by Almuth Ernsting (Biofuelwatch/The Biomass Monitor) … As far as Branson and his airline, Virgin Atlantic, were concerned, the flight was indeed no more than a stunt: The “biofuel test flight” burned 95% ordinary kerosene and just 5% biofuels, made from coconut and Brazilian babassu nut oil. Virgin Atlantic has not used any biofuels since that day.
Since then, however, at least 24 other airlines have blended biofuels with kerosene. By September 2015, more than 2,050 such flights had taken off, most by commercial airlines, some by the US and Dutch military and US and Canadian research institutes. This year, KLM has launched a series of 80 passenger flights with biofuel blends, and since March, United Airlines has been using such blends for regular flights between Los Angeles and San Francisco. They aim to expand their use to all their flights out of Los Angeles. Across the aviation industry, biofuel use and investments have moved far beyond what could be considered a mere publicity stunt.
Even if biofuels were carbon neutral – which is far from the case – there is no realistic prospect of them making any significant dent in aviation’s contribution to global warming.
…
Global biofuel production has reached the equivalent of just over half a billion tonnes of oil so far, accounting for little more than 2% of the world’s transport fuels.
…
When discussing carbon emissions from aviation, it is important to note that the climate impacts of aviation are much greater than those of its CO2 emissions alone: As well as CO2, airplanes emit water vapour, oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and soot at high altitude, all of which have a significant warming impact. This is partly due to the fact that NOx increases ozone, which causes warming, particularly in the upper troposphere (where planes fly), and partly due to cirrus clouds formed by contrails.
…
International aviation has been exempt from emissions reduction commitments under the Kyoto Protocol, and the industry is keen to ensure that its year on year growth won’t be hampered by climate policies in future.
When the EU passed a law to include the sector in its Emissions Trading Scheme from 2012 the industry managed to put enough pressure on policymakers to get this measure postponed until the start of 2017, and it now hopes to get it suspended again. Inclusion in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, far from stopping the growth in aviation emissions, would merely oblige airlines to pay for dubious “offsets” if they exceed what tend to be highly generous carbon allowances given to polluters.
…
The two planks to the “carbon neutrality” proposal are biofuels and an new carbon offset scheme for aviation. The latter has been denounced by over 80 civil society organisations.
Compared to the current growth in aviation, the scope for cutting emissions through greater fuel efficiency is minor….
…
Only a tiny proportion of the world’s population will ever step on a plane, yet global aviation emissions far exceed the total greenhouse gas emissions of most countries. If we want to avoid the worst impacts of climate change, there is no alternative to drastic curbs on aviation. READ MORE / MORE