Articles Tagged with: carbon footprint

The first ever flight in Latin America to use aviation biofuel took off from Rio de Janeiro earlier this week – could this be a sign of change in the continent’s battle against carbon emissions?

The Airbus A320, which was manned by two TAM pilots and carried 18 technicians and executives, flew over the Atlantic Ocean for 45 minutes before returning safely to ground – powered by a 50:50 mix of Brazilian-produced biofuel and traditional kerosene.

TAM says all the biomass used in the flight was produced from the Jatropha curcas, a poisonous tree which is native to Central America. Because the plant can grow on semi-arrid wasteland and cannot be eaten either by animals or man, it is being heralded by TAM and Airbus as an environmentally sound source of biofuel. If you are going on holiday in South America then the chances are that the journey there will be the biggest contributor to your carbon footprint, so any way to reduce this is a move in the right direction.

Studies have shown that biofuels made from Jatropha cucas typically emit between 65 per cent and 80 per cent less Co2 than traditional petroleum-derived aviation kerosene – a significant drop by any standards.

Libano Barroso, president of TAM Airlines, said: “The involvement of TAM in this experimental flight shows our contribution in a vast project for the development of the production chain for this vegetable biomass biofuel, with the purpose of creating a Brazilian platform for sustainable aviation bio-kerosene.”

Encouraged by the results of this initial test, TAM is planning to plant crops of Jatropha curcas at its technological centre outside Sao Paulo.

“The goal of this unit will be to conduct technical and economic feasibility studies to start the implementation of an integrated value chain in Brazil, with the aim of producing biofuel based on Jatropha curcas oil, from the production of raw material to the distribution of bio-kerosene.”

Commenting on the news, Head of New Energies for Airbus, Paul Nash, said: “This should serve as evidence of the aviation industry’s commitment to advance on the CO2 reduction targets that it set for itself – Carbon Neutral growth from 2020, working towards 50 percent C02 reduction by 2050.”

While any move to reduce carbon emissions from aviation should be welcomed, environmentalists will be greeting the news with caution. Mass scale of production of biomass in Brazil and other Latin American countries has led to the widescale destruction of rainforests, as land is cleared to grow crop plants – effectively removing the trees and plants that are the planet’s greatest asset in the fight against carbon and greenhouse gases.

Sustainable tourism must go mainstream if the travel industry is to stand a chance of tackling climate change and poverty, a leading environmental pioneer has warned.

Campaigner, writer and former Friends of the Earth boss, Tony Juniper, made the claim at the opening of the World Responsible Tourism Day in London last week.

Speaking as part of the World Travel Market industry conference, Juniper told an audience of travel industry professionals that unless mainstream operators use their multi-billion pound spending power to market sustainable options, some of the world’s most precious destinations would be lost.

“It is not just a morally lauded choice, it is in our long-term interest,” he warned, spelling out the threat climate change poses to destinations from the ski resorts of Europe to Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa and Maldives holidays.

Jupiter warned that in order for the travel industry to make a significant contribution to the fight against environmental destruction, green tourism has to become more than just a travel choice for the affluent middle classes. He called for delegates to “step up and create that change” by making sustainable tourism a mainstream option as well as just an aspirational choice.

While Jupiter acknowledges that there aren’t currently any technologies available to make air travel carbon-free, he told the audience that the travel industry could be doing more to to reduce carbon emissions on the ground. Rather than employing the mindset that green travel is a specialist niche with nothing to do with them, anyone involved in the travel and tourism industry should be using technologies such as low-carbon buildings and electric vehicles as standard, Jupiter said.

While the World Tourism Day events attracted a large audience of senior professionals from across the travel industry as a whole, it’s apparent there is still a very long way to go before green travel goes mainstream. On the same day that Tony Jupiter issued his timely warning to the industry, the boss of one of the biggest Caribbean hotel groups admitted his hotel group does nothing at all to measure its carbon footprint.

Sandals boss, Adam Stewart, said measuring carbon emissions is irrelevant during a heated panel debate: “There’s zero relevance if I walk into our hotels in the six islands we operate in and say my carbon footprint is this but every single hotel tracks diesel and LPG usage,” Stewart told the BBC’s Stephen Sackur. Let’s just hope Jupiter wasn’t there to hear the comment or he may just wish he’d stayed in bed!

Much is made of what individual travellers should do to cut their carbon footprint (fly less often, for shorter distances, stay longer at your destination….), but its not often we hear about what the companies involved in aviation are doing to green-up their act.

Faced with a new government which appears significantly more anti-aviation than the last, airports are making great pains to stress their environmental credentials.

Gatwick airport recently announced plans to reduce carbon emisissions by 50 per cent by 2020 and become a ‘sustainable’ airport. Other goals in the new ‘Decade for Change’ sustainability plan include reducing operational noise, recycling 70 per cent of all waste, protecting local habitats and improving public transport access to the airport.

The aiport is also considering reducing its energy consumption by using renewable energy sources and introducing an electric car recharge network. Gatwich Airport CEO, Stewart Wingate, said: “Behaving in a responsible and sustainable way is at the heart of our business. As new owners we’ve grasped the opportunity to introduce new, challenging targets and initiatives to improve our environmental credentials.”

Meanwhile Birmingham airport has reportedly saved over 13,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide in the last 12 months by introducing a new technique called Continuous Descent Approach (CDA). The new landing technique allows planes to make a smooth approach to the airport, which uses less fuel and causes less noise than the usual step-by-step descent.

A spit in the water when it comes to the environmental impact of aviation? Quite possibly. One company which can be relied on for its upfront and honest approach to saving the planet is Ryanair. Boss Michael O’Leary recently said he doesn’t believe global warming exists and that scientists have made up the concept to attract money for research.

In an outspoken interview with The Independent, O’Leary blamed the environmentalists for giving aviation a “hard time” and said he refuses to believe that humans are responsible for carbon emissions:

“Well, hang on, we’ve had an ice age. We’ve also had a couple of very hot spells during the Middle Ages, so nobody can deny climate change. But there’s absolutely no link between man-made carbon, which contributes less than 2 per cent of total carbon emissions [and climate change].”

Our advice? If you do decide to take the plane, go from Gatwick or Birmingham, but don’t fly Ryanair!

As well as being one of the least environmentally friendly ways in which to start a holiday, flying is fast becoming one of the most stressful.

Spanish air traffic controllers have just called off a strike which was due to ground planes for three days from August 18th. The walkout was planned to coincide with one of the busiest times of the year and would have caused misery for thousands of British holidaymakers caught up in the disruption.

But the threat has not been lifted completely. Until a deal is signed between the USCA union and management, there remains a possibility of further action if members decide to call for another walkout.

2010 has been a bad year for air travel in general. Back in April the eruption of the Icelandic volcano caused weeks of havoc as flights were grounded and passengers left stranded all over the world. Strikes by British Airways cabin crew caused further disruption throughout May and June and unlike the volcano, the BA dispute is still rumbling on, as well as the recent strike threats by BAA staff who run the majority of British airports.

Add to all this the environmental cