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EU not prepared to impose contamination rules, airline companies say

Airlines have warned the European Union they can not yet adhere to pollution guidelines that entered into force this month, because the EU has actually not yet launched its promised system to administer them, a document seen showed.

The EU guidelines require airlines to track and report contaminants such as soot, nitrogen oxides and water vapour. These emissions contribute to global warming at least as much as airplanes' carbon dioxide output.

But the EU has not yet launched an assured system - referred to as NEATS - to look at the data for this reporting, triggering calls from airlines to postpone the deadlines.

Airline companies can not decide whether to rely on NEATS, establish exclusive tools, or use third-party options, market groups Airlines for Europe (A4E), German industry association BDL and the European Cargo Alliance stated in a letter to the European Commission, seen .

The market has up until next March to report its 2025 emissions. Failure to do so might cause penalties.

The letter was dated Dec. 24. NEATS has not introduced because.

A4E Policy Director Monika Rybakowska informed Reuters that without it, airline companies might need to gather countless data points per flight.

A European Commission representative said it aimed to launch NEATS in 2025 and would speak with market on the data models in the next two months.

Airline companies will in any case require to monitor some information to be fed to the tool. This data is currently available to airlines either because they currently monitor it or since it is readily available currently in existing databases, the spokesperson stated.

Campaign group Transport & & Environment stated it was worrying that the system was not yet in place, but this was not grounds to delay the guidelines.

Unfortunately, this is the only piece of significant non-CO2 [air travel emissions] legislation worldwide, T&E's aviation technical manager Carlos López de la Osa stated, noting that parts of the market had formerly opposed the environment policy.

Independently, Brussels is drafting plans, due next month, to streamline some other climate reporting guidelines, after

pushback

from some

federal governments

and markets who state EU green guidelines have actually ended up being overcomplicated and are

raising costs

for organizations.

NEATS was supposed to assemble data points including the worldwide warming potential of various pollutants, weather and flight courses, to mainly automate the tracking of emissions.

(source: Reuters)