Thank you for joining us. Today is a great day. The 39th ICAO Assembly achieved agreement on a Carbon Reduction and Offset Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). And that agreement will give aviation a critically important tool to achieve its goal of stabilizing emissions with carbon neutral growth.
Needless to say, airlines fully support this agreement. It is the global approach that we have long advocated for. And we look forward to its effective implementation. But more broadly, this an achievement of historic proportion. It is the first agreement of its nature for an entire global industrial sector.
What was agreed today is at the cutting-edge of efforts to combat climate change. And the air transport industry is very proud to be there.
CORSIA will begin as a voluntary initiative, Already, however, we see overwhelming participation from the beginning. We estimate that the 65 states that have signed up for voluntary implementation will give CORSIA coverage exceeding 80%. That is very encouraging. And all indications are that more states will continue to step up. The industry will continue to encourage as many states to join as possible.
There is still much work ahead. Industry will continue to work closely with ICAO to ensure that
- CORSIA is implemented efficiently and effectively
- And to help with capacity-building among states and across the industry
And, we must not lose sight of the fact that the adoption of CORSIA alone is not aviation’s solution to climate change. The aviation industry has a four pillar strategy to manage its carbon emissions. A global market-based measure—CORSIA—is one of those pillars. And it is complemented by improvements in technology, operations and infrastructure.
This strategy is delivering results. Airlines, for example, are investing billions of dollars in new and more fuel-efficient aircraft. And we will continue to remind our partners in government of their responsibilities as well—improving infrastructure, supporting the adoption of new technologies and aligning their policies with CORSIA to avoid any proliferation of aviation environmental charges and taxes.
With the support of governments through the establishment of CORSIA, the air transport industry is taking a giant step forward on climate change. Aviation is a catalyst for social and economic development. As I have said many times, we are in the business of freedom—dedicated to safe, efficient and sustainable connectivity. And today that commitment to sustainability was reinforced with the powerful tool of CORSIA.