The European airport industry has committed to increase carbon neutral airports to 50 by 2030, as part of its support to the global deal on climate change at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 21) in Le Bourget, Paris.
ACI Europe president Augustin de Romanet said: "Europe’s airports are fully behind the objective of keeping global warming below 2°C – and they are urging States to come to a global, robust and legally binding agreement in Paris.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
"For its part, the airport industry has already moved from words to actions a while ago. Throughout Europe and beyond, airports are effectively working to mitigate and reduce their own impact on climate change."
A recent study published by the European Parliament revealed that the shipping and aviation sectors will contribute 40% of all CO² emissions in 2050 if left unchecked.
According to International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the carbon emissions from aviation currently represent up to 2% of the global total.
In 2009, the European airport industry as part of its commitment to reduce its carbon emissions launched carbon management standard Airport Carbon Accreditation to assess and recognise the efforts being made by airports to manage and reduce their CO² emissions.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataAirports will be certified at four different accreditation levels under the programme, which include mapping, reduction, optimisation and neutrality.
A total of 137 airports across Europe, Africa and Asia-Pacific have earned airport carbon-accredited status in the past year.
Romanet added: "At the moment, there are 93 airports in Europe that are certified under Airport Carbon Accreditation. These airports welcome 64% of annual European passenger traffic. 20 of these airports are carbon neutral and our commitment to bring that number to 50 by 2030 reflects both our resolve and our ambition to do more."
