Ash plume saves carbon through grounded planes

Greenwise Staff

17th April 2010

The plume of ash from Iceland’s erupting volcano is saving carbon dioxide emissions daily through grounded planes.

Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions could be being saved every day because of flight restrictions due to the threat posed to planes by the ash cloud from Iceland’s erupting Eyjafjallajökull volcano.

Although the eruption from Eyjafjallajökull is releasing carbon into the atmosphere, it is about half of that emitted daily from aviation in Europe. Moreover, it is part of the 44 billion kilograms emitted every year through volcanic eruptions around the globe, according to Colin Macpherson, reader in earth sciences at the University of Durham.

"If this eruption wasn't happening here it would be happening elsewhere," he explained.

European aircraft emit 350,000 tonnnes of CO2 a day

The European aviation industry emits around 350,000 tonnes of CO2 a day, while according to the latest data available, Eyjafjallajökull was emitting around 150,000 tonnes a day over the first three days of its eruption.

However, the economic cost to the airline industry as a result of the flight disruptions is reckoned to be running into the hundreds of millions of pounds a day. Accountants KPMG are predicting that UK flights alone will cost airlines in excess of £200 million a day.

Restrictions on UK and European airspace are likely to continue for several days yet, according to the Met Office, due to the prevailing winds, which are sending a cloud across Britain and most of the rest of Europe. The plume from the volcano at one stage measured 5.3 miles into the sky, according to reports.

According to experts, the danger to planes from the ash cloud are the tiny particles of rock, glass and sand contained in it, which could jam aircraft engines.