30 September 2010: At its 37thGeneral Assembly held in Montreal, Canada, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) launched its “ICAO Environmental Report 2010,” which brings together scientific, technological, economic, political and regulatory aspects of aviation environmental protection.

The report is broken down into eight sections describing: aviation’s contribution to climate change; aircraft technology improvements; operational opportunities; economic instruments; alternative fuels; adaptation; financing; and uniting aviation globally on climate change. The report’s main findings include: that there is significant opportunity for reducing aviation’s emissions technically, operationally, via economic instruments, as well as with the introduction of alternative fuels; that the aviation industry will have to adapt to climate change related extreme weather events and sea level rise; and that global policy makers must not ignore aviation in the provision of financing for climate mitigation and adaptation efforts.

The report also introduces ICAO’s Global Air Traffic Management (ATM) plan to create a global air traffic management system that meets safety and security requirements, provides optimum economic performance, and is environmentally sustainable. [The Report]