As representatives from one hundred and ninety two nations gather for the United Nations summit on climate change in Copenhagen many around the world wonder exactly what if any effect this summit will have on different industries and lives around the world. Some have already dismissed the summit as nothing more than politicking, especially after it was announced that thousands of limos and hundreds of private jets had been chartered for an event, which some say shows exactly how serious these leaders really are about making change. One industry that does expect to be affected by the summit is the airline industry, which has long been one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions. As people look for ways to lessen their impact on the environment, the airline industry waits to see how this summit will affect the fate of the industry.
The airline industry is of particular interest to the Copenhagen summit, as airline travel was left out of the last major climate change talks, which took place in Kyoto in 1997. Since then studies have revealed that the airline industry contributes around four or five percent of the world’s carbon emissions, which is why it will be one of the most discussed topics of the summit. Some researchers have suggested that is air travel is allowed to grow unchecked then it will one day account for nearly half of the world’s emissions of carbon.
Many airlines are trying to get a jump start on what they think could be heavy regulations placed upon them. Both Virgin and KLM have developed airplanes that can run on biofuel.
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