Ryanair, one of the biggest polluters in Europe, according to EU data

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Ryanair has become the only airline to appear on the list of the 10 biggest polluters in Europe, according to data from the EU Transport & Environment group.

This is the first time that a company that does not run a coal plant is nearing the top of the rankings.

Seven plants in Germany and one in Poland and Bulgaria were on the list.

The data indicates that Ryanair's carbon dioxide emissions grew by 6.9% last year, but that the airline said it was "the greenest and cleanest airline in Europe. ".

In a statement, the carrier added that "pbadengers traveling on Ryanair have the lowest CO2 emissions per kilometer traveled."

Last year, the airline launched a new environmental policy in which it stated that it would offer its customers the opportunity to offset the carbon cost of their flights.

The nine carbon emitters above Ryanair in the list are all lignite power plants, a form of soft brown coal.

Airline pollution has increased by about two-thirds since 2005, and forecasts indicate that it will continue to increase as flights become more affordable.

At this rate, the industry will become the largest emitter of carbon within three decades.

The International Civil Aviation Organization has recently taken steps to remedy the situation by adopting rules of self-discipline, calling for offsetting any increase in carbon by planting trees or investing in cleaner technologies.

However, critics of the plan said the offsets had already been tried and that they were not working, partly because they are difficult to control.

Ryanair has announced its first quarterly loss since March 2014 in the last three months of last year, indicating that "winter overcapacity in Europe" had hit the market.