UPDATE: 2022/10/07 20:15 UTC

Statement From ICAO

Comments from ICAO's Communications Officer have been added to the article; see below.

The United Nations body governing cooperation across commercial aviation, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is currently holding its 41st assembly in Montreal, Canada. One of the main expectations from the aviation industry and environmental organizations is that the delegates will agree on a long-term aspirational goal (LTAG) to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Anything else will be considered a failure. However, a new report shows that the global negotiations are highly susceptible to corporate influence.

Only one environmental group allowed to attend

UK think tank InfluenceMap released a report earlier this week which found that ICAO's key climate negotiation body, the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP), has differing transparency practices compared to other UN climate negotiations forums. These include the delegates having to sign non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and prohibiting the media from attending.

Furthermore, since the signing of the Paris Agreement, meetings of CAEP consist of over 30% of delegates representing either the fossil fuel or the aviation industry, whereas only a single environmental group, the International Coalition for Sustainable Aviation (ICSA), is permitted to attend. The study stated,

“Weak transparency provides cover for industry to unduly influence climate negotiations, reducing public legitimacy over ICAO’s climate governance process.”

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Fossil fuel industry representatives participating

As of August 2021, CAEP is composed of 31 members from all regions of the world and 21 observers. It also involves more than 600 internationally-renowned experts participating in CAEP activities and working groups. The study says it found through online searches that over 20 national representatives at the meetings are also employed by aviation or fossil fuel firms.

A spokesperson for ICAO told Eco-Business that the organization does not know whether delegates representing countries are also involved in the fossil fuel industry. However, they said, the use of NDAs is not unusual in standard-setting work since privileged technical information needs to be freely discussed.

The report was also critical of the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) influence on the development, or as the document states, weakening, of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), currently in its first pilot phase. CORSIA has indeed drawn criticism from both the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the European interest group Transport & Environment for its targets failing to offset the industry's carbon emissions sufficiently.

ICAO has since contacted Simple Flying to share that this study appears to be predicated on an outdated report, adding:

"It is important to understand that ICAO does not play a climate governance role, contrary to what is written here. The governance of emissions are wholly a state sovereign responsibility. ICAO is a technical standard setting body. These standards are developed in accordance with the resolutions of the Assembly of 193 governance, and finalized by the Council of 36 states (who are elected by the 193.)Live broadcasts of the Assembly, and all associated documentation, are available on our website, including those pertaining to the net zero goal highlighted here. Similarly, Council video recordings and documentation are also published by ICAO. Unfortunately your settings preclude me from inserting links here, but they are easy to find."

What do you think of the report? Is it reasonable with NDAs and fossil fuel representatives at climate negotiations? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.

Source: Eco-Business, InfluenceMap