Airlines to be required to monitor contrails under new EU climate rules
Izabela Mońska
Controversial new environmental protection plans, which have been met with resistance from industry, were approved by the EU officials on Friday.
Airlines operating from European airports will now be required to report to the European Commission the estimated climate impact of contrails and their annual carbon dioxide emissions.
The aviation industry has lobbied hard against the new rules, which were approved by government officials in a closed meeting on Friday (30 August), arguing there is a lack of sufficient research data on the impact of contrails.
However, the European Commission, while acknowledging “inherent uncertainties” around the climate impact of the aviation industry beyond CO2 emissions, said that “the overall contribution to global warming is well known” and that the new reporting requirements would help to increase knowledge.
“Studies have shown that uncertainty about these impacts is not a sufficient reason to avoid action,” the European Commission added. Contrails contain nitrogen oxides, black carbon, and other climate-damaging substances, and contribute to increased cloud cover in the high atmosphere, where, unlike low clouds, they help trap heat.
Some estimates suggest their contribution to global warming is at least as much as 2% of global carbon dioxide emissions from aviation.
Environmental groups have criticized the temporary exclusion of long-haul flights in the final text. The new rules will apply from next year only to flights between airports in the European Economic Area, which means the EU and Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland.
“Long-haul airlines are once again getting preferential treatment from the EU,” said Krisztina Hencz, aviation policy manager at Brussels-based lobby group Transport & Environment. “They have worked hard to undermine the work and research on non-CO2 impacts and are being rewarded for their efforts.”
“Ultimately, the proposal was intended to improve understanding of the non-CO2 problem, but that effort has been hampered,” Hencz told Euronews, noting that airlines have only received limited concessions from lawmakers — the rules will apply to all flights to and from the EU from 2027.
The law is part of a recent reform of the European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), under which some companies must apply for permits for every tonne of CO2 they emit. The current price is around €70 per tonne — equivalent to the emissions of one passenger on a round-trip transatlantic flight.
The new EU law also sets out rules for assessing the carbon footprint of sustainable aviation fuels, which can be produced from biofuels, organic waste, or green hydrogen. Any fuel with a life-cycle carbon footprint that is at least 70% lower than standard kerosene will be rated as zero-emission under the EU’s emissions trading system. If renewable electricity is used to synthesize sustainable fuels, it must come from newly installed, dedicated wind turbines, solar installations, or similar sources.
