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...once they use it for that...not a bad idea...
Luke Douglas
Friday, May 25, 2012
A 2009 study of passengers at Jamaica's airports revealed that they would be willing to pay up to US$10 per ticket as an environmental tax, according to minister of water, land, environment and climate change Robert Pickersgill.
Speaking at the welcome reception for delegates attending a training seminar aimed at reducing the impact of the country's airports on the environment last Sunday evening, Pickersgill said that the major study was conducted by Dr Peter Edwards of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington DC.
The tax would go towards a carbon fund aimed at planting trees and increasing the country's forest cover.
It would be one of a number of measures instituted by airports to offset carbon emissions, as global travel is estimated to account for four per cent of global carbon emissions.
However, following the function Pickersgill quickly denied that the Government was contemplating the introduction of an environmental tax.
"No, no, I never said that at all," the minister stated following a query from the Jamaica Observer.
The 49th Airports Council International (ACI) and CIFAL Atlanta Training Seminar ends today at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston.
The French acronym CIFAL stands for International Training Centre for Local Authorities/Actors, and is a network which forms part of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Local Development Programme (LDP). This programme provides training aimed at implementing international conventions and achieving the UN's Millennium Development goals.
At the welcome reception Pickersgill underscored the importance of the airports and air travel to Jamaica's economy, while acknowledging their impact on carbon emissions and climate change.
"In the past 10 years, passenger numbers at our two international airports have increased by over three per cent per year", Pickersgill said, adding that five million people and 2000 tonnes of export goods will pass through the Kingston and Montego Bay gateways this year.
"However the increased development and increased traffic and growth rates do not diminish the importance of ensuring that we do whatever we can to reduce our carbon footprint," he added.
About 50 delegates from the Caribbean and Latin American region are attending the seminar where they are discussing new technology such as biofuels and more efficient airport management.
Meanwhile, a complementary workshop on fuel efficiency and emissions monitoring is being held at the Terra Nova Hotel by the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority in association with the Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System and the International Air Transport Association.
At this workshop, nearly 100 participants from the region will be coached in the techniques of planning departures and arrivals; assigning more direct aircraft routing; and better flight planning to save on fuel use, thus reducing carbon emissions into the environment.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1vtJEqjiQ
Luke Douglas
Friday, May 25, 2012
A 2009 study of passengers at Jamaica's airports revealed that they would be willing to pay up to US$10 per ticket as an environmental tax, according to minister of water, land, environment and climate change Robert Pickersgill.
Speaking at the welcome reception for delegates attending a training seminar aimed at reducing the impact of the country's airports on the environment last Sunday evening, Pickersgill said that the major study was conducted by Dr Peter Edwards of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in Washington DC.
The tax would go towards a carbon fund aimed at planting trees and increasing the country's forest cover.
It would be one of a number of measures instituted by airports to offset carbon emissions, as global travel is estimated to account for four per cent of global carbon emissions.
However, following the function Pickersgill quickly denied that the Government was contemplating the introduction of an environmental tax.
"No, no, I never said that at all," the minister stated following a query from the Jamaica Observer.
The 49th Airports Council International (ACI) and CIFAL Atlanta Training Seminar ends today at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston.
The French acronym CIFAL stands for International Training Centre for Local Authorities/Actors, and is a network which forms part of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) Local Development Programme (LDP). This programme provides training aimed at implementing international conventions and achieving the UN's Millennium Development goals.
At the welcome reception Pickersgill underscored the importance of the airports and air travel to Jamaica's economy, while acknowledging their impact on carbon emissions and climate change.
"In the past 10 years, passenger numbers at our two international airports have increased by over three per cent per year", Pickersgill said, adding that five million people and 2000 tonnes of export goods will pass through the Kingston and Montego Bay gateways this year.
"However the increased development and increased traffic and growth rates do not diminish the importance of ensuring that we do whatever we can to reduce our carbon footprint," he added.
About 50 delegates from the Caribbean and Latin American region are attending the seminar where they are discussing new technology such as biofuels and more efficient airport management.
Meanwhile, a complementary workshop on fuel efficiency and emissions monitoring is being held at the Terra Nova Hotel by the Jamaica Civil Aviation Authority in association with the Caribbean Aviation Safety and Security Oversight System and the International Air Transport Association.
At this workshop, nearly 100 participants from the region will be coached in the techniques of planning departures and arrivals; assigning more direct aircraft routing; and better flight planning to save on fuel use, thus reducing carbon emissions into the environment.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1vtJEqjiQ
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