Press Release
For Immediate Release
28 March 2007
Successful Carbon Neutral Initiative to Expand
Alexandria, Va -- The global warming effects of more than 700 tonnes of carbon dioxide have been neutralised as a result of a pioneering partnership between the Association of Corporate Travel Executives' (ACTE) and British Airways.
The companies announced today that the organisation of last October’s ACTE global education conference in Barcelona on a carbon-neutral basis had helped fund a biofuel energy project in southern India.
The partners now plan to extend this initiative – a first in the business travel world – to ACTE’s forthcoming conferences in Miami (6-8 May 2007) and Munich (21-23 October 2007).
The total emissions from the Barcelona conference were 732 tonnes of carbon dioxide.
British Airways sponsored an offset that will achieve an equivalent reduction in CO2 emissions by replacing fossil fuels with renewable biofuels in the State of Karnataka in India. The biofuels are produced locally and the project helps village communities increase self-sufficiency by decreasing their reliance on petroleum products. The offset was purchased and implemented through the Climate Warehouse.
The offset covered the emissions generated by all essential delegate travel to and from the conference along with emissions generated through the conference venue and accommodation.
ACTE worked to minimise ground emissions by changing conference working practices, such as reducing paper usage and using the CCIB in Barcelona – a highly energy efficient space.
British Airways is committed to limiting the impact of its operations on global warming wherever possible. Richard Tams, British Airways' General Manager for Global Corporate Sales, said:
"British Airways takes its environmental responsibilities extremely seriously. Carbon offsetting is an excellent way for individuals to demonstrate their own concern about the environment. We are delighted to have participated in this group offset with ACTE and hope that this will be the first of many such ventures in the business travel sector."
ACTE is the first major business travel trade association to enter into an agreement with organisations (CarbonNeutral and the Climate Trust) offering tools and programmes to measure and reduce carbon emissions. Susan Gurley, ACTE Executive Director, said:
"We are very pleased to have worked alongside British Airways to reduce carbon emissions for the Barcelona conference and we hope that this will set a precedent for others to follow ACTE's lead and work to decrease CO2 emissions in all their activities."
For further information please contact:
British Airways Media Relations Office: + 44 (0) 20 8738 5100
Notes to editors:
1. The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) is a not-for-profit impartial association established to provide global education and peer-to-peer networking opportunities for travel executives. Membership spans the entire business travel industry, from corporate buyers to supplier agencies, and accords all sectors equal membership. ACTE has 2,500 members in 49 countries. Further information is available at www.acte.org
2. British Airways has led the airline industry for the last seven years in promoting carbon trading as the most efficient and effective way of curbing aviation's contribution to CO2 emissions. Further information about environmental issues and carbon offsetting is available from www.ba.com/offsetyouremissions
3. BA is one of the world's largest international airlines. Last year the airline flew more than 35 million people to 140 destinations in 75 countries. In the financial year to March 2006 the airline made a pre-tax profit of £620 million (2005: £513 million profit). The airline has its home base at London Heathrow, the world's busiest international airport. The airline employs 45,000 staff and operates a fleet of more than 280 aircraft.
4. The Climate Warehouse is a specialist wholesale offset provider to corporations, market intermediaries and re-sellers. Its business rationale is to make it simple for its clients to voluntarily, permanently remove (retire) quality emissions offsets from circulation. The Climate Warehouse offers a full range of offsets including instruments created under the Kyoto Protocol and other formal emissions trading schemes, and is also actively creating new supplies of verified emission reductions (VERs) by providing forward purchase contracts to VER project developers.
For more information, contact:
Debbie Flynn
CEO
Brighter Group
The Pod, London's Vertical Gateway
Bridges Wharf, Battersea
London SW11 3BE England
T: 020 7326 9880
F: 020 7326 9890
E: [email protected]
W: www.brightergroup.com