No flights after volcanic ash cloud saves 1.3m tonnes of CO2

The volcanic ash cloud from Iceland has led to the grounding of 63,000 European flights over the past four days. The eruptions from Eyjafjallajokull has saved 1.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, more than the annual emissions of many developing countries.

Aviation is responsible for about 2 per cent of global emissions of CO2, but accounts for a much higher proportion of emissions in European nations, which have many frequent flyers. Aircraft are responsible for more than 6 per cent of Britain's CO2 emissions.

The Aviation Environment Federation calculated that the CO2 saving over four days had been greater than the annual emissions of Malawi, Sierra Leone, Rwanda and about 50 other developing countries.

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