US states pull out of aircraft pollution talks

Airline Industry Information, Nov 24, 2004

AIRLINE INDUSTRY INFORMATION-(C)1997-2004 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

US state and local air pollution officials have announced that they are to pull out of negotiations on reducing pollution from aircraft engines after almost five years of talks.

Officials said that they had told the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that a deal on reducing aircraft engine pollution could not be reached with the aviation industry despite reports claiming that emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOX) would double by 2030.

The State and Territorial Air Pollution Program Administration (STAPPA) and the Association of Local Air Pollution Control Officials (ALAPCO) said that they were extremely disappointed that after five years a deal could not be brokered, and that a proposal made in the summer of 2004 was inadequate and excluded airports outside of metropolitan areas that failed to meet EPA standards and reductions on other pollutants from engines such as soot, reports Reuters.

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