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Air Travel Carbon Emissions are Destroying the Environment

September 4th, 2011 No comments

Air Travel Carbon Emissions are Destroying the Environment

The UK government is aiming for a 60% cut in carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 but we will not be able to meet our goals on climate change without curbing the demand for air travel. At present the experts predicts that only 5.5% of the UK carbon emissions is due to air travel and that the government should concentrate on the other 94.5% as the UK air travel industry generates thousands of jobs and billions of pounds in revenue and these figures are set to increase as the airline industry wants to increase the number of passenger movements in UK airports from about 200m per year now to about 470m by 2030. If this happens then air travel will account for over 10 % of carbon emissions in the UK. It will be more than 10% if other polluting sectors such as car travel are reduced due to an increase in public transport use and cleaner fuels.

What can we do to prevent this growth in flying?

The government has said it wants aviation included in the next round of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. What is this? Well…

There is an emissions trading scheme in operation internationally but many people are not aware that this is perceived to be the cornerstone of the climate change policy in the EU and USA.

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Firms are set quotas on how much carbon dioxide they can produce per year, if they produce more than this allowance, then they buy an allowance from another firm that has not reached its quota on how much it can produce in one year! Get it?

Emissions Trading is particularly suited to the emissions of greenhouse gases, the gases responsible for global warming, which have the same effect wherever they are emitted. The idea of the carbon-trading scheme was to raise the cost to firms of continuing to pollute while creating a market to give an incentive to become more environmentally efficient.

Another suggestion to curb travel is airlines paying higher taxes on short haul European flights to reflect emissions, even if this results in higher fares. The thinking is that taxation through passenger duty would be easier and quicker than focusing on the Emissions Trading Scheme but any proposed increase in taxation would need to be enough to slow down the growth and eventually decrease the number of short haul flights.

A decrease in flights would be bad for airports and airlines as they would see a decrease in airport generated profits and could lead to a number of job losses and competitiveness for the UK economy, but other sectors of the UK economy such as domestic tourism would benefit thus creating jobs and revenue for the tax man to get his greedy hands on.

Most of the wealthier nations in Europe are developing an air dependent culture and its clear that something needs to be done. Frequent flying for business and pleasure and second homes abroad is fuelling this growth in air travel. Other forms of public transport such as rail are getting more expensive making domestic flights within the UK more affordable and convenient. In the USA this tends not to be the case due to the distance between major cities.

Carbon offsetting helps you to offset the carbon dioxide that you use when flying by planting trees or installing solar panels and thereby removing your contribution to global climate change. You contribute to pollution by flying; you reduce the pollution by planting trees! You are carbon neutral!

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Book airport parking and save the environment

June 14th, 2011 No comments

Book airport parking and save the environment

Article by Paula Garrett







Ok, so the headline is a bit over-the-top, and you won’t actually save the environment by booking airport parking, but you will go some way to reducing your carbon footprint when compared with the carbon footprint of some of your fellow passengers.

The most environmentally-friendly way of getting to the airport is to use public transport – bus, train, coach (not a taxi) – but it isn’t always practical. If you have lots of luggage, or young children, it can just make the whole journey much more stressful than driving, and, if you live quite a distance from the airport using public transport to get you to the airport could actually take longer than your flight will take to get to your destination.

If getting to the airport by car is the only practical way to get there, consider driving yourself and parking for the duration of your holiday. Driving to the airport is much more environmentally-friendly than taking a taxi or getting your friend to drive you – driving and parking involves two journeys, whereas, taking a taxi or getting a friend or family member to drop you off and pick you up on your return involves four journeys – twice the number of miles driven and consequently, twice the amount of carbon emissions.

Airport parking prices aren’t prohibitive and often compare favourably to taking a taxi both ways. There are many types of airport parking to choose from: on-site, off-site, short-stay, long-stay, but don’t be put off by the vast array of parking options available. Use an online airport parking price checker to help you search out the best airport parking option for you. Just search for the dates you require and a list of parking options, including price, description and distance from the airport will be returned.

If you prefer the convenience of being dropped-off at the airport by a taxi or friend consider using a meet and greet parking company instead. Meet and greet parking charges are slightly higher than most other forms of airport parking but offer the convenience of being able to drive up to the airport terminal, offload your luggage, and walk straight in to the airport terminal while a designated driver parks your car for you. The convenience doesn’t stop there, for when you return from your holiday, your car is outside the terminal waiting for you, warmed-up and ready to drive home. What more could you want?

By booking airport parking you are certainly reducing your carbon emissions when compared with taking two taxi journeys, or getting a friend to drop you off and pick you up. However, if you want to go one step further in the quest to be more environmentally friendly, consider booking a ‘greener’ airport parking company, one that plants a tree, or makes a donation to an environmental programme every time a booking is made.



About the Author

Paula Garrett is a frequent traveller and contributor to Help-Me-Park.co.uk, the Gatwick meet and greet parking company offering valet parking at Gatwick.

Everything You Will Need To Learn Regarding The Louisville International Airport

October 31st, 2010 No comments

Looking for a cheap way to fly out of the country? If so, do you live within or close to the Louisville, Kentucky area? If you do, there is a great chance that you will be flying out of the Louisville International Airport. The Louisville International Airport is actually identified as being one of the area’s finest airports, not only whenever it comes to supplying support, but any time it comes to offering low-cost travel alternatives. For that reason, if you did not already picked an airport to fly out of, you will need to examine the Louisville International Airport and anything that it has to provide.

