Translations:
Sao Paulo - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is voicing its concerns over the proposed imposition of an Environmental Preservation Fee (TPA), to be paid by all passengers departing from Sao Paulo’s André Franco Montoro International Airport (GRU), pursuant to Law No. 3,823 / 2019, sent by the Guarulhos City Hall to the City Council for approval.
IATA's analysis shows that imposing punitive taxes on passengers is inefficient and does not help reduce carbon emissions and other environmental impacts. IATA opposes any form of national, regional, environmental, double or extraterritorial taxation on aviation emissions, as this would negatively affect the development of aviation in Brazil and hence the country’s economy. Instead, IATA calls on the authorities to ensure that they implement effective policies which are based on best practices for environmental management and which are compatible with the policies agreed by Brazil and other States through ICAO, the UN’s specialized agency for civil aviation.
“Taxing people who exercise their freedom to fly will make travel more expensive and do little to reduce the environmental impact. This solution is purely political and does not take into account its negative impact on the economy or the mobility restrictions imposed on people with lower incomes,” says Peter Cerdá, IATA’s Regional Vice President for the Americas.
Environmental issues are high on the aviation industry’s agenda. Since 1990, carbon emissions per passenger have been reduced by 50%, an achievement that is largely due to the industry's 2.3% improvement in annual fuel efficiency over the period since 2009, about 0.8 percentage points above target. This progress is the result of more efficient aircraft investments and operational improvements. Emissions from international aviation are also already subject to the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), under which airlines will be required to finance climate projects to stabilize net CO2 emissions from aviation at 2020 levels.
In the long run, aviation seeks to reduce emissions with cleaner technologies. This will require a financially solid aviation industry, capable of making the significant investments that will be required to make air travel sustainable.
“Governments should focus their efforts appropriately. Aviation brings prosperity and therefore we need collaboration with governments. Reducing carbon emissions should be a priority, requiring government leadership to encourage the commercialization of sustainable aviation fuels, increase air traffic management efficiency and support research on next-generation low-carbon energy sources,” said Cerdá.
For more information, please contact:
Corporate Communications
Latin America & Caribbean
Tel: +1 438 258 3155
Email: ruedigerm@iata.org
Notes for Editors:
- IATA (International Air Transport Association) represents some 290 airlines comprising 82% of global air traffic.
- You can follow us at twitter.com/iata for announcements, policy positions, and other useful industry information.
- Find more information on IATA in Latin America and the Caribbean page.
