Latest news and insights from various sources relating to UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Bombardier and Swedavia take sustainable jet fuel deliveries from SkyNRG and AltAir

Thu 1 Jun 2017 – SkyNRG has completed deliveries of sustainable aviation biofuels on behalf of Bombardier Business Aircraft and Swedish airport operator Swedavia. Bombardier’s demonstration fleet was refuelled with a biofuel blend at the KLM Jet Center in Amsterdam while en route to the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva. The biofuel was produced by AltAir Fuels at its California biorefinery and SkyNRG was partnered in the delivery by aviation jet fuel supplier AEG Fuels. AltAir also produced the sustainable fuel supplied by SkyNRG and Air BP to Swedavia at Gothenburg Airport. The airport operator was receiving its first volume in 2017 of the fuel through its partnership with the Fly Green Fund that enables organisations and individuals in the Nordic region to reduce their carbon footprint by flying on sustainable aviation fuel.

Provisional agreement reached to continue limiting EU ETS scope to intra-EEA flights until end of 2023

Trilogue meets to discuss Aviation EU ETS derogation extension

Thu 19 Oct 2017 – The EU Council Presidency and the European Parliament have reached a provisional compromise agreement that will extend the EU ETS derogation of international flights to and from Europe until the end of 2023. The Council had supported a European Commission proposal for an indefinite exemption of such flights pending a future review of ICAO’s CORSIA carbon offsetting scheme, whereas Parliament had voted for the derogation to finish at the end of 2020. The derogation extension will align with the end of the initial three-year pilot phase of CORSIA. The two sides also agreed to a future review to consider a declining year-on-year cap, the so-called linear reduction factor, on aviation emissions under the EU ETS from 2021 onwards. Earlier today, a Commission official briefed Environment Committee (ENVI) MEPs on CORSIA progress.

The derogation on international flights from the EU ETS, known as ‘Stop the clock’, lapsed in December 2016 and a new regulation is needed to avoid an automatic snap-back to the full scope of the scheme, which would have required all aircraft operators with flights to and from, as well as within, European Economic Area (EEA) countries to surrender permits to cover their carbon emissions from the beginning of 2017. ‘Stop the clock’ was introduced to allow ICAO States to reach an agreement on implementing a global scheme for international aviation CO2 emissions.

While the EU and its Member States have formally backed the CORSIA scheme finally approved at the ICAO Assembly in October 2016 and have agreed to join its voluntary phases from the beginning in 2021, MEPs have been doubtful over the still to be determined rules on the scheme’s environmental effectiveness. By extending the derogation only until the end of 2020, before CORSIA starts, they hoped this would persuade ICAO to take a more ambitious approach with the scheme’s design.

“We are not very convinced that the ICAO agreement will deliver enough benefits for the climate, but we want to both support the process and put pressure on international partners rather than give in too early,” said MEP Dr Peter Liese, the Parliament’s former rapporteur on the Aviation EU ETS file, after the trilogue meeting.

The Commission, on the other hand and backed by the Council, argued that such a move would create international friction and the scope of the EU ETS should remain restricted to intra-EEA flights indefinitely. The scope should be reviewed at a later date when clarity over the ICAO scheme, how it was working and which countries were participating was better known, it proposed.

The compromise reached in the trilogue negotiations yesterday would enable the adoption of the new regulation extending the derogation before the end of the year, said a Council statement. The dates for reporting and surrendering allowances from emissions in 2017 would be 31 March and 30 April 2018 respectively, it confirmed.

Provisions will also be established for a review once ICAO decisions on CORSIA have been finalised and how to incorporate the scheme into the EU ETS directive. This review will also consider whether to apply from 2021 the 2.2% linear reduction factor that applies to other industrial sectors in which the quantity of allowances linearly decreases each year, so tightening the overall emissions cap. Under present rules, the aviation sector cap remains the same in each year up to 2020, the end of the current trading period. The cap is 5% below the average annual level of aviation emissions in the 2004-2006 base year.

Parliament had also voted for the number of aviation allowances auctioned be increased from the current 15% to 50% from 2021, also to bring the sector into line with other industries, but a decision on this appears to have been put off pending the future review.

A Parliament proposal to exempt diverted flights from the EU ETS is believed to have been dropped.

