Review of Public Perception and Need for Emissions Inventory of Pakistan’s Aviation Industry
Zainab Naeem*
Nageen Sohail**

This research is a review of general public perception in Pakistan about willingness to pay the aviation industry if they charge for eco-friendly and sustainable air travel services using surveys and interviews of aviation authority officials and passengers.

In 1990, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimated that the aviation industry was responsible for 2% of global Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG). This figure rose to 10% in subsequent years (Penner et al. 1999; Macintosh and Wallace 2009).

In Pakistan, air traffic (including domestic and international flights) increased from approximately 18 million flights per year in 2010 to 23 million flights per year in 2018 (CAA 2019a). Although Pakistan’s contribution to the global GHG mix is negligible, it does not account for aviation emissions data because no emission inventory is conducted for the aviation industry. Given deteriorating air quality, it is important to monitor aviation emissions. The National Aviation Policy 2019 approved by the Government of Pakistan emphasises sustainable air travel and use of clean fuels to mitigate air emissions (CAA 2019b).

The paper also discusses the Digital Carbon Calculator launched by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO 2017); and how this can be used by the public and private sector in Pakistan to monitor their carbon footprint from air travel.

References

CAA 2019a, ‘Major Traffic Flows by Airports during the Year’, Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan, 16 April, <https://www.caapakistan.com.pk/upload/AT/stats/2017%20-%202018-APT.pdf>.

CAA 2019b, ‘National Aviation Policy 2019’, Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan, <https://www.caapakistan.com.pk/upload/AT/NAP-2019.pdf>.

ICAO 2017, ‘Carbon Emission Calculator 2017’, International Civil Aviation Organization<https://www.icao.int/environmental-protection/CarbonOffset/Documents/Methodology%20ICAO%20Carbon%20Calculator_v10-2017.pdf>.

Macintosh, A. and Wallace, L. 2009, ‘International Aviation Emissions to 2025: Can Emissions be Stabilized without Restricting Demand?’ Energy Policy, vol. 37, no. 1, pp. 264-273.

Penner, J. E. Lister, D. Griggs, D. J. McFarland, M. and Dokken, D. J. 1999, Aviation and the Global Atmosphere: A Special Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, London: Cambridge University Press.
* Ms Zainab Naeem is an MPhil Scholar in Environmental Sciences at the Fatima Jinnah Women University, Pakistan. Her research focus is disaster management, soil and air pollution.
** Ms Nageen Sohail is an MPhil Scholar in Environmental Sciences at the Fatima Jinnah Women University, Pakistan. Her research focus is water, air pollution and waste management.