MEPs clear aviation emissions plan as airlines cry foul

The EU airline industry is up in arms against a decision taken by the European Parliament yesterday sealing a deal among member states to include aviation in the EU's emissions trading scheme as from 2012.

The Association of European Airlines (AEA), whose members include Air Malta, condemned the decision and painted a catastrophic scenario as a consequence of the deal.

According to the AEA, the scheme will lead to bankruptcies and liquidations of airline companies, loss of air services and possible redundancies of thousands of aviation-related jobs.

"Some passengers would be priced out of the market," according to AEA, "while some would find their regular connections were no longer operated. Some would dig deep in their pockets and pay the higher fares that would invariably result. And some would take their business to non-EU airlines that can partially or entirely avoid the impact of the EU rules."

Air Malta is very critical of the scheme and has lobbied Maltese MEPs over the past months to push for various amendments to the original proposals tabled by the EU.

Sources close to Air Malta told The Times that the impact on the airline could be even worse than on other European airlines as many of its flights are conducted on the periphery of the European continent.

With 630 votes in favour and 30 against, the European Parliament adopted the text of the new rules.

Under the terms of the agreement, all airlines taking off and landing in the EU will have to buy permits to pay for their carbon emissions from 2012. Airlines will be able to sell surplus carbon allowances if they reduce their emissions but will also be required to buy additional allowances if their emissions grow.

All revenue generated from carbon permits would be channelled into schemes to mitigate the effects of climate change, research on cleaner aircraft, anti-deforestation measures in the developing world and low-emission transport.

Another aspect of the agreement includes capping the maximum level of emissions by airlines at 97 per cent of their 2004-2006 level in 2012. This will then drop to 95 per cent from 2013, subject to review later.

European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas welcomed the European Parliament's decision and said that the aviation sector will now be able to make a "fair" contribution to Europe's climate-change targets.

While aviation only accounts for some three per cent of total EU greenhouse gas emissions, the Commission predicts that aviation emissions could double from present levels by 2020.