The 39th Triennial Assembly of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in Montreal, Canada, has yesterday adopted a resolution for a global market-based measure (MBM) scheme to reduce international aviation carbon emissions after days of intensive negotiations.

The overall objective for the MBM is to meet the aspirational goal of carbon-neutral growth of international aviation emissions from 2020.

The Attorney-General and Minister responsible for Civil Aviation, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, said, “Even though Fiji is exempt from the MBM, Fiji will continue to manage its international aviation emissions in accordance with the State Action Plan filed with ICAO and will update this plan to ensure that appropriate emissions data is collected.

“This is also in alignment with Fiji’s commitment to the global community through our intended nationally determined contributions to reduce carbon emissions by 30% by 2030.”

The MBM scheme will be implemented in the form of a Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) which is to begin with the pilot phase from 2021 to 2023, followed by the first phase from 2024 to 2026, with participation in both these phases being voluntary.

The second phase from 2027 to 2035 applies to all States except Least Developed Countries, Small Island Developing States, Landlocked Developing Countries and States with very low aviation activity.

Pacific Island Countries, including Fiji, are exempt from the MBM scheme but may volunteer to participate.

The Fijian delegation was instrumental in the inclusion of the exemption, which caters for the unique circumstances of particular countries and has been negotiating the exemption since February of this year.

The adoption of the resolution marks a historic moment for the aviation industry since aviation is the first transportation sector to take a global step to limit emissions.

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