Johnson’s ‘jet zero’ plan unrealistic and may make UK miss CO2 targets – report
The UK government’s “jet zero” plan to eliminate carbon emissions from aviation relies on unproven or nonexistent technology and “sustainable” fuel, and is likely to result in ministers missing their legally binding emissions targets, according to a report.
The study from Energy Elemental, which has worked for the government and the climate change committee in the past, says instead of focusing on such unreliable future developments, ministers should work to reduce the overall number of flights and halt airport expansion over the next few years.
The report, released on Monday, was commissioned by the Aviation Environment Federation (AEF) and comes as five regional airports are in the process of seeking approval to expand.
In addition, Gatwick and Luton have announced they will be submitting major applications later this year, while Heathrow has not abandoned its plans for a third runway.
AEF’s policy director, Cait Hewitt, said the findings showed the government’s plan amounted to “sitting back and allowing both airports and emissions to grow in the short term while hoping for future technologies and fuels to save the day”.
“These expansion plans will generate millions of tonnes of additional CO2 each year,” she added. “Until the government sets out a realistic net zero trajectory for the sector, and the industry is on track to outperform it, additional airport capacity should be off the agenda.”
The government’s jet zero initiative was launched two years ago and is part of a raft of policies that aim to get UK emissions to net zero by 2050.
Boris Johnson announced the proposals, declaring a goal of a commercial transatlantic flight that produces no carbon emissions by 2025, a claim that was widely dismissed by experts as a
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