UN agency expected to approve global aviation emissions deal at general assembly
MONTREAL — The world’s first climate deal governing the aviation sector is on the cusp of being ratified, as a United Nations agency gathering got underway in Montreal on Tuesday amid criticism from environmental groups that a proposal doesn’t go far enough.
Delegates to the UN International Civil Aviation Organization general assembly are being asked to approve, within the next two weeks, a program for the industry to become carbon neutral after 2020 and to halve net emissions by 2050 compared to 2005.
Canadian Transportation Minister Marc Garneau said strong approval by the 191 countries participating in ICAO will be a significant achievement and send a strong signal to other sectors examining their environmental footprints.
“I think it will set the tone because if it goes as well as we hope it will, it will give more momentum to all the other facets of the Paris agreement,” he told reporters prior to addressing the assembly.