NEW DELHI: Visiting EU environment commissioner Janez Potocnik has defended the inclusion of aviation in European Union's Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) from January on the ground that the per passenger cost does not work out to be too much and in the changing global scenario of green development this is the way forward.

Potocnik is here to attend the Ministerial Dialogue on Green Economy and Inclusive Growth. India is opposed to the surcharge that inbound flights to the EU will have to pay because of the new emission norm and plans to take up the matter in international fora.

"We are serious about fighting climate change and this is an important initiative. The per passenger cost for a transatlantic flight works out to about 2.15 euro. This isn't too much. Besides, an airline that shows 85% compliance to our set ETS targets won't need to pay the tax at all," Potocnik said.

He stressed that in the quest for green development, the EU wants to tax resources rather than labour which is the current practice. "We are not asking you to do this but our thinking is that the time has come for the change given the resource constraints faced by countries, including developing ones like India and China. Key natural resources such as raw materials, energy, biodiversity and water have been used to fuel economic growth in such a way that they are inexhaustible. That is not sustainable," he said.

On India's opposition to legally binding emission norms, he said: "These things are not mere roadblocks in growth. It's in the interest of the countries themselves."

He said subsidy regimes should take into account the environmental impact of subsidized items. "If an environmentally harmful substance is subsidized, it's a double expense because it will go on to harm the environment. We, in the EU, are looking to phase out such subsidies by 2020," Potocnik added.