Project funded by European Union Burkina faso Feasibility Study on the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels ICAO-EUROPEAN UNION ASSISTANCE PROJECT: CAPACITY BUILDING FOR CO2 MITIGATION FROM INTERNATIONAL AVIATION FEASIBILITY STUDY ON THE USE OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUELS IN BURKINA FASO 2 FEASIBILITY STUDY ON THE USE OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUELS IN BURKINA FASO Author: Dr. Christoph Weber, LL.M. Technical Consultant / Sustainable Aviation Fuels Project funded by the European Union EuropeAid/Development Cooperation Instrument DCI-ENV/2013/322-049 This document was produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union. © ICAO 2018. All rights reserved. This document was produced within the framework of the ICAO and European Union assistance project Capacity building for CO2 mitigation from international Aviation. The views expressed in this publication do not necessarily represent the individual or collective opinions or official positions of these organizations or their Member States. The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Dotted and dashed lines on maps represent approximate border lines for which there may not yet be full agreement. The mention of specific companies or products does not imply endorsement in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. All reasonable precautions have been taken to verify the information contained in this publication. However, the material is published without warranties of any kind, either expressed or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness and currency of the information. ICAO and its partners expressly disclaim all liability arising in connection with any interpretation or use of the material in this report. FEASIBILITY STUDY ON THE USE OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUELS IN BURKINA FASO 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) is a United Nations specialized agency working together with its 191 Member States and industry groups to reach consensus on international civil aviation Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs) and policies in support of a safe, efficient, secure, economically sustainable and environmentally responsible international civil aviation sector. In its efforts to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions, the International Civil Aviation Organization has developed partnerships with international organizations and states to develop assistance projects and promote a basket of measures designed to support Member States as they work to achieve the global aspirational goals. These goals, adopted by the 37th Session of the Assembly in 2010, seek to improve fuel efficiency by 2 per cent per year from 2020 and to keep net carbon dioxide emissions at the same levels (i.e. carbon neutral growth from 2020). The 39th Session of the ICAO Assembly, held from 27 September to 7 October 2016, adopted Resolution A39-2: Consolidated statement of continuing ICAO policies and practices related to environmental protection — Climate change, which reflects the determination of ICAO’s Member States to provide continuous leadership in the efforts of the international civil aviation sector to limit or reduce its emissions that contribute to global climate change.The 39th Session of the ICAO Assembly also reiterated the global aspirational goals for the international aviation sector adopted in 2010. A central element of Resolution A39-2 is for States to voluntarily prepare and submit Action Plans on CO2 emissions reductions activities for international aviation to ICAO. It also lays out an ambitious work programme for capacity building and assistance to States in the development and implementation of their State Action Plans to reduce emissions. ICAO State Action Plans provide an opportunity for States to showcase policies and actions and are intended to be individualized and reflect the specific national circumstances of each ICAO Member State and the opportunities available to them in implementing measures to mitigate CO2 emissions from international aviation activities.1 As of November 2018, 111 Member States, representing 92.3 per cent of global RTK had voluntarily submitted their action plan to ICAO, including Burkina Faso. The ICAO-European Union (EU) assistance project on Capacity Building for CO2 Mitigation from International Aviation aims to support the 14 selected Member States in Africa and the Caribbean in their efforts to develop and implement their State Action Plans; improve their aviation environmental systems; and identify, evaluate and implement mitigation measures in the selected States. Burkina Faso is among the beneficiary States of this project. To contribute to the achievement of the ICAO global aspirational goals for the international aviation sector, Burkina Faso has defined an Action Plan for CO2 Emissions Reduction (APER), wherein one promising measure that has been identified is the development and use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), that can reduce life-cycle CO2 emissions compared to current aviation fuel. Sustainability is a crucial element in the development of SAF, such that during their production and use, the fuels do not produce negative environmental or social impacts, and should deliver a reduction in carbon emissions (greenhouse gases). The close interaction of global climate policy and national mitigation measures is an important driver for the production and gradual implementation of SAF. Political incentives, enabling policies, new international regulatory frameworks and ambitious efforts aimed at reducing aviation emissions provide a basis for the implementation of a SAF supply chain. 1 ICAO has prepared ICAO Doc 9988, Guidance on the Development of States’ Action Plans on CO2 Emissions Reduction Activities to describe the process of developing or updating an action plan. 4 FEASIBILITY STUDY ON THE USE OF SUSTAINABLE AVIATION FUELS IN BURKINA FASO Following years of promotion, engine tests and demonstration flight programmes, SAF has become a key element in reducing the environmental impact of international civil aviation. Independent of the underlying SAF production pathway, industries are currently working on developing optimal processes that utilize sustainable feedstocks and that can be produced economically. The ever- increasing number of available SAF conversion technologies expands the range of potentially suitable feedstock sources. Over the course of the last decade multiple initiatives engaging in the cultivation of various feedstocks and the production of SAF have been established. The scale and scope of these initiatives range from small-scale trial plantations, to full-scale farmer mobilization exercises covering tens of thousands of hectares. In sub-Saharan Africa climate change has had a significant impact on the region. Given the substantial challenges to addressing climate change, and that the available resources to do so are limited, successful adaptation to the adverse impacts of climate change will require careful planning and the involvement of all national stakeholders, from the government, to local communities. It will also require adequate assistance from the international community to support the States’ efforts in this regard. While Africa provides ample opportunities for the domestic production of biomass-based biofuels, experience has already shown that the production of biofuels can potentially have adverse socio- economic and environmental impacts. With reference to commercial scale initiatives in Mozambique, Madagascar, Rwanda, Tanzania and Burkina Faso, low yields, unsolved economic viability gaps, underestimated labour costs and other unintended consequences ultimately resulted in value chain disruptions, lay-offs, abandoned plantations and costly project failure. The early abandonment and collapse of these projects has had negative consequences for local rural communities, due to loss of land tenure, access to natural resources and missed income opportunities. Bearing the potential risks in mind, there is now a real need for reframing this sector to identify and utilize suitable biomass resources in a responsible and sustainable way. Considering the economic, social, environmental and strategic interests at stake, this reframing requires a solid evaluation of the underlying assumptions and key supply chain parameters, as well as the societal and environmental impacts. This cannot be done without taking the specific regional context into account. As circumstances for project implementation differ with location, agro-climatic conditions and stakeholders involved, a timely and pragmatic prioritization may therefore prove particularly valuable, thus safeguarding capital, trust and reputation. This puts the focus on sorting, categorizing and eventually rating the major underlying assumptions. The portfolio of available international reference cases and aviation biofuel initiatives and the rise and fall of the jatropha industry serve as a reminder of the risks involved; recent history particularly offers valuable insight into the challenges, obstacles and pitfalls that need to be closely monitored, constantly adjusted and professionally mastered along the way. In the end, the close collaboration among stakeholders from the aviation