Comment: Pacific flights responsible for highest levels of ozone pollution

Flights entering and exiting Australia and New Zealand are responsible for the highest levels of ozone pollution created by the aviation industry.

Highest levels of ozone pollution created from planes (GETTY)

Flights entering and exiting Australia and New Zealand are responsible for the highest levels of ozone pollution created by the aviation industry.

Using a global chemical-transport model, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology investigated areas specifically sensitive to ozone pollution, and the individual flights that create the highest levels.

The study showed an area 1000km east of the Solomon Islands is the most sensitive to aircraft emissions in the region.

Ozone is a potent greenhouse gas with comparable short-term effects to those of carbon dioxide (CO2).