News

Remember when the jet set was synonymous with glamour? When it seemed almost everyone aspired to travel by air to some distant land? Not so these days. Not only is most air travel decidedly unglamorous, today airlines and frequent fliers regularly stand accused by the environmental movement of making unnecessary contributions to global warming.

Groups such as the David Suzuki Foundation and Friends of the Earth Canada encourage people to think twice before boarding an aircraft; when possible, they say, vacationers should travel by train and business travellers should switch to video conferencing. The website http://www.lowflyzone.org even urges individuals to make a solemn pledge to avoid flying for a year.

Still, that's not stopping most of us. According to Beatrice Olivastri, CEO of Ottawa-based Friends of the Earth Canada, the number of airline passengers is projected to grow by 200 to 600 per cent by 2050. For all those travellers, there are still ways to reduce greenhouse gases:

FLY NEW

Canadian passengers are in a good position because Air Canada and WestJet have relatively modern, fuel-efficient fleets - one of the reasons they haven't been caught flat-footed by rising fuel prices like so many U.S. airlines. When considering other airlines, a little research into the age and size of their aircraft can help you make a "clean" choice.

PACK LIGHT

Airlines have adopted the practice of charging for checked bags because they cost money to handle and, more importantly, because the additional weight consumes more fuel. Limiting yourself to a carry-on will save you luggage hassles and reduce your carbon footprint.

COUNT YOUR CARBON

The International Civil Aviation Organization, the UN's air transport body, launched an online carbon calculator last month (http://www.icao.int) that the organization says will help travellers choose the best option to offset the impact of their trips. According to the calculator, someone flying from Toronto to London Heathrow in economy class will send .94 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere, whereas someone in a business- or first-class seat - which make less efficient use of aircraft space - will produce 1.78 tonnes.

PAY YOUR WAY

Many airlines now sell carbon offsets so passengers can pay to ease their guilt. Air Canada has partnered with Zerofootprint, while WestJet works with Offsetters.ca. As of late May, Air Canada passengers had bought $140,738 in credits since the program started a year earlier, which the carrier says offset 8,796 tonnes of CO2 and led to the planting of 1,759 trees.

But some passengers are skeptical. Ken Hamer, a Vancouver-based frequent flier, says that works out to more than $80 a tree. "That seems to me to be tremendously bad value," he says. "I'm pretty sure that I can go to any nursery and purchase a shrub tree for less than $10."

And some early carbon-offset projects actually harmed the environment, says the World Wildlife Fund-U.K.'s head of transport policy, Peter Lockley, which is why the WWF International brought other climate groups together to create the Gold Standard (http://www.cdmgoldstandard.org), a non-profit organization that recognizes genuinely beneficial offset programs.

Even so, Lockley worries that offsets may send the wrong message. "The danger is that the mentality becomes 'I can offset that and it's okay to fly.' "

TAKE THE PLANE

But that's exactly what the International Air Transport Association (IATA), whose membership comprises some 230 of the world's leading airlines, is saying: It's okay to fly.

Airlines drive the world's economy but produce only 2 per cent of global carbon emissions, delegates were told last month at the IATA's annual conference in Istanbul.

In fact, the IATA believes that criticizing the industry, its members and its customers is unfair in light of the importance it attaches to environmental concerns.

Late last year the association named Paul Steele, a former chief operating officer of the World Wildlife Fund International, to direct its environment initiatives.

"It's important we go out and say this industry has improved its record," Lufthansa CEO Wolfgang Mayrhuber said at a session on the environment challenge. "This is the only industry that shows a road map aimed at carbon neutral growth."

WHAT AIRLINES ARE DOING

Individual IATA members have been doing their part to reduce emissions since well before the oil crisis hit - which IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani admits has become "the biggest incentive for airlines to reduce carbon."

For instance, Air New Zealand expects to use at least a million barrels of environmentally sustainable fuel annually by 2013 - at least 10 per cent of its needs. The carrier intends to fly a Boeing 747-400 this year using fuel made from the seeds of the jatropha plant, which is grown in southeastern Africa and India on land that's not suitable for other crops.

Meanwhile, Scandinavian Airlines has pioneered a landing technique called "green approaches," which aims to end the fuel-burning holding pattern by timing landings precisely and allowing planes to coast down to the runway. The airline says the practice saves more than 100 kilograms of fuel per landing, and airline officials from around the world have been coming to Stockholm's Arlanda airport to see how it works.

But the association as a whole is also committed to a carbon-reducing strategy that involves cutting fuel consumption, lobbying governments to simplify air traffic control and promoting research into green aircraft technology.

The IATA actively lobbies manufacturers and governments to finance research into green fuels and more fuel-efficient engines and airframes. Alternative fuels will play an important role in reducing emissions, says Steele, but the association favours next-generation biofuels, which will come from algae and won't interfere with food production.

MORE DIRECT ROUTES

IATA officials say shorter, more direct routes would also save fuel, but they can't persuade governments to listen. Particularly annoying is Europe, where each country operates its own navigation system, forcing aircraft to take unnecessary detours. The association's Single European Sky proposal would cut 12 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year, Bisignani says.

"This has been talked about since before I was born," said British Airways CEO Willie Walsh. "It's scandalous."

Other parts of the world are no better. "For each flight to Europe and back," said David Savy, executive chairman of Air Seychelles, "we fly around Sudan because the overflying charges are so high it's cheaper to burn fuel. We also have to fly around Ethiopia and Eritrea."

But environmentalists remain unconvinced.

They argue that airline emissions cause more damage than those that come from closer to the ground. "The impact [of airlines] on global warming is really double 2 per cent because of where it's happening in the upper atmosphere," said conference panelist Mark Halle, the director for trade and investment of the Winnipeg-based International Institute for Sustainable Development.

As both sides bandy about numbers, individual passengers must make up their own minds about the environmental impact of their flights.

Fasten your seat belts, everyone, it's going to be a turbulent ride.

*****

When you've gotta fly

While environmentalists and aviation experts argue about the best way to reduce aircraft emissions, you've got a vital meeting in New York - and an eco-lodge vacation on the horizon. Herewith, a few tips on going green.

Fly direct Takeoffs and landings burn a lot of fuel, so avoid stopovers when you can.

Idle not A plane waiting to take off also uses up fuel. Steer clear of airports known for long delays wherever possible.

New is good Newer planes are more fuel-efficient. Do a bit of homework before you book a flight.

Cheap pays off Economy seating makes better use of space - which means discount passengers send less CO{-2} into the atmosphere than their business-class counterparts.

Less is more Baggage weighs a plane down. Again, this calls for more fuel. Learn to travel light.

Add it up Use online calculators (we like http://www.icao.int) to find out your carbon footprint. Then offset the damage by planting trees. Or splurge on an environmentally friendly hotel.

Sources: Doug McArthur; Illinois Times