The provisional agreement reached with the Parliament by the current Estonian Presidency will now be submitted to EU ambassadors for approval by the States. The two institutions will then be called on to formally adopt the regulation before entering into force.

“The EU believes all flights must contribute to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. We fully support ongoing ICAO negotiations for the development of comprehensive and unified international rules to turn this into a reality,” commented Siim Kiisler, Estonia’s Minister for the Environment, after the trilogue meeting. “In the meantime, adopting this regulation is crucial. We will provide legal certainty to aircraft operators and make sure European flights keep cutting emissions beyond 2016.”

Endorsing the provisional agreement as “the right step for a transition to a global offsetting scheme to address international aviation carbon emissions,” Thomas Reynaert, Managing Director of Airlines for Europe (A4E), said it was crucial the new regulation was adopted by the end of 2017.

“We welcome that policy-makers took into account the industry’s concern that there can be no double burden for European airlines which would put them at a competitive disadvantage,” he added. “A4E also supports the decision to stay away from a hasty change to the auctioning percentage without any comprehensive analysis of the market or assessment of CORSIA’s impact.”

A4E said it expected the ICAO scheme to be the only measure applicable to international carbon emissions from flights within the EEA as of 2021.

Environmental groups found little enthusiasm for the agreement to prolong the derogation by three years longer than originally called for by Parliament.

“Stalling European climate action in the aviation sector because of a weak international deal doesn’t do justice to the climate,” said Kelsey Perlman, Aviation Policy Officer at Carbon Market Watch. “To address the soaring emissions from flying, we urgently need other policies, including an end to subsidies, tax breaks and generous state aid.”

Brussels-based Transport & Environment (T&E) welcomed though improvements to the original Commission proposal to permanently remove international flights from the EU ETS and to ensure greater scrutiny of the CORSIA scheme.

T&E Aviation Manager Andrew Murphy said the provisional deal ensured there was no blank cheque for ICAO and recognised the need for aviation to remain inside a reformed EU ETS after 2020. However, he said, “A reformed EU ETS is also only part of the puzzle and the EU must continue to promote complementary measures such as ending tax exemptions and phasing out state aid to the sector. The Commission must also follow through on the commitment to address non-CO2 emissions.”

In his briefing to ENVI MEPs this morning, Peter Vis, Senior Adviser at the Commission’s transport directorate (DG MOVE), said the trilogue agreement would help facilitate the ongoing CORSIA discussions at ICAO.

“Europe has wanted a global market-based mechanism for longer than other States and has worked strenuously to maintain the environmental integrity of CORSIA,” he said. “CORSIA represents the best chance we have of a mechanism to complement other measures being undertaken by the international civil aviation sector to attenuate and eventually reduce its emissions.”

He reported an ICAO CAEP steering group had agreed last month on a draft CORSIA package to be recommended for adoption by the governing ICAO Council at its next meeting that runs October 30 to November 17. The package consists of draft Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs), supporting information and documentation, and an environmental technical manual. The package was also under consideration by the Council’s Advisory Group on CORSIA and ICAO’s Air Navigation Commission. If agreed by the Council, the package would then be sent to States for comment and a final adoption is planned for June 2018, taking effect from the beginning of 2019.

He said some development work outside the package was still in progress and technical experts would be meeting in Brasilia next week on practical details such as registry functions, a simplified monitoring and reporting tool for small emitters and further work on sustainable aviation fuels.

“The focus will now be on implementation rather than the design of the instrument itself,” he said. “The basic design is settled but further refinement of some elements is still needed. It should be mentioned that CORSIA will evolve over time in the light of reviews – the first in 2022 – that will be informed by experience and new information.”

He reminded MEPs the EU was an observer and not a full member of ICAO but European negotiators had paid particular attention to ensuring the environmental integrity of the emissions unit criteria and the sustainability criteria for alternative aviation fuels under CORSIA.

Vis noted that aircraft operators will have to submit monitoring plans to their national authorities for approval during 2018. For 2019 and 2020 all States engaged in international civil aviation activity will have to ensure that airline operators monitor and report their emissions from international aviation.

“This is a very tight deadline and will require considerable effort both by States and by airlines, even those States that have not opted in to the voluntary phase,” he said.

