THE VIEW FROM BOTH SIDES OF THE POND: THE EU IS HAVING A LAUGH! PROBLEM IS THE JOKE IS ON THE AVIATION SECTOR

In an ominous sign for the future under the European Union’s ETS scheme as carbon dioxide emissions from European passenger airlines rose 2.6% to 171.6 million metric tons last year. Emissions were 167.2 million tons in 2009 on a comparable basis. The figures are for scheduled passenger aviation and may exclude some flights that starting in 2012 will fall under the EU emissions-trading system (ETS). As you may know the volume of freight and passengers carried last year (2010) will determine the portion of free allowances each airline receives in the nine years through to 2020. This means the measurements