend just 1% of its wealth tackling climate change has warned that the cost of averting disaster has now doubled to 2%. Stern said evidence climate change was happening faster than previously thought meant emissions needed to be reduced even more sharply. The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere would have to be kept below 500ppm. (Guardian)
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Global emissions trading scheme (GETS) can cut aviation and shipping emissions
The workings of a much needed Global Emissions Trading Scheme (GETS) for ships and planes have been proposed by Dr Terry Barker of Cambridge University and the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research. This comes in response to the IPCC last year stating that a suitable framework for effective mitigation policies has yet to be devised. (Tyndall Centre press release)
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Faced with ever-rising oil prices, European airlines vent their anger at environment MEPs
Associations representing European airlines have queued up to condemn last week’s vote by the European Parliament’s Environment (ENVI) Committee to hold fast to its original proposals on the inclusion of aviation into the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. Airlines have described the Committee’s strict position on allowances and capping as "punitive", whereas environmental campaigners have welcomed the vote. (Greenair online)
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MPs call for personal carbon allowance
Britain should consider giving individuals a personal carbon emissions allowance in order to help the country meet its CO2 emissions target, a report by Parliament's Environmental Audit Committee of MPs has said. Government has to reduce carbon emissions from individuals and households, if it was to cut CO2 emissions by 60% by 2050 as planned and a personal carbon allowancewould be more effective and fairer than bringing in "green" taxes. (Reuters)
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Next decade ‘may see no warming’ – before temperatures rise again
The Earth's temperature may stay roughly the same for a decade, as natural climate cycles enter a cooling phase, scientists have predicted. However, temperatures will again be rising quickly by about 2020. The key to the new prediction is the natural cycle of ocean temperatures appears to come round about every 60 to 70 years. (BBC)