Monitoring tonne-kilometres
How should tonne-kilometre data be calculated?
The following formula will be used to calculate the tonne-kilometres per flight:
Tonne-kilometres = distance x payload
Distance (km) is the orthodromic distance (GCD, Great Circle Distance) between the departure and arrival airports + 95 km.
Payload (tonne) is the total load of freight and passengers.
The exact method for monitoring and reporting tonne-kilometres is laid down in the Monitoring and Reporting Guidelines (MRG) of the European Commission. In cooperation with the UK Environment Agency, NEa has designed a Guidance for the Aviation Industry. This document is provides a detailed interpretation of the MRG.
Tonne-kilometre monitoring plan
The directive further stipulates that each individual operator must describe the method of monitoring tonne-kilometres in a monitoring plan that will be subject to the prior approval of NEa. The European Commission developed monitoring plan templates that operators are obliged to use for drafting their own monitoring plan. To qualify for free emission allowances an operator should start monitoring tonne-kilometre data from 1 January 2010 in accordance with the monitoring plan approved by NEa. If an operator does not possess an approved monitoring plan on time, this may have consequences for the verification of the 2010 tonne-kilometre report, because the independent verifier will base its findings on the approved monitoring plan.
Notification of changes of the monitoring plan
Since changes of monitoring plans are likely to occur over time, monitoring plans are no static documents. It is the operator's responsibility to keep monitoring plans up-to-date. All changes of monitoring plans have to be notified to NEa. Verifiers will not approve annual emissions reports if these are based on outdated monitoring plans or monitoring plans with changes that have not been approved by NEa.
All changes should be notified in advance, using the notification form. NEa then has eight weeks to formally approve or disapprove the proposed change.
Changes that do not affect the monitoring plan need not be notified. This means that:
- Changes in fleet (addition of aircraft types) in accordance with the procedures described in the approved monitoring plan (box 4c) need not be notified;
- Modifications of underlying procedures that are referred to in the monitoring plan need not be notified, unless they result in changes in the description of procedures that are included in the monitoring plan.
