Co-Op Travel call for emissions action

By Nick Harper - 07 September 2009

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The Managing Director of Co-operative Travel has called for immediate action on aviation emissions.

Mike Greenacre has challenged the aviation industry to provide hard evidence of its intentions to reduce emissions by 50% of the 2005 level by 2050.

This reduction was pledged by British Airways and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) last week at the UN Headquarters climate summit. However, Mr Greenacre warned, “This is a huge step forward, but we must not delude ourselves. An enormous amount of work, backed up by hard cash, is required to make this a reality, and interim targets must be set to make sure we are on track.

“It won’t be cheap and it won’t be easy, but to stand any chance of being successful we must act now.”

To meet the government’s target of an 80% reduction of overall greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, Mr Greenacre emphasised that the aviation industry must only grow within its current emission levels or by 2050 it could account for almost half of the UK’s total emissions budget.

He explained, “If this was the case, it would mean that every other sector within the UK economy, including heating and lighting in the home, would have to reduce emissions by nearly 90%.”

Lighter airframe design, improved engine efficiency and better air traffic management are expected to achieve a 1-2% reduction in aviation emissions per annum, and it is at this level of growth the industry must remain within for it to be sustainable.

In a related issue, Mr Greenacre raised Co-operative’s objections to the planned new runway at Heathrow. He maintained that growth should occur at existing airports, such as Manchester and Southampton, that have available facilities rather than developing airports already running at capacity.

He concluded, “I believe that the environmental issues that we face today are emerging as the single most important that the travel industry as we know it has ever faced, and the conclusions that we arrive at in the months and years ahead will have far-reaching consequences.”

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