Link:

EU Council press release on provisional agreement

Copyright © 2017 GreenAir Communications

Lufthansa Cargo picks up environmental responsibility award for fuel-saving data tool

Thu 1 Jun 2017 – Lufthansa Cargo has received the 2017 DQS German Award for Excellence in the Environmental Responsibility category for its data collection tool OMEGA that provides key information for reducing fuel consumption and carbon emissions. It was one of a number of awards made to businesses by global management systems certification body DQS for a commitment to sustainability practices. Developed by aviation software specialist Honeywell Aviaso together with Lufthansa, the Ops Monitor and Efficiency Gap Analyser (OMEGA) uses data collected during cargo flights to make future flights more fuel efficient by comparing projected, actual and optimal values. Pilots can use the analysis to best prepare for a flight and identify any deviations from the plan early on. The cargo carrier has a goal to reduce specific carbon emissions by 25 per cent by 2020 from a 2005 baseline.

United States adopts ICAO Chapter 14 noise stringency standard for new aircraft designs

(photo: Boeing)

Wed 18 Oct 2017 – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has passed a rule that requires newly designed aircraft to harmonise with the ICAO Chapter 14 noise standard that came into effect in July 2014. In keeping with FAA numbering of aircraft noise standards, the new standard will be adopted as Stage 5 in the US. The agency believes the standard will ensure that the latest available noise reduction technology is incorporated into new aircraft designs. It represents an increase in stringency of 7 Effective Perceived Noise decibels (EPNdB) relative the previous ICAO Chapter 4 standard, or Stage 4. It will apply to new larger aircraft type designs with a maximum certificated take-off weight (MTOW) of 55 tonnes submitted for certification on or after 31 December 2017. For smaller aircraft with a MTOW of less than 55 tonnes, the standard will apply on or after 31 December 2020. The standard was passed into European Union law in January 2016.

According to the FAA, there were around 200 million passengers flying in the United States in 1975, with about 7 million people on the ground exposed to what is considered significant aircraft noise. A study it carried out in 2015 showed the number of people flying had quadrupled yet the numbers exposed to aircraft noise had dropped to around 340,000, or a 94% reduction in aircraft noise exposure.

“Reducing aircraft noise is important to the FAA because it’s an important quality of life issue for surrounding airport communities,” said FAA Michael Huerta, commenting on the adoption of the new noise standard. “We will continue to do our best through new technologies, procedures and community engagement to make aircraft operations quieter.”

The agency says it is committed to a balanced approach to the noise issue through reduction of noise at source, improved land use planning around airports and a wider use of aircraft operating procedures and restrictions that abate noise.

The background and justification for the new FAA rule, which becomes effective as of 3 November 2017, is published in the Federal Register. It notes that aircraft manufacturer Boeing and trade association Airlines for America had “supported all aspects” of the rulemaking proposal.

Current US operating rules require that jet aircraft meet at least Stage 3 (ICAO Chapter 3) noise limits. The Federal Register document says two organisations in proximity to Los Angeles International Airport, an airport community roundtable group and a municipality, had requested a phase-out of Stage 3 aircraft as part of the adoption of the new Stage 5 standard. However, the FAA says changes to the noise operating rules would have to be subject to full notice and comment rulemaking procedures, which have not been proposed. The previous elimination of Stage 2 operations had been required under two separate statutory provisions by Congress, it points out.

“The proposed Stage 5 rule does not provide any basis to attach an operational restriction, and none is included in the final rule,” it stated.

The ICAO noise certification requirements involves the measurement of noise levels at three different measurement points – approach, lateral and flyover – in order to characterise the aircraft noise performance around an airport. The EPNdB metric represents the human ear’s perception of aircraft noise. The requirements define noise limits that shall not be exceeded at each of the three measurement points and additional cumulative limit based on the sum of the three noise levels.

The ICAO noise standards are published in the Standards and Recommended Practices of Annex 16, Volume 1, with each new standard published as a new chapter, which becomes the shorthand designation of the new stringency. The new Chapter 14 follows the three other noise standards: Chapters 2, 3 and 4 – the jump to Chapter 14 is as a result of Chapter 5 already used for a different standard and the next available was 14.

The Chapter 4 standard came into force in January 2006 with an improvement on the previous standard of a little over 3dB on average at each measurement point.

Links:

FAA – Noise and emissions

ICAO – Reduction of noise at source

Copyright © 2017 GreenAir Communications