| | | | | Illustration by Emily Sabens/The Washington Post; iStock | | Fats, oil and grease may save the aviation industry. Airlines are betting sustainable aviation fuel derived from waste will power the future. As they scramble to refuel without oil, one is asking you for $3.50. Should you pay? | |  | | The airline is vying to create a supply chain of sustainable fuel. And it's looking for one more critical investor: the flying public. United customers now have the option to contribute to its fund — $1, $3.50 or $7 — every time they buy a ticket. Should you buy in? I went in search of an answer: | | Sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, is the most promising way to replace fossil fuels in planes. Carbon offsets sold by the airline industry don't deliver on their promise, according to investigations by Greenpeace, Carbon Market Watch and others. And while companies are testing planes designed to run on clean electricity or hydrogen, replacing the entire commercial fleet could take decades. To increase SAF production, there needs to be demand. "We're trying to get our consumers to want to ask more," says United's chief sustainability officer, Lauren Riley. "I would be happy if we had several thousand or a million or so customers throw a dollar in because they clicked through to say, 'What is SAF and why should I care?'" | | But the aviation industry needs to pony up more. "Aviation needs to invest as much in e-fuels as the car industry is investing in electric vehicles," says Ned Molloy, a transport and climate policy consultant based in London, pointing to the $515 billion that global automakers are planning to spend on electrification, EVs and batteries through 2030. And you might help more by doing something else. "I would never tell someone who wants to contribute not to do so, if it's important to them," says Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst at Atmosphere Research Group. "But it may be more effective to reach out to our elected officials, institutional shareholders, the airlines' boards and C-suite executives and say we expect to see this change and we will hold airlines accountable." | |  | | Did you know I read all your emails? Be part of the Climate Coach community. Write with clever ideas, bad jokes and ways I can make this newsletter better for you at climatecoach@washpost.com. | | Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here to get The Climate Coach in your inbox every Tuesday and Thursday. | | See you on Thursday, Michael Coren, Climate Coach | | | | | | | | | |
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