KLM and the Costa Rican government have struck an agreement to operate the route to and from the capital San José with flights powered by biofuels. Emissions reduced by 80 per cent.
KLM, the Dutch airline and one of the pioneers in the development and use of third- and fourth-generation biofuels to power long-haul flights, has recently reached an agreement with the Costa Rican government for aircraft flying to and from San José to be powered by biofuel.
"For Costa Rica, which aims to achieve so-called carbon neutrality, it is very important to be the destination of this first KLM flight," said Edgar Gutierrez Espeleta, Costa Rica's Minister of the Environment and Energy Resources, in a statement. "The company is committed to protecting the environment and is a world-leading example in the use of biofuels. We are grateful to KLM for embarking on this path, showing airlines around the world that it is possible to change for the good of the planet."
In a sector such as air transport, which is experiencing continuous growth, the environmental impacts that air travel entails are also set to increase, not only in terms of emissions. Civil aviation produces 2 per cent of all anthropogenic carbon dioxide, and 14 per cent of all emissions from the transport sector. According to Atag (Air Transport Action Group), 781 million tonnes were produced in 2015.
Iata (International Air Transport Association), however, has long placed particular emphasis on one approach to reducing climate-altering emissions from air transport: biofuels. "The growth in biofuel production and, consequently, in supply will cause prices to fall and therefore lead to a greater number of companies choosing to use them," said René de Groot, Chief Operating Officer of KLM. "Right now, KLM and Costa Rica are the initiators and leaders of a new approach. It would be wonderful if other airlines, other governments and even the entire biofuel supply chain joined us."
The Dutch airline was one of the first to operate a flight powered by biofuels, as far back as 2009. It also founded a company, SkyNrg, which produces and distributes plant-based fuel. Since 2012, all flights operated by the Dutch flag carrier departing from Los Angeles have been partly powered by sustainable biofuel. KLM is the only European airline to use biofuels for intercontinental flights.
What is important to highlight is that these are so-called third- and fourth-generation biofuels, meaning they are produced from waste oils, algae, or crops not intended for human consumption. Finnish company Neste, one of the first to produce aviation biofuels, has brought to market a diesel equivalent made from Camelina oil, certified to the standards of the Roundtable on Biomaterials (RSB). Alternatives are beginning to emerge tentatively, even though prices, according to insiders themselves, continue to be significantly higher than those of fossil fuels.