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THE GUARDIAN |
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Jet
pollution must be cut in
climate fight, warn peers
Michael
White, political editor A House of Lords report on the EU and climate change argues that the government must use its "unprecedented opportunity" in 2005 - when it holds the presidencies of both the EU and G8 - to encourage the EU to include pollution from aircraft in its emerging plans for an emissions trading system (ETS). "The stark truth is that this is a global problem which unsolved is likely to produce truly catastrophic effects. Only global action will provide a solution," say the peers who also stress the importance of "individuals changing their behaviour" too. Britain has been at the forefront of developing ETS - part of the EU's response to the Kyoto protocol - whereby countries which exceed their carbon quotas have to "buy" extra ones from those that do not. It wants cross-border EU flights inside the ETS framework by 2008. The aviation industry - singled out for concern in today's report as cheap flights across Europe expand - is happy to be included in the ETS scheme, but cannot agree how to do so. There is no current alternative to the jet aircraft engine and safety requirements in the air give little scope for experiments, the report notes. The former Tory MP, Lord Renton of Mount Harry, chairman of the Lords EU environmental sub-committee, said: "Aviation's impact on the environment could be immense. Jet engines directly emit greenhouse gases by burning kerosene." He added that aircraft also provided other powerful, polluting effects on the environment that were little understood. "Their exact effect is uncertain. This is alarming when air travel is predicted to grow rapidly throughout the world," he stressed. Urging EU ministers to take the lead in opening international talks and to make sure the US is involved, the peers also argue that Europe can learn from America's innovative approach to cleaner technology. "We accept that the US is now unlikely to ratify the Kyoto protocol, probably regardless of which party the president is from or which has a majority in the Senate," the peers admit. Therefore the EU should concentrate on involving the US in post-Kyoto structures developed after 2010. The report says the effects of human activities on climate change may be the most critical issue facing Europe and the world and asks whether man's inventiveness - stimulated by existing danger signals - is able to rise to the challenge. Acknowledging that climate change may be happening more violently - and more quickly - than previously thought, the report says: "This is not surprising. "The rate at which greenhouse gases are being added to the atmosphere by human activity is increasing so fast that adaptation will be increasingly difficult in the future, particularly for poorer countries. "Carbon sequestration in oilwells or under the sea, macro-engineering to alter our planet's ability to reflect the sun's rays or to make the oceans soak up more carbon dioxide, and other radical measures are being considered by scientists and industry, but are far from viable at present. "Policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars, aeroplanes, landfills, electricity and other sources are therefore crucial precautions. "We have a responsibility to limit the likelihood that our children and grandchildren will face dangerous life conditions from avoidable global warming." The committee, whose members include a range of expertise, praises EU efforts since Kyoto, though the national performances vary sharply. It urges the EU 25 member countries to set high but realistic national goals to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
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