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| Today, nearly everyone wants to fly. Even our fruit, vegetables and cut flowers are flown in daily. Each year, there are about 5% more planes in the air than the year before, and at any one moment, there are 3,500 planes carrying 400,000 people in European skies. |
© Clare Arron/Rex Features |
Carry out a survey of members of your class - How many of you have flown? Where to? Why? How many of those journeys could be by train instead? You can calculate the cost of your flight in carbon emissions by visiting
www.futureforests.com/calculators/flightcalculatorshop.asp
www.safeclimate.net/calculator/
www.globalfootprints.org
Cleared for Take-off
It is now cheaper to fly than ever before, thanks to budget airlines and low taxes on aviation fuel. In the UK, 80,000 people work in the aviation industry, and 20 airports are being expanded, including a fifth terminal and third runway at Heathrow. In 2006, a 'super-jumbo' airbus will be able to carry up to 900 passengers.
The price of progress
But the price of a plane ticket does not cover all the costs. Some of the costs are forced onto other people, either today or in the future. Roll your cursor over the icons to find out how:
Many of these indirect costs, known as externalities, are very difficult to measure. Some of them are felt locally. Other costs may be suffered by people living thousands of miles away. What's more, some of these externalities, may not be felt until a long way into the future.
Where do you stand?
There are no easy answers, and many believe that the polluter - the air traveller - should pay more. Decide whether you agree or disagree on these choices for the future. Give a score of 10 if you strongly agree, or 1 if you strongly disagree. Or choose a score somewhere in between:
| Airport taxes should be doubled, and the money raised should be spent on environmental protection. |
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| People living near airports should be paid compensation if their property value falls or if they suffer from ill health. |
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| Airports should pay for 'awaydays' in the country for those that live under a flight path. |
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| Aviation fuel should be taxed to the same level as car fuel. |
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| Airline companies should be forced to develop better aircraft that use cleaner fuel and make less noise. Airlines that fail to do so should pay greater airport charges. |
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| Cheap short-haul flights should be heavily taxed to encourage more people to take the train. |
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| Companies should make use of technology, like teleconferencing where people can see and speak to each other without flying half way round the world. |
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| Air travellers should pay to plant trees that soak up greenhouse gases in proportion to the length of their flight. |
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How do your views compare with your friends? And of these changes, which would be easiest and most difficult to put into practice?
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