Committee on Climate Change

The Government published a response to our 2009 Aviation Report today, setting out new evidence on emissions forecasts and on the cost-effectiveness of a range of policies that could help to reduce emissions from aviation by 2050. This builds upon CCC analysis of whether and how the previous Government’s target to reduce aviation emissions to 2005 levels could be met.

The forecasts set out by the Department for Transport (DfT) are similar to those made by the Committee in 2009. DfT’s ‘central’ scenario forecasts UK aviation emissions to be 49MtCO₂ in 2050, a close match to our ‘Likely’ scenario, which forecast 48MtCO₂.

DfT published their report today in order to provide further information for those people who are considering responding to their scoping document on UK aviation emissions, the deadline for which has been extended to Thursday 20th October 2011.  Responses will help inform the Sustainable Framework for UK Aviation which the Government is publishing for consultation in March 2012.

The CCC will be producing further advice on future aviation emissions in a report on International Aviation and Shipping to be published in March 2012. This report will set out the Committee’s recommendations to Government on the inclusion of International Aviation and Shipping emissions in the UK’s carbon budgets to 2050; a Government decision on inclusion of these sectors is required by end-2012 under the Climate Change Act (2008).