8 February 2016: The Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP) of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has agreed unanimously to recommend the first international aviation carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions standard for adoption. The standard will apply to new aircraft type designs as of 2020 and new deliveries of current in-production aircraft types from 2023.

The recommendation was made by the 170 international expert members of CAEP, during the Committee’s 10th meeting, from 1-12 February 2016, in Montreal, Canada. CAEP also recommended a cut-off date of 2028 for production of aircraft that do not comply with the standard. The standard was developed by CAEP’s Working Group 3 (WG 3, Emissions Technical) and will now be presented to ICAO’s 36-State Governing Council for adoption. The standard will then have to be adopted by individual States.

According to ICAO, while encompassing the full range of sizes and types of present-day aircraft, the standard is most stringent for larger aircraft, as those crafts weighing over 60 tonnes account for more than 60% of emissions and have the broadest range of emission reduction technologies available to them.

Noting the civil aviation sector accounts for 2% of global emissions, but is projected to double passengers and flights by 2030, ICAO Council President Olumuyiwa Benard Aliu said, “The goal of this process is ultimately to ensure that when the next generation of aircraft types enter service, there will be guaranteed reductions in international CO2 emissions.”

Aliu met with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on 30 January 2016, during which Ban encouraged the aviation industry to, through ICAO, “innovatively develop and employ emissions saving technologies wherever possible.” Aliu reiterated ICAO’s commitment to reducing CO2 emissions through a number of measures.

ICAO is the specialized agency of the UN to promote the safe and orderly development of international civil aviation throughout the world. It sets standards and regulations necessary for aviation safety, security, efficiency and regularity, as well as for aviation environmental protection. Addressing climate change is a central element of the work of ICAO’s Environment Branch. The Paris Agreement on climate change, adopted by the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 21) to the UNFCCC in December 2015, does not address emissions from international aviation.

The two leaders also discussed ICAO’s ‘No Country Left Behind’ capacity-building initiative, which seeks to assist African countries in improving aviation safety, security and personnel skills, and the role of well-supported aviation systems at the national level in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, of which the SDGs are an integral part, was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 25 September 2015. [ICAO Press Release, 8 February 2016] [ICAO CAEP Webpage] [ICAO Press Release, 4 February 2016] [UN Press Release] [UN Secretary-General’s Statement]