Air travel has come under severe criticism recently for its carbon emissions and excessive use of fossil fuels. A recent study by world experts has revealed that airlines are pumping 20 per cent more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than estimates suggest, with total emissions set to reach between 1.2 billion and 1.5 billion tonnes annually by 2025. For more information on the report go to www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/airline-emissions-far-higher-than-previous-estimates-821598.html.
As well, the government-funded research found that the number of people seriously affected by aircraft noise will rise from 24 million in 2000 to 30.3 million by 2025, despite the introduction of quieter jets. The amount of nitrogen oxides around airports produced by aircraft engines will rise as well. The aviation industry is not bound by the Kyoto protocol on reducing greenhouse gases, and claims the introduction of new technology over the next 25 years will decrease emissions but critics dispute this claim. A flight from New York City to Denver emits an amount of CO2 equal to each passenger driving an SUV daily for a month.
Airlines have come to their own defence by reporting a United Airlines recent flight from Sydney to San Francisco which used new technologies and air traffic control procedures to save 1664 gallons of fuel and 32,656 pounds of carbon emissions. And earlier this year, Virgin Atlantic flew from London to Amsterdam using a biofuel made from a mixture of coconut and babassu oils biofuels in a conventional Boeing 747.
The number of airline flights worldwide is growing and estimated to increase dramatically over the coming years. Climate experts are particularly concerned about emissions in the upper atmosphere where the warming effect from some pollutants is amplified. The question being asked now is if the airline industry’s real motive in developing a more-friendly fuel is to enable it to decrease its reliance on crude oil. Currently, traditional jet fuel costs about three dollars a gallon, and biofuels appear to be able to be produced for approximately two dollars a gallon. Some experts suggest that it’s more a cost-cutting measure than a concern for the environment, but if the end result is lower emissions then a valued goal will have been reached.
Airlines also throw away tons of cans, bottles, and paper each year, according to a recent report from the Natural Resources Defense Council. In one year, they dispose of enough aluminum cans to build 58 new Boeing 747s, and enough newspapers and magazines to bury a football field 230 ft. deep. A single passenger leaves behind 1.3 pounds of waste, 75 percent of which could be, but isn’t, recycled or composted. In addition, pre-flight, in-flight, and post-flight activities generate an estimated of 425,000 tons of junk each year in the USA alone.
Consumers and travelers can help by putting pressure on the industry and those that operate it to increase the efforts to stop the waste and work towards alternative fuels so the extreme effects on the environment can be prevented.
