Aviation and the Environment

Book excerpt: Aviation contributes a modest but growing proportion of total U.S. emissions, and these emissions contribute to adverse health and environmental effects. Aircraft and airport operations, including those of service and passenger vehicles, emit ozone and other substances that contribute to local air pollution, as well as carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. EPA estimates that aviation emissions account for less than 1 percent of local air pollution nation-wide and about 2.7 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, but these emissions are expected to grow as air traffic increases.