Industry environmental initiatives

The following initiatives are already underway within the air transport industry (ATI).

Mitigating noise
Reducing the impact of ground activities and reducing emissions around airports
Limiting the impact of de-icing activities
Introducing green technologies (e.g., special concrete that improves local air quality)
Implementing innovative water management and biodiversity strategies

Route optimization: Europe has started the Single European Sky program which would lead to efficiency gains of 6-12%, saving up to six million tonnes of CO₂ per year. The FAA's NextGen program has an equivalent approach.
Continuous descent approaches (CDA)
Decreasing delays at airports

To conserve fuel, aircraft manufacturers' environmental initiatives include a business-driven case based on:

Designing next generation aircraft with radical changes concerning wing aerodynamics
Adopting new fibres to further weight reductions
Creating new propulsion types

IATA - carbon neutral within the next 50 years > more information
Air Transport Action Group (ATAG) - funded by the industry to promote the benefits of air transport > more information
Global Aviation and Environment Summit - event organized by IATA and ACI to track progress on environmental matters > more information
UK Sustainable Aviation - similar to ATAG but with a UK focus > more information
European Federation for Transport and Environment > more information
US Center for Clean Air Policy > more information

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