Countries opposed to the European Union’s tax on airline carbon emissions are meeting early next month to discuss retaliatory action, a top Indian official said. The meeting may take place either in Delhi or in Moscow and will discuss a joint action plan against the EU measures, which have angered most countries.
This year, EU imposed a carbon emissions tax on all airlines flying into the continent in an effort to control carbon dioxide emissions, which are blamed for an increase in global temperatures.
The proposal makes it mandatory for airlines flying into its airspace to buy carbon credits equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted by their aircraft starting January 2012. Airlines don’t have to pay on a daily basis, but on an annual accumulated basis, according to a report in The Economic Times. “Nations may plan to respond in phases or in a graded manner. However, this joint action has the potential to develop into a trade war. It is bound to have repercussions on the WTO as well,” the official said. One of the retaliatory measures could be curbs on European airlines flying out to destinations in the east. The EU ETS (Emissions Trading System) has been criticised by governments across the globe, who say that unilaterally imposing a tax is unfair and inconsistent with international law. Industry experts do not think that the ETS is an effective way to keep emissions in check. “Serious problems with EU ETS are that they cover only one region….It won’t bring emissions down, so it doesn’t solve the problem, but raises cost of travelling,” Brian D Pearce, Chief Economist, International Association of Air Transport (IATA) said. The annual outgo for Indian airlines towards the EU ETS could be about Rs 400 crore now, which could very well rise in the future if they expand in the region. Overall, the cost of flying into Europe will rise and tickets will get expensive. The United Nations aviation body International Civil Aviation Organisation adopted a declaration in September saying the EU’s move is inconsistent with international law. The participants, 26 countries in all, also said that the EU ETS measures were in violation of the Chicago convention governing aviation. USA, China, Japan and Russia are some of the signatories to this convention.
Click here to see the original article>The proposal makes it mandatory for airlines flying into its airspace to buy carbon credits equivalent to the carbon dioxide emitted by their aircraft starting January 2012. Airlines don’t have to pay on a daily basis, but on an annual accumulated basis, according to a report in The Economic Times. “Nations may plan to respond in phases or in a graded manner. However, this joint action has the potential to develop into a trade war. It is bound to have repercussions on the WTO as well,” the official said. One of the retaliatory measures could be curbs on European airlines flying out to destinations in the east. The EU ETS (Emissions Trading System) has been criticised by governments across the globe, who say that unilaterally imposing a tax is unfair and inconsistent with international law. Industry experts do not think that the ETS is an effective way to keep emissions in check. “Serious problems with EU ETS are that they cover only one region….It won’t bring emissions down, so it doesn’t solve the problem, but raises cost of travelling,” Brian D Pearce, Chief Economist, International Association of Air Transport (IATA) said. The annual outgo for Indian airlines towards the EU ETS could be about Rs 400 crore now, which could very well rise in the future if they expand in the region. Overall, the cost of flying into Europe will rise and tickets will get expensive. The United Nations aviation body International Civil Aviation Organisation adopted a declaration in September saying the EU’s move is inconsistent with international law. The participants, 26 countries in all, also said that the EU ETS measures were in violation of the Chicago convention governing aviation. USA, China, Japan and Russia are some of the signatories to this convention.