1969 Pratt & Whitney's JT9D is the first high bypass ratio jet engine to power a civil widebody aircraft - the Boeing 747-100. The EPA issues first proposals for control of emissions from aircraft and engines.
1970 The USA establishes the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in response to growing public demand for cleaner water, air and land.
1972-3
1986 The International Civil Aviation Organisation's (ICAO) first regulations and recommendations controlling hydrocarbon, carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from aircraft engines take effect.
1988 The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is established by two United Nations organisations - the World Meteorological Organisation and the UN Environment Programme - to evaluate the risk of climate change.
1994 The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is established to consider how to reduce global warming and how to cope with whatever temperature increases are inevitable.
1995 ICAO implements first increase in stringency of nitrous oxide emissions (NOx) standards following Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP)2 recommendation.
1996 ICAO rejects option on fuel taxation.
1997 The Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an important landmark in global efforts to tackle the impact of climate change. The protocol sets out targets for a global reduction in greenhouse gases based on 1990 emission levels and describes what contribution different countries should make to this.
1999 The IPCC publishes Aviation and the Global Atmosphere, a report requested by ICAO that establishes the state of scientific understanding underlying aviation technology and operations. The report develops aviation growth and technology scenarios to 2050.
2001 ICAO endorses the development of open emissions trading for international aviation and requests the ICAO Council to develop guidelines as a priority.
2003 ICAO implements second increase in stringency of NOx emissions standards following CAEP4 recommendation.
2004 ICAO decides not to work towards a new global legal instrument, although endorses the concept of open emissions trading for international aviation via voluntary emissions trading and its incorporation into existing emissions trading schemes.
2006 The Stern Review on the economics of climate change is published. The evidence gathered by the report leads to a simple conclusion: the benefits of strong and early action far outweigh the economic costs of not acting.
December 2006 The European Commission proposes legislation to include international aviation in its existing emissions trading scheme. This requires adoption by Council and the European Parliament. Timescale for adoption is expected to be two years.
2007 ICAO implements third increase in stringency of NOx standards following CAEP6.
February 2007 CAEP7 approves guidance on emissions trading for aviation. This represents the first policy instrument to address the impact of aviation on climate. Guidance is not mandatory.
May 2007 The IPCC publishes Fourth Assessment Report, Climate Change 2007, The Physical Science Basis, which assesses the current scientific knowledge of the natural and human drivers of climate change.
September 2007 ICAO general assembly to consider CAEP7 guidance on emissions trading for aviation.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
