Countries Obliged to Include Contrails in Climate Plans Under Paris Agreement, T&E’s New Legal Advice Shows

BRUSSELS, Sept 18 (Bernama) -- Legal analysis carried out by Cornerstone Barristers concludes that countries must include non-CO2 emissions - which account for at least half of aviation’s climate impact - in their national climate plans to comply with their commitment to the Paris Agreement. The advice, commissioned by green groups T&E and Opportunity Green, shows that countries have a legal obligation to include these kinds of emissions in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which they need to submit ahead of COP30 (November 20, Brazil).

The Paris Agreement's temperature-based targets obligate countries to have plans in place to limit global warming. It has been proven that non-CO2 emissions - like contrails, the white lines in the sky - emitted by planes contribute to this warming. Indeed, scientific research indicates that these effects can rival or even exceed the climate impact of aviation-related CO2 emissions. The legal conclusion is thus that countries that do not include these emissions in their climate plan would be failing in their climate commitments.