VZCZCXRO6689
RR RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV RUEHSL RUEHSR
DE RUEHRO #1060/01 2590708
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 160708Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY ROME
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2664
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHBS/USEU BRUSSELS 4862
RUEHFL/AMCONSUL FLORENCE 3793
RUEHNP/AMCONSUL NAPLES 4002
RUEHMT/AMCONSUL MONTREAL 0002
RHMCSUU/FAA NATIONAL HQ WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 001060 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
EEB/TRA/OTP FOR MEGAN WALKLET-TIGHE 
EUR/ERA FOR MATTHEW BEH 
USEU BRUSSELS FOR PEG CATON 
FAA API FOR JENNIFER KILEO 
FAA AEA FOR KURT EDWARDS 
MONTREAL PASS TO ICAO 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAIR ECON SENV KGHG EUN
SUBJECT: USG-OWNED OR -OPERATED AIRCRAFT ON THE EU ETS LIST 
 
REF: (A) ROME 01029 (B) STATE 89892 
 
ROME 00001060  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
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Summary 
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¶1. (U) Summary.  Post received responses to the demarche in Reftel B 
from officials at the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, 
ENAC (Italy's civil aviation administration), and the Ministry of 
the Environment, and Land and Sea Safeguards. All officials agreed 
that Italy had no power to remove a carrier from the EU Emissions 
Trading Scheme (ETS) list and said this must be addressed by the 
European Commission. All officials agreed that U.S. government 
flights should be exempted from the EU ETS, per prevailing 
international aviation custom and per Annex 1 of the EU's own 
directive, but it remains unclear as to how that exemption will be 
established. It is possible that the GOI will require a declaration 
and documentation from the Embassy to demonstrate the U.S. Navy's 
exemption from the EU ETS.  Post requests Department guidance on 
this (para 6).  End Summary. 
 
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Response Details 
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¶2. (U) Post received a response to the demarche from Mara Angeloni, 
a knowledgeable Italian Environment Ministry expert who participates 
in almost all United Nations climate negotiations, and who also 
follows climate issues at the EU level.  Angeloni said the list was 
compiled at the EU level from information available to Eurocontrol 
and that no member states could intervene in this matter.  She 
hypothesized that the U.S. Navy was included in the list because 
Navy flights in the past had flight plan codes indicating a civilian 
component.  (Annex 1 to the EU directive states that Military 
flights using civil registered aircraft and civil flights performed 
by military aircraft are not exempted from the EU ETS.) 
 
¶3. (U) Angeloni said a solution was clearly necessary and may be 
possible at the national level. She said that the Environment 
Ministry is already in discussions with the EU to establish a 
solution that would be acceptable to all member countries.  Angeloni 
said a possible solution could be allowing exempt government 
operators, such as the Navy, to provide a declaration and 
documentation demonstrating exemption to the national government 
administering flights by that operator. 
 
¶4. (U) Paolo Sappino, in the office of Airports and Air Navigation 
at the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, and Girolamo 
Di Gregorio, of ENAC, also discussed the issue with Post.  They 
insisted that implementation of the EU ETS in Italy is being managed 
by the Environment Ministry and that neither the Transport Ministry 
nor ENAC is involved at this time.  However, they also said that 
they agree with everything said by Ms. Angeloni. 
 
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Comment and Request for Guidance 
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¶5. (SBU) All Italian officials with whom Post spoke agree in 
principle with the USG position, but the GOI does not appear willing 
to ask the EU to alter the list.  It seems unlikely that there will 
be any real attempt to force USG-operated flights to be governed by 
the EU ETS, but the suggestion that these flights must demonstrate 
exemption by presenting additional documentation, other than that 
normally provided in the course of operation, threatens to add 
another level of bureaucracy to USG flight operations. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Additionally, if it is determined that documentation and a 
declaration must be provided to the administering member state, it 
is unclear what channels would be used to provide this.  Per ref B, 
Post requested that all future GOI communications with regard to 
these operators be conducted through the Embassy.  Do Washington 
agencies have any views on: 1) the acceptability of the Embassy's 
submitting such a declaration/documentation to the GOI and 2) 
whether it should be  transmitted through the Ministry of Foreign 
Affairs via diplomatic note, or directly and more informally to the 
Environment Ministry?  Post requests Department guidance on this, 
for use in further discussion of this issue with GOI officials. 
 
 
ROME 00001060  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
THORNE