ALTA is serious about zero carbon emissions

01-02-23

The global aviation industry's environmental commitment is clear: to achieve zero net carbon emissions by 2050. This ambitious goal will be possible thanks to the strong commitment of the entire value chain and technological and operational advances; however, there are still some challenges in the Latin American and Caribbean region to achieve it.

That is why the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) consolidated a working group focused on four pillars: 1) Efficiency in operations and new technologies, 2) Sustainable aviation fuels SAF, 3) Emission offsetting programmes, 4) Economic instruments for climate change management.

The ALTA Environment Committee, made up of airlines operating in the region, elected Johanna Cabrera, LATAM's sustainability manager, as Chair, who said that she received with great expectations the responsibility of being part of the leadership team of this working group that will be responsible for looking at relevant issues that will mark the sustainability of the industry in the region and the roadmap of the main projects focused on mitigating the environmental impacts of operations and maximising the positive effects of air operations in the communities.

In its first virtual meeting in 2023, the committee was attended by representatives from Aerolíneas Argentinas, Aeroméxico, Air Europa, Avianca, Copa Airlines, JetSMART, Iberia, LATAM, SKY Airline and VIVA. In addition to addressing the pillars of the committee, operational initiatives, best practices in company recycling programmes and staff training on environmental issues were discussed.

"Addressing climate change and its consequences is certainly a priority agenda for many industries in this century. The aviation industry is innovative by nature and has for several years now implemented important measures to make its operations even more environmentally responsible. In order to make further progress towards the ambitious goals set, the coordination of efforts between the public and private sectors is essential. The evolution of the industry must be accompanied by intelligent regulations that generate efficiencies and not obstacles or additional costs. The role of governments in generating competitive and enabling environments is fundamental," says José Ricardo Botelho, Executive Director and CEO of ALTA.

"In line with the objectives of the airline industry to move towards a more sustainable industry, collaborative work is key and this is precisely the value of this committee, where all airlines work towards the same goal; to establish increasingly rigorous sustainability standards in line with global objectives," says Cabrera.

"Around 65% of the total measures that will enable the industry to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 come from the large-scale deployment of the PAS. Latin America has a large availability of raw materials for the production of PBS in the world, in Brazil alone, according to projections, about 9 million litres of PBS can be produced with 5 raw materials, which reaffirms the importance of the region in the supply of PBS globally. However, it is a priority to advance in the efforts to realise this potential, the generation of incentives and enabling conditions that make the deployment of a UFSC producing industry viable is fundamental. I am sure that this working committee will generate important initiatives that will support our countries to move forward with a solid step in competitive and consistent measures for the benefit of the planet, the industry and the population", adds Botelho.

In this vein, ALTA launched a face-to-face conference, the ALTA Fuel & Environment Conference, which will be held for the first time in San José, Costa Rica on 29-30 March 2023. The conference will provide senior representatives from across the industry value chain with academic forums, networking opportunities and roundtable discussions to address, among other topics: local legal frameworks on the production, import and commercialisation of UFTS, sustainable airports and carbon offsetting mechanisms for airline passengers, and aviation fuel market updates, infrastructure, tariffs and taxes.