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June 27, 2008, 11:32 am Posted by Keith Johnson Airlines must feel like somebody is kicking them while they’re down. First terrorism and SARS scared people away from flying. Then when passengers came back, fuel prices shot so high, airlines had trouble affording to stay in the air. Now, the European Union wants airlines to pay for the emissions they cough out.  Pony up (AP)
After years of talking about including aviation in its emissions control scheme, Europe finally let the hammer fall. Under the decision, airlines that take off or land in Europe—including American and other foreign carriers—will face limits on greenhouse-gas emissions. The sector’s emissions will be capped, starting in 2012, and airlines will have to buy 15% of their emissions permits from the EU. In the first phase of Europe’s cap-and-trade scheme, industry received all its emissions permits for free. It’s the first time Europe has included any transportation sector in the cap-and-trade scheme, which basically targets industry and power companies. The idea is to eventually link up with other countries, such as the U.S., to cover as much of the global aviation industry as possible. My Coments: It is funny that we never hear about the realistic ways to reduce both fuel consumption and CO2 pollution. Check out the comment I left on this story to see what I mean...
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