ICAO and IATA mark ten years of Corsia, push for wider coverage

The International Civil Aviation Organization and the airline body IATA are using the tenth anniversary of the Corsia climate scheme to press for its continued rollout. Corsia was agreed by the ICAO assembly in 2016 and is intended to make growth in international aviation carbon neutral from 2020 onward.

According to ICAO, more than 130 states now take part. The organisation says the system should have offset roughly 200 million tonnes of CO2 by the end of 2026.

IATA expects Corsia to cover about 85 percent of global emissions from international air traffic from 2027. By the end of its run, the association says, as much as 120 billion US dollars in climate financing could be mobilised.

Corsia works as an offsetting mechanism. When an airline's CO2 emissions rise above its assigned baseline, it must compensate for the excess by buying approved emissions credits.

IATA also warned against expanding the European Union's emissions trading system to more international routes. It said additional regional or bilateral rules of that kind could weaken Corsia. The association wants revenue from European carbon trading directed instead towards sustainable aviation fuel, infrastructure and new technology.