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Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson urged all governments to put maximum effort
All of Boeing's manufacturing facilities across the globe received ISO 14001 environmental certification
US-based Air Line Pilots Assn. joined 19 other aviation stakeholder groups
Qatar Airways launched economy class inflight service using recyclable materials
Annual global survey by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives and corporate travel management solutions company KDS found
Your diet has a bigger impact on the environment than how much you fly

Eco-Aviation Today, March 10, 2009, p.7

Virgin Group Chairman Richard Branson urged all governments to put maximum effort and spare pennies into alternative energy and saving energy. The key from "a global warming point of view is that the demand for dirty fuel will exceed supply in four to five years time," he told Eco-Aviation Today. Speaking during the recent delivery of V Australia's first 777-300ER, he warned that the reality going forward is not good. "Just as we get out of the recession, fuel prices will soar and we will go into a deep recession again."

Branson praised the UK government for its decision to move forward with London Heathrow's third runway. "It should be done at Heathrow as soon as possible and it should have been done 30 years ago. Governments have not been brave enough to do it and finally there is one that is prepared to move." At the same time he served it up to the government on its increased "green" passenger taxes that are not going to any environment projects. "This is completely wrong. They shouldn't levy green taxes when they don't actually use those taxes for green projects," he said.

All of Boeing's manufacturing facilities across the globe received ISO 14001 environmental certification by the end of 2008. The company has a series of ongoing environmental projects that include: 1) Improving by 25% greenhouse gas emission intensity, energy efficiency and recycling rates at its major manufacturing facilities by 2012, with a similar goal for hazardous waste reduction; 2) research for advanced generations of sustainable biofuels using biomass that does not compete with food crops or water resources; 3) release of an Environment Report detailing its performance, strategy and actions to reduce its environmental footprint and lead the aerospace industry with environmentally progressive products and services.

US-based Air Line Pilots Assn. joined 19 other aviation stakeholder groups in a coalition position paper that outlines the principles the airline industry should follow to take on environmental issues without compromising safety or the industry's long-term financial health. The principles include creating a cost-benefit analysis, a central framework, an international dimension, a comprehensive energy policy and a science-based debate.

"Airline pilots are extremely serious about addressing climate change and, at the same time, fostering an industry that provides hundreds of thousands of jobs and is vital to the US economy and transportation infrastructure," said Mary Ann Schaffer, chairman of an ALPA task force on the environment. Importantly the group also highlighted principles on which any climate change measures should be based. These are air traffic control modernization, technology and research, alternative fuels, operational measures, ground infrastructure investment and economic measures.

Qatar Airways launched economy class inflight service using recyclable materials on flights operating to the UK. The service features see-through trays, bright meal cartons and cutlery packs and a personal table mat in a variety of different colors that are all recyclable. Following introduction of the service on flights between Doha and London Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester, QR plans to roll out the concept across the remainder of its international network over the next few months.

Qatar Airways launched economy class inflight service using recyclable materials and corporate travel management solutions company KDS found that companies now see cost-cutting as the top business travel concern--rated a high priority by 79% of respondents--while environmentally sustainable travel was a high priority for just 17% compared with 29% the previous year. Overall, environmental sustainability is rated only a midlevel priority, ranked at this level by 48% of organizations. There is also an Atlantic divide on the importance of the environment when making travel plans: Only 35% of US companies say they would consider their carbon emissions compared to 42% of Europeans.

Your diet has a bigger impact on the environment than how much you fly or drive, according to a new study. The report in Scientific American claims that livestock production accounts for 18% of human-caused CO2 emissions compared to aviation's 2% and the balance of transport's 12%. Only energy production, at 21%, is a higher contributor to CO2 in the atmosphere. Eating just one hamburger produces the same amount of CO2 as driving a car 17 km.

However, help is on the way. Last year former New Zealand Trade Minister Phil Goff told the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development that a solution is close. He told delegates that scientists in New Zealand have been working on a range of ways to reduce that country's greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, have mapped the genome that causes methane in ruminant animals and could vaccinate for flatulent and belching emissions. According to New Zealand figures, the country's 11 million cattle and 46 million sheep produce 90% of the nation's methane emissions. The largest effect of beef on GHG is the loss of CO2-absorbing trees for grazing land at 40%, followed by cow emissions at 32%, fertilizer production of feed crops at 14% and general farm production making up the balance.

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