It's a bird! It's a plane! It's.....pollution!

A source of pollution and global warming that most people seem to overlook is the emissions created by commercial air travel. According to several scientists, the aviation industry and the environment are on a collision course. It is only a matter of time until significant environmental damages will be proven to have been caused by aircraft emissions. The number of airline flights in the world today is expected to skyrocket in the coming decades. By the speculation of some British scientists, it will become one of the largest contributors to global warming by 2050. More and more is being discovered each day about the link between climate change and aviation. Currently, aircraft emission accounts for 3% of green house gas emissions. This figure will surely rise in the coming years if steps are not taken towards environmentally friendly jet engines.

The notion that jet emissions in the upper atmosphere cause amplified effects in ozone composition have startled environmentalists around the globe. While having an awareness of the damage currently being done and also knowing that a commercial aircraft expels 840-1660 pounds of carbon dioxide per passenger, great concern is necessary. This measure of carbon dioxide is equivalent to how much carbon dioxide a sport utility vehicle would release into the atmosphere if it were running for a straight month.

The aircraft industry is drawing on increased scrutiny since scientists have begun deriving disturbing predictions and figures about commercial aircraft pollution. Scrutiny is particularly strong in Europe, where the European Union is considering much stricter controls on aircraft emissions. Many environmentalist in the United States claim that pollutions standards for aircraft are not nearly strict enough. The growth of the airlines industry seems to be an uncontrollable entity at this point in time. China alone is planning the construction of almost forty new airports. The FAA also has predictions for the current 739 million airlines passengers to double to 1.4 billion passenger in the coming decades.

In my own opinion, I completely agree with the fact that commercial aircraft emissions are a concern in the mitigation of global warming. I can also see how people could be skeptical of the idea as well. Being that aircraft pollution only accounts for 3% of green house gases, I can understand how a percentage that small could cause the average person to be indifferent on the subject. Knowing that the rate of what seems to be an unstoppable population increase is in existence, the 3% of green house gases that aircraft emit will grow for sure. While we still have time to dig ourselves out of the hole we are already in, we need to begin thinking of more energy efficient and cleaner jet engines.