EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Chapter 11: Environment and Transport The data illustrated in Figure 11.1 are for the total environmental pressure of all carbon dioxide emissions from transport (SEAI, 2019b). This highlights growth of 158 per cent between 1990 and 2018, when international flights and transport electricity are included. Figure 11.2, breaks down the latest EPA Provisional Greenhouse gas Inventory data to show the emissions from different Transport modes that dominated in 2019. The private car was the largest contributor, at 48 per cent, followed by international aviation, at 22 per cent, and road freight (trucks), at 7 per cent. The remaining emissions are predominantly from light goods vehicles (vans) and buses. Since 1990, carbon dioxide emissions from the private car fleet have grown by 139 per cent, from international flights by 209 per cent and from road freight by 104 per cent. These patterns show how choices have led to transport becoming more individualised and motorised, driving up emissions, with a shift in freight away from the more sustainable mode of rail (O’Mahony et al. , 2012). Recently, the National Travel Survey suggests that there has been little shift to walking, cycling, rail and bus, with a slight decline noted from 2013 to 2019 (CSO, 2020a) (Passenger Transport section in 3. Understanding the Drivers of Transport Environmental Pressures). The place of international flights in policy to reduce emissions is discussed in Topic Box 11.1. Figure 11.2  Shares of Irish carbon dioxide emissions by mode of transport, 2019 (Source: EPA, 2020f) Private Car International Aviation Road Freight Light Goods Vehicles Buses Rail Other Domestic Aviation Navigation 48.0% 21.6% 12.1% 7.3% 7.2% 1.8% 0.1% 0.8% 1.0% Topic Box 11.1 International Flights and Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from international flights are a growing problem globally and are particularly high in Ireland. Irish per capita emissions, at 0.64 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent per capita, were the fifth highest in the European Union in 2017 (EEA, 2020a) and more than 20 per cent higher than our neighbour the United Kingdom. The Chicago Convention of 1944 is the key international framework, which set principles for air transport, including the tax exemptions on aviation fuel. The 1997 Kyoto Protocol directed wealthier countries to pursue emissions reductions through the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), with shipping also treated on a global basis. In 2010, the ICAO agreed aspirational goals to improve the fuel efficiency of international aviation by 2 per cent per annum until 2050, with the aim of keeping net emissions at the 2020 level. The ICAO’s own analysis, however, showed that emissions continued to grow. In response, it proposed a full transition to biofuels and improved efficiencies by 2050. Since 2012, the EU, which accounts for 35 per cent of global aviation emissions, has included the aviation sector in the Emissions Trading System. Flights to and from countries outside the European Economic Area are excluded, to facilitate development of a new global agreement. In 2016, the ICAO adopted the Carbon Offsets and Reduction Scheme in International Aviation (CORSIA), which comes into effect with a voluntary phase in 2021. The overall CORSIA target remains keeping net emissions at the 2020 level, but with a different approach whereby airlines are required to buy emissions reduction credits from other sectors to compensate for any increased activity, or use lower carbon fuels. 283