Iata has released a new report outlining the challenges and opportunities in removing single-use plastic products (SUPP) in aviation.
The report acknowledges that reducing the use of SUPP in aviation is difficult because “it is impossible to operate passenger and cargo flights without providing services that rely on packaging and inflight products.”
SUPP are used in aviation for their lightweight and hygienic properties. The report notes that reducing or eliminating single-use plastics would mean replacing them with a different product.
Researchers from Iata added that SUPP replacements were not always eco-friendly and might have a more harmful effect on the environment. For example, the water and energy involved in cleaning alternatives to cutlery and crockery for reuse or the weight involved in carrying heavier, reusable materials would not necessarily outweigh the impact of SUPP.
Iata also criticised the regulatory environment for being an obstacle to airlines, as a consensus on the definition of SUPPs has not been reached and there is no standardised framework to identify acceptable alternatives. Iata said that to enact change, collaboration across the whole value chain was needed.
Iata recommended that airlines should reduce waste at the source by reviewing standards and reassessing the need for SUPP. Airlines should also set clear goals for reducing single-use plastics and disclose this information freely. The report also recommends segregating waste on board and on the ground.
The report was released when airlines such as Air New Zealand and Delta announced initiatives to reduce SUPP on flights.
Air New Zealand is piloting flights without single-use plastic cups, instead asking passengers to bring reusable cups with them and providing reusable cups for passengers who did not bring their own.
The airline recently removed single-use plastic cups from its domestic airport lounges, but admitted that doing the same for its inflight operations was a much greater challenge.
Delta Air Lines also announced its progress on reducing single-use plastics, an initiative the airline began trialling in December 2023. In an update in honour of April being Earth Month, the carrier said it would start rolling out paper cups across the Delta network by the end of the year, pending testing results.
