Paris, 15-16 September 2026 — The 9th ECAC Environmental Forum (ENVFORUM/9) brought together representatives from regulators, international and regional organisations, industry, academia and civil society for two days of discussion across the civil aviation environmental agenda.
Chaired by Alex Philpott (United Kingdom), the Forum focused on recent European and global policy developments related to aircraft emissions and local air quality, sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), noise, carbon removals and zero-emission aviation.
Discussions on aircraft emissions highlighted opportunities for further progress through engine and combustor design, as well as through fuel composition and standards. On sustainable aviation fuels, early experience with demand-side policies provided encouraging signs, with the first ReFuelEU Aviation technical report showing that the 2% SAF obligation for 2025 had been exceeded. Experiences from the United Kingdom, Brazil, Africa and the Arab region also illustrated different approaches to supporting SAF deployment, while discussions highlighted continuing challenges around scaling production, mobilising investment, feedstocks and policy design.
Noise remains a significant concern for communities around airports, with new research illustrating the complexity of annoyance and sleep disturbance and the importance of acoustic and non-acoustic factors. Participants also considered possible responses by airport operators, regulators and other actors.
Looking towards net zero, the Forum explored the potential role of carbon removals in addressing residual aviation emissions, including questions around governance, cost and responsibility. Real-world electric aircraft testing in Norway also demonstrated progress towards zero-emission operations, while highlighting the infrastructure, financing, business models and wider ecosystem required for deployment at scale.
A recurring theme was the relationship between implementing existing commitments and continuing to advance environmental ambition. Different views on the pace and sequencing of further action contributed to lively and substantive exchanges, grounded in technical expertise and practical experience.