Articles tagged “carbon emissions”

United is raising eyebrows with its drive to cut carbon emissions. The carrier has committed to the as yet untested realm of electric helicopter-like aircraft with plans to introduce as many as 200 of them within five years — a surprisingly ambitious goal for a traditionally conservative airline.

United Airlines plans to stay ahead of the pack with a new effort to go "100 percent green." But it's unclear whether the decision to invest in something called direct carbon sequestration plants is any better than the industry norm of buying offsets for the nearly billion tons of greenhouse gases planes pump into the atmosphere every year.

Airlines clearly have a lot on their plates at the moment, but putting a renewed focus on sustainability could serve as a rare bit of positivity for the industry.

Many tourism stakeholders in Asia are finally taking steps to tackle the climate change elephant in the room, but confusion over carbon offsetting is preventing the issue from being addressed swiftly and effectively. Meanwhile, the climate clock ticks on.

The fact remains that flights are bad news for the environment. But Singapore Airlines is innovating rapidly to ensure cleaner skies.

Reforming Europe's fragmented air traffic management systems would help improve the environmental performance of aircraft. But it won't change the fact that they spew out millions of tons of carbon dioxide every year.

It's a very small sample size at a very small travel company, but this study points to a possible way forward for the travel industry. If consumers can get a better idea of the environmental impact of their vacations, they can then make more informed decisions.

Airlines are much more comfortable talking about mitigating climate change through incremental changes such as more efficient aircraft and carbon offsets. But these don't alter the fundamental problem. Flying is bad for the environment, and it's only going to get worse as demand keeps rising.

Airlines think they can win over consumers, investors, and other stakeholders with their environmental spin. Ryanair is clearly doing some things right, but the sector has a structural problem that isn't going to be solved by tweaking the edges.

If governments are serious about reducing the environmental impact of aviation, they may have to make biofuels a more attractive alternative. However, this might come at the cost of taxing ordinary jet fuel, something that will likely upset a lot of airlines.