Part of the FOCA’s statutory duties is to calculate Swiss civil aviation’s emissions inventory each year. The total amount of combustion products and pollutants emitted during a year is calculated. The issue of boundaries is relevant to all cross-border modes of transport: up to which point is a cross-border rail service or flight classified as ‘Swiss’? In aviation, two methods are used for classification purposes – the territorial principle and the point-of-sale principle.
The territorial principle covers emissions within Swiss territory which also include emissions from overflight without landing or take-off in Switzerland. This principle provides data relevant to Switzerland’s own clean air policy. However, most of the emissions reported come from overflight and extend beyond air space controlled by Switzerland across Swiss borders.
By contrast, the point-of-sale principle includes emissions caused by the total amount of fuel uplifted in Switzerland. A distinction is made between domestic (all flights from A to B within Switzerland) and international (all flights from Switzerland to a destination abroad) services. Calculation based on the point-of-sale principle enables reporting on global, climate-relevant effects and their national breakdown. As there is a sharp contrast between the short flight distances over Swiss territory and comparatively large amounts of fuel uplifted (especially on long-haul flights), the use of the point-of-sale principle produces higher consumption values and therefore higher emission values than when the calculation is based on the territorial principle (see example in figure below). The point-of-sale principle attributes total flight emissions from take-off to landing to Switzerland. If every country with air traffic recorded emissions based on the point-of-sale principle, the total emissions of all flights would be reported without any double counting.
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