Sponsored by the Iowa Green Party
Contacts:
Cameron Spitzer: cls@truffula.com
Susan Johnson: susan@truffula.us
New list items to be added before existing item a. Existing items to be renumbered after the new items. Text at the top added above as the intro to item 4.
https://www.gp.org/ecological_sustainability#air_travel
Background:
The quotes and articles cited below explain the problem of aviation’s contribution to climate change, and potential solutions. The Green Party values of Future Focus and Sustainability, Ecological Wisdom, Personal and Global Responsibility and Social Justice demand that we take action.
“Aviation emissions require policy changes because they reflect regulatory and business failures to address the climate crisis.” 1
“In every case, the trip not taken is the least expensive and most sustainable. With new communication tools available to agencies, Federal employees are encouraged to consider virtual attendance at a meeting or conference.” 2
“The most effective solution to reducing the climate impacts of aviation would be to fly less.” 6
“The role of the Flight Shame movement (flygskam in Swedish) is illustrative because it is creating an anti-flying social norm aimed at consumers, but with spillover effects on governments and the airline industry.” 1
“Flying remains the preserve of the relatively rich. Only 5 percent of people in the world have ever flown. The flying habits of the rich and the relatively rich are accelerating the onset of climate change for the poor – the people least likely to fly.” 7
1. Nature – NPJ Climate Action article:
Different approaches to reducing aviation emissions: reviewing the structure-agency debate in climate policy https://www.nature.com/articles/s44168-022-00001-w
2. U.S. General Services Administration Travel Policy:
3. The No Fly movement:
https://noflyclimatesci.org/resources
4. The Growth in Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Commercial Aviation:
5. Aviation is responsible for 4% of global warming, despite being only 2.4% of global annual emissions of CO2, because of the mix of climate pollutants it generates:
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ac286e#erlac286es2
6. General Interest Article from the Non-Profit Environmental Press::
https://news.mongabay.com/2022/04/how-much-does-air-travel-warm-the-planet-new-study-gives-a-figure/
7. Flying Less Is about Environmental and Social Equity:
https://www.earthisland.org/journal/index.php/magazine/entry/stewart/
Proposal:
III. D. 4. n
Added Language:
Aviation contributes around 4% to human-induced global warming, more than most countries do. This problem has multiple parts, including government, business and personal travel, and the global supply chain which ships cargo by air. Due to technological progress, much travel for meetings and conferences could take place online, eliminating those air trips. We propose the following actions to reduce air travel greenhouse gas emissions, as one part of the solution to the life threatening problem of climate change:
a. Continue government travel policy guidelines to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from government travel.
b. Provide incentives to reduce business and conference air travel.
c. Provide incentives to improve technology for virtual meetings.
d. Enact tax deductions for investments in virtual meeting equipment.
e. Repeal tax deductions for business and conference travel.
f. Stop all subsidies for jet fuel.
g. Provide incentives for the development of alternative long distance, fuel efficient travel.
h. We support the No Fly movement.