At a consultation workshop held last May, the UN Development Program (UNDP) urged Vietnam’s civil aviation sector to step up green measures in order to achieve global goals in reducing the aviation industry’s carbon footprint.
The organization also reviewed the latest draft of Vietnam’s Action Plan to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in civil aviation from 2016 to 2030, according to the UNDP website.
“With upwards of 35 million passengers a year, a small ‘green’ fee applied to every passenger ticket would generate a new source of targeted revenue to green the industry while sustaining its competitiveness,” said Bakhodir Burkhanov, deputy country director of UNDP Vietnam.
He suggested that industry stakeholders could spend this portion of the revenue to co-finance the purchase of electric vehicles as well as the switch to energy-efficient technology and renewable energy in airports nationwide.
“Improving the energy efficiency of airport operations reduces long-term costs, stimulates technological innovation, and as the evidence shows, improves customer satisfaction,” he added.
Vietnam’s civil aviation sector is currently one of the fastest growing in the world; the industry has seen 14% growth compared to last year.
While this progress has been beneficial to Vietnam’s economy, it has also put great strain on the local environment, jeopardizing the nation’s efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the coming years.
[Photo via Republic 3.0]
