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Hong Kong – a green port?

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Hong Kong could become the host to Asia’s first marine emissions control area. The chief executive of the city says he wants to create a ‘green port’ in the Pearl River Delta, once he has achieved his aim of making it obligatory for all ships in the delta to use low-sulphur fuel. The plan has the support of the Hong Kong ship owners, and the city’s policy institute Civic Exchange described it as ‘a major policy breakthrough in ship emissions control’. Comments from the cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen also supported the idea of a ‘green port’ as part of efforts to develop a low-carbon Chinese economy.

ICAO and aviation emissions: The clock is ticking

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In 1997 the parties to the Kyoto Protocol agreed that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international aviation should be ‘limited’ or ‘reduced’ working through the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), a UN agency responsible for setting international standards for civil aviation. Since Kyoto, ICAO has failed to deliver or agree any mandatory global policies to mitigate emissions. The Organisation closed the door, one by one, on almost every conceivable market measure for reducing aviation’s emissions and now, under pressure to act, is deeply divided over adopting a global solution.The following timeline shows the sluggish progress made in the ICAO, while CO2 emissions from aviation have been growing 4.3% on average per year between 1999 and 2009 and today aviation alone accounts for 4.9% of the cumulative climate change impact of human activities.

Airlines' Billion-Dollar Bonanza Underscores Need for Real Climate Action

This blogpost was originally published by the Huffington Post. It was co-authored by Bill Hemmings, Programme Manager for Aviation with Transport and Environment and Vera Pardee, senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity's Climate Law Institute. 

The case for 2025 targets for CO2 emissions from cars and vans - Report

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The EU has set a legally-binding target for new cars to emit no more than 95 grammes of CO2 per kilometre (g/km) by 2020. The target for vans is 147g/km. In July 2012, the European Commission announced its proposals on how these targets should be met. These proposals are currently being considered by the European Parliament and Council. The Commission did not propose further standards for 2025.This briefing outlines the arguments for setting strong 2025 targets and explains why industry arguments for delaying these targets are unfounded and would set back progress. It is based on new research by consultancy Ricardo-AEA (also downloadable in this page) as well as other evidence.

Commission takes a first step in the right direction for alternative fuels in Europe

Sustainable transport group, Transport & Environment (T&E), today welcomed the Commission proposal mandating that member states build up infrastructure for alternative fuels such as electric charging points for road transport and liquefied natural gas (LNG) refuelling points for ships.

Myths v realities - US policy towards curbing international aviation emissions

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In the context of the EU's one year 'stop the clock' of the EU ETS in order for a global aviation emissions reduction framework to be implemented by ICAO, this factsheet compares the myths and realities of the United States of America's policy towards curbing international aviation emissions.

Airlines to make up to €1.3bn profit from EU carbon scheme, a new study shows

Flying in the face of industry claims about the unbearable cost [1] of including aviation in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), air carriers will generate up to an estimated €1.3bn in windfall profits in 2012 alone, a new study by independent consultancy CE Delft reveals.

The Billion Euro Aviation Bonanza - Aviation's Participation in the EU ETS

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A new study shows that the aviation industry will receive substantial additional windfall profits from the proposed ‘stopping of the clock’ for flights to and from Europe under the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). Airlines should not retain these windfall profits – that would be unjust, self-serving and a betrayal of passengers’ contributions to fight climate change - but give them to the UN’s Green Climate Fund established to assist developing countries tackle the impacts of climate change.

Allocating aviation CO2 emissions - The airspace-based approach and its alternatives

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The ICAO High Level Group in International Aviation and Climate Change, established last November to resolve political questions surrounding a global market based measure for international aviation emissions, also needs to agree an ICAO position on the geographic scope of any national or regional schemes such as the EU ETS. The three alternatives being considered are based on departing flights, nationality of carrier or a country’s airspace. Suggestions that an airspace approach would be appropriate are unrealistic and can't be serious. ICAO already recognised 5 years ago that the airspace option was impractical. These talks require a more responsible and disinterested approach and here we explain why.

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