When deciding on an airport to fly out of, you might end up being worried regarding the airlines which service it. Even though this is a legit concern, you usually do not have to be uneasy. You will see that the Louisville International Airport is maintained by a considerable variety of popular airlines. Those airlines consist of American Airlines, Continental Airlines, Delta Airlines, Midwest Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Southwest Airlines, United Express, and US Airways. Primarily, this means that anywhere you are headed, you ought to be able to locate the trip that you are on the lookout for, whether that flight be non-stop or not.

While it arrives to flying in or out of the Louisville International Airport, the airport security follows just about all policies put in place by the Department of Transportation (DOT), and also the Transporation Security Administration (TSA). This implies that on all domestic and international flights, sharp items and fluids are prohibited from your carryon bags. Nonetheless, most items, with the exclusion of combustible or explosive items, are granted in your checked in baggage. Because difficulties may occur, it is advised that you appear at the airport, at least, one or one and half hours ahead of time. In the event that you are due to fly internationally, it is suggested that you show up even earlier, in case.

As with all other international airports, the Louisville International Airport requires that you possess the appropriate varieties of identification. These types of things are required before you happen to be authorized to board your aeroplane. It really is crucial to realize that these documents have a tendency to vary from those needed pertaining to domestic flights. According to which airline you are flying with and where you are advancing, you might also require to supply your passport, your visa, your birth certificate, or a certificate of citizenship. You might be recommended to check with your airline to figure out which documents are demanded.

While it comes to parking at the Louisville International Airport, you may find that you have numerous alternatives. When you will be leaving for an international destination, but you need to leave your vehicle behind, you can do so at the quite a few long-term parking lots. Moreover to long-term parking lots, there are also short-term lots accessible. In case you are being dropped off at the airport by someone that plans on aiding you get inside, they may make use of the short-term parking lots for an acceptable charge. When it comes to having to pay for parking, the Louisville International Airport will take, cash, most credit cards, as well as checks.

The aforementioned information ought to have been sufficient to offer you with what you need to know, but when you happen to be exploring for much more details, you may do so online. You happen to be urged to verify the Louisville International Airport’s online web site. That website can be discovered through visiting www.flylouisville.com.

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Fiery Arenal Volcano Of Costa Rica

June 21st, 2009 No comments
by Frank Scott

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All our luggage and camera gear is packed in the van by 8 a.m. and we are on our way to our first destination, soon to become a real life adventure. We are on a photography tour so everyone is talking cameras and pictures. This is the first day, we are getting to know one another, and the level of excitement in the van is high looking forward to the tour.

We are on our way to Arenal, an active volcano in Costa Rica, but there are a few stops along the way. First, we stop in Sarchi, famous for its tropical furniture, where magnificent, brightly decorated ox carts are made in an eighty plus year old water powered factory. From there, we drive to the little mountain town of Zarcero where the focal point is the old wooden church with its much-photographed double row of topiaries leading to its entrance. You can fill your camera’s memory card just at these two places with the colours and patterns in Sarchi and the fantastic shapes of the topiaries in Zarcero.

The roads in Costa Rica are famous, not only for the magnificent land which they traverse but for their condition. Our driver, Luis, knows that we will encounter many potholes so he is cautious and as a result we are passed by most everything on two or four wheels. Many drivers here, from the ubiquitous taxistas to truck drivers, think they are Formula One drivers. Indeed, reportedly there is a bus driver whose passengers frequently find religion on his overland route.

After Sarchi and Zarcero we stop for lunch in La Fortuna and are now just a few miles from the lodge in Arenal. Upon leaving the main highway for the lodge we find ourselves traveling in, out, and around potholes. The rainy season ended about the beginning of December so many roads are still in very poor condition. Our road is unique because it was built out of crushed lava.

We round a curve and a come to a clearing at a river and there is Arenal Volcano! Most have never been face to face with a volcano before and it is truly an awesome sight to see, a perfectly shaped volcano.

The top of the cone is shrouded with little fluffy white clouds against a blue sky. It is picture perfect and we quickly stop and everyone piles out of the van attaching cameras to tripods, some of us wading into the river to capture an image from a different perspective and others shooting from the riverbanks.

Who is to say how dangerous being this close to an active volcano can be? Fortunately, Arenal is very predictable and today is closely monitored so there is a very low risk of a serious, catastrophic, unexpected eruption. Only 1 km away from the base of the volcano and 2 km to the top of the cone is the lodge where we stay and without a doubt any activity attracts the attention of everyone.

While unpacking and getting settled in, Arenal speaks. It is a great roar, smoke and gas billowing many hundreds of feet into the sky and the sound of the rocks tumbling down the slopes. After the eruption, the Mantled Howler monkeys are extremely vocal but we do not know if they are protesting the roar of the eruption or just answering back.

While sitting in the lodge dining room enjoying our dinner Arenal speaks again. Everyone had been told of the many photo opportunities in Costa Rica but who would imagine eating dinner and having something like this happen? And this was only our first day of the tour!

Most of us do not get much sleep for the first two nights. Instead, we find some comfortable chairs in the common area outside our rooms and attach cable releases to our cameras and put them on a tripod. From past experiences I decide to use an 80-200mm lens set at 80mm and an aperture of f8, the camera shutter set at “B” for time exposure.

With the activity of the small flare-ups at the cone and the lava flowing down the opposite side I think a time exposure of more than twenty minutes will produce an ugly yellow blob of light, so if there had been no eruptions after this length of time I will close the shutter and start another exposure. Using a cable release makes these exposures very easy and Arenal puts on quite a display while we are there.

What a magnificent first day of the tour in Costa Rica. Eight more days of photography to go and everyone is anxiously looking forward to what exciting adventure tomorrow will bring.

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