Can Your Flight Be Made Better for the Environment?
Lisa Anderson | Lisa’s Dolce Italia
“Times and conditions change so rapidly that we must keep our aim constantly focused on the future.” -Walt Disney
The elements of change factor into all our lives whether we are looking for it or not. Changes can be positive, negative, neutral, confusing, or a mixture of these things. Initiating change can give us a sense of power or control where it was lacking before, or it can turn something we feel comfortable and competent with into something stressful. Covid-19 has, without a doubt, forced change on us. We know the travel industry has been hard hit, too, but how we as consumers and those in the industry respond to this change can create some very positive waves.
When Covid first hit in 2020 and the world shutdown, one of the immediate effects was cleaner air. The main contributors to this reduction were in industry, ground, and air transportation. Factories were shut down, wherever it was an option. Smart-working or virtual working from home picked-up. Air travel was grounded. Once the world started to re-open, emissions went right back up. However, the temporary change in emissions provided some interesting insight into how we can lower long-term emissions to meet the goals set out in the Kyoto Protocol and the more recent Paris Agreement. Nature Magazine has published a couple of articles that look at the change in emissions pre and post covid.
• Near-real-time monitoring of global CO2 emissions reveals the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic
• COVID curbed carbon emissions in 2020 — but not by much
Long story short, the reduction in emissions was short lived. As a society, we must make structural and transformational changes in producing sustainable energy, de-carbonizing transportation (particularly, our individual cars) and improving building use efficiency. We need to find balance between this and an overall improvement of economies rather than a decrease of human activities because, let’s be realistic, we are not going to stop living.
A major environmental downside to travel is the carbon footprint it leaves but there are movements underway and things we can do individually to minimize this impact. One of the biggest polluters are airlines, which emit 3.5% of the world’s carbon emissions. While that might not seem like a big percentage, reducing emissions in this field is important, and SAFs are key.
SAF stands for sustainable aviation fuel and can reduce carbon emissions by 80% compared to traditional jet fuel. The beauty of SAF is that helps solve another big world problem…what to do with non-recyclable waste. Typical feedstock for SAF is used cooking oil (non-palm), packaging, paper, textiles, and food scraps. Other potential sources are forestry waste, fast-growing plants, and algae.
So, who is making SAF?
Image | BP
With the increased acceptance that global warming is real, several innovative companies are making major investments in SAF and biofuels in general. Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel is already available and used in the market. They have partnered with Air BP to deliver sustainable aviation fuel to customers in Sweden and France. In addition, Lufthansa and KLM use their sustainable product, blended with fossil jet fuel, continuously on flights departing from Frankfurt and Schiphol Airport. Swiss International Air Lines, United Airlines, and several other US airlines are also using their fuel. With their refinery expansions underway in Rotterdam and Singapore, they will be producing 1.5 million tons of sustainable fuel by 2023.
Converting trash to SAF
Image | Fulcrum BioEnergy
Another company that is making great headway in producing SAF and biofuels is US-based Fulcrum BioEnergy. They are currently able to convert 175,000 tons of prepared municipal solid waste (MSW) into approximately 11 million gallons of zero-carbon syncrude annually, which will then be upgraded to transportation fuels such as sustainable aviation fuel, renewable diesel, and renewable gasoline. They are planning on eight new conversion plants in the US.
With the production of SAF ramping up, the price is coming down. That is good news for everyone. Right now, the cost of SAF is still higher than jet-fuel, but that is changing. The more we as consumers pressure companies to make green choices, the faster they will adapt to this change. So, whenever possible, try to be an informed shopper when buying your plane ticket; and check out the leaders in aviation who are embracing this change toward sustainable aviation fuels.
Image | Trish Feaster
