(ATLANTA, GA) — One major airline is reportedly backing away from its 2030 sustainability goals, impacting it’s potential use of sustainable aviation fuel.
Bloomberg News and Reuters have reported this week that Delta Airlines has removed two key environmental targets from its webpage focusing on sustainability. The company deleted a pledge to use sustainable aviation fuel for 10% of its jet fuel needs by 2030. They also rephrased verbiage that now depicts their “aspiration” to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 rather than making it a “goal” for the company.
According to the report from Bloomberg, a Delta spokesperson says they “still view SAF as one of the most important ways to decarbonize flight, but its slow development threatens the industry’s climate ambitions.”
Sustainable aviation fuel, commonly referred to as SAF, has long been looked at as a potential solution to help cut emissions while also becoming a domestic demand source for farmers who grow various crops that can be used to create SAF. Reuters reports, however, that SAF remains two to five times more expensive than conventional fuel. There also is an issue, according to the International Air Transport Association, with shortages of efficient new aircraft and alternative fuels were pushing up profits for suppliers and putting at risk the industry’s flagship emissions goal.
