Re: “Aviation contributes to greenhouse effect,” letter, Dec. 15.
While there is no doubt that aviation is a big contributor to carbon-dioxide pollution, the writer asks: “What could be a greater contributor to greenhouse effect?”
Well, shipping for one. A report in 2007 showed that CO2 emissions from shipping are double those of aviation.
Aviation carbon-dioxide emissions, estimated to be about two per cent of the global total, have been at the forefront of the climate-change debate because of the sharp increase in cheap flights, whereas shipping emissions, at four per cent of the total, have risen nearly as fast in the past 20 years but have been ignored by governments and environmental groups.
The world’s 70,000 ships use about 200 million tonnes of fuel a year; this is expected to grow to 350 million tonnes a year by 2020.
Sadly, both international aviation and shipping emissions were dropped from the draft Paris climate agreement. Go figure.
John Pope
Victoria
