Iberia Offers Flight Emissions Offset Scheme to Major Spanish Corporations

• At Madrid’s FITUR travel fair Iberia has unveiled a scheme enabling r major Spanish corporate customers to offset their carbon footprints from air travel.
• The carbon dioxide emissions are to be offset by a reforestation project in Peru.
• Iberia developed the project via the start-up Climate Trade-
• Retailers El Corte Inglés, shipbuilders Navantia, the BBVA bank, and the ENDESA utility are some of the firms which plan to take part in the scheme.
• Offsetting emissions is part of Iberia’s strategy to meet its IAG parent’s sustainability goal of zero net emissions by 2050.

 

At Madrid’s annual international tourism and travel FITUR Spain’s Iberia Airlines convened 30 major Spanish corporations to outline a project which could enable them to offset the carbon footprint left by their air travel.

The emissions offset project was developed by the start-up Climate Trade as part of Iberia’s IAG parent company’s Hangar 51 innovation acceleration programme.

 

Reforestation Project in Peru

Under this scheme Iberia will inform its corporate customers of the size of their carbon footprints from flights made in the past year, offering them the opportunity to offset them by supporting sustainable development projects.

Initially, this would involve contributions to a reforestation project in Peru certified by the independent Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) auditor, which will credit the companies for contributing to the capture of specified amounts of CO₂ in the tree-planting project.

The companies will be issued certificates attesting to the number of tonnes of CO₂ they have offset, which should match the amount of CO₂ emitted from air travel by their personnel.

Retailers El Corte Inglés, shipbuilders Navantia, the BBVA bank, and the ENDESA utility are amongst the Spanish companies who are committed to participating in the scheme.

 

Contribution to UN Sustainability Goals for 2030

The scheme was devised within the framework of Iberia’s sustainability strategy for meeting the parent company IAG’s target of zero net emissions from its airlines’ operations by 2050.

The strategy is also in keeping with UN Sustainable Development Goal 13, “Climate Action” which calls for neutralising CO₂ emissions from air travel. Iberia’s most significant emissions measure to date is the replacement of its fleet with modern fuel-efficient Airbus A350 and A320neo units, which emit from 25% to 35% less CO₂ than aircraft of similar characteristics.

In addition, the Peruvian reforestation project will create numerous sustainable jobs, and will contribute to the meeting of other UN Sustainable Development Goals such as “Zero Hunger”, “Gender Equality”, and “Decent Work and Economic Growth”.

If you want to join us, click here: https://iberia.typeform.com/to/pOqjdc