BUSINESS NEWS AOA Conference: Airport Operators Association forum highlights need for emissions reduction
MP urges government to help industry on carbon
The co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Sustainable Aviation has warned of “a chasm between the government’s green rhetoric and action” on climate. Catherine McKinnell MP told
the Airport Operators Association conference: “Climate change is going to require great changes to our economy. The government says the right things on aviation, but there isn’t sufficient commitment. “The challenge of climate change
is so huge, the market can’t correct it by itself. The government needs to step up.” McKinnell described this week’s
Budget as “an important moment for the government to put its money where its mouth is”. But she warned: “I see a
chasm between the government’s green rhetoric and its action. The time-critical nature of this means the damage will be great if we don’t invest now, and we have all the cost of the pandemic to bear.” Derek Provan, chief executive of
Airports ‘slashed emissions by 50% in last decade’
UK airports halved emissions between 2010 and 2019, according to a report by the Airport Operators Association (AOA). An AOA Decarbonisation
Report revealed airport greenhouse
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Catherine McKinnell
AGS Airports, which owns Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports, said: “Our airports are carbon neutral and we have a plan for net zero by 2025. [But] no airport will be able to deliver on its own. We need greater collaboration with government. It’s time for more carrot and less stick.” Birmingham airport chief
executive Nick Barton argued “the
gas emissions fell by 50.6% from more than 514,000 tonnes of CO2 from sources airports control – so-called Scope 1 and 2 emissions – to just under 250,000 tonnes. Passenger numbers rose by 42% over the same period from 202 million to 286 million. The figures are based on
energy used at 18 UK airports that handle more than 95% of passengers. If renewable energy purchased by the airports is
industry didn’t do enough to address the issue” at the time of the last white paper on the Future of Aviation in 2003. Now, he said: “We might feel browbeaten, but we are doing a lot.” He noted Birmingham airport
announced plans to be net zero by 2033 before the pandemic, adding: “Any longer would make it someone else’s problem. We hadn’t the foggiest idea how we’d do it, but we made the commitment. The pandemic has taken two years out of our delivery programme, but we’re sticking to it. “We have a plan for half of it.
But the second 50% is fraught with difficulty.” However, Barton insisted: “The industry has to deliver. Crucially, it has to tell people what it’s doing otherwise we’ll become a whipping boy.” Bristol airport chief executive
Dave Lees insisted: “This is about a decade of change. We’re going to be net zero by 2030. We’re getting rid of generators, getting rid of gas and turning to ground pumps to heat buildings. [But] we can’t do this by ourselves.”
Karen Dee
Lord Deben: Plans for expansion of airports not viable
The UK must drop plans for airport expansion if it is to meet carbon reduction targets, the chair of the Climate Change Committee, which advises the government, warned the aviation industry. Lord Deben told the Airport
Operators Association (AOA) conference: “There is not any space for airport expansion.” He slammed a flight taken
by Manchester United Football Club to play a game this month in Leicester, 100 miles away, and suggested Manchester airport should not have allowed it. “The airport should be ashamed.
It should have said ‘We are not in that business’.” Deben said: “That has done your business harm.” AOA chief executive Karen Dee
challenged him, but Deben insisted: “You’re part of the supply chain and you are damaged by it. You have every right to say ‘This is not what we are here for’.” Deben noted up to 10 UK
airports plan expansion including Heathrow and Gatwick and said: “The idea we’re going to have a whole lot of airports expanding – we’re just not in that world.”
actions airports are taking including investing in sustainable energy and heat generation, and working with airlines and ground handlers to reduce emissions. AOA chief executive Karen Dee
included overall emissions fell by about 80%. The report sets out further
said: “Airports have achieved a major reduction in the greenhouse gas emissions they control since 2010. More needs to be done to reach net zero. [But] our report shows airports take that responsibility seriously.”
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