Recent disputes among the many national and regional players in the emerging biofuel/jet fuel markets may slow acceptance and development of hese promising alternatives to fossil fuels. The European Union’s emissions trading system (ETS) seems to be central to contentions by China and the United States. The scheme would impose caps on carbon emissions from airlines flying into Europe, unleashing charges from China that the proposed rules discriminate against carriers from developing countries. A one cent per liter tax on jet fuel, part of the system, is at least partially responsible for the international dispute. According to Flight Global, “The airlines likely to be involved are the nation’s flag carrier Air China, China Southern Airlines and China Eastern Airlines, said an official from the China Air Transport Association.” America has weighed in with court challenges from American Airlines and United Continental, represented by the Air Transport Association (ATA), and Congress has added its voice, opposing what it perceives as European threats to American sovereignty and defending domestic jobs, which it …
Life Cycle Analysis and a Letter Grade
Researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA) have published a study in the current edition of the journal, Environmental Science & Technology, “Contribution of Li-Ion Batteries to the Environmental Impact of Electric Vehicles.” The paper is available in its entirety online. It’s abstract notes that, “Little is known about the environmental impacts of the production, use and disposal of the lithium ion (Li-ion) battery. This makes it difficult to compare the environmental impacts of BEVs with those of internal combustion engine cars (ICEVs). Consequently, a detailed lifecycle inventory of a Li-ion battery and a rough LCA (Life Cycle Analysis) of BEV (Battery Electric Vehicle) based mobility were compiled.” This blog has an earlier introduction to the concept of Life Cycle Analysis which may prove helpful. In their analysis, the team of Dominic A. Notter, Marcel Gauch, Rolf Widmer, Patrick Wäger, Anna Stamp, Rainer Zah and Hans-Jörg Althaus concludes the environmental costs of lithium batteries is …