Italian aviation forum takes off

Italy now has its own platform on energy in civil aviation thanks to an initiative partly led by the WEC’s Italian member committee.

The Italian Sustainable Aviation Fuel Forum (ISAFF) has been established under a Memorandum of Understanding signed between WEC Italy and the Italian Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) on 4 June.

 

ISAFF aims to strengthen the ability of Italian institutions and companies to participate in and influence international negotiations on EU civil aviation policies. It will provide its members with a platform to collect, monitor, find, and disseminate information in the aviation sector and in related energy areas such as regulations on emission reduction and fuel standards for aircrafts.

The forum has been formed in the backdrop of discussions by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on the adoption of market-based measures (MBMs) for reducing emissions in civilian air travel.

The alliance is particularly timely as on the day before (3 June) the International Air Transport Association (IATA) passed a resolution calling on governments to agree measures to manage CO2 emissions from aircraft. It called for the need of a global MBM, such as emissions trading, which would allow airlines to offset their emissions. However it did not call for a global limit.

Emissions trading has been a hotly contested topic, with several governments such as China, India, and the US objecting to their airlines being subject to the rules of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS).

In the first ISAFF meeting on 5 June in Rome, participants stressed the need for proactive, multi-stakeholder collaboration in order to form a common Italian position on the sustainability of the civil aviation sector within European and international debate. This echoes ENAC’s call for a strong and clear Italian position on sustainable aviation.

The meeting was attended by Italian government ministries, energy and aviation companies, universities, and research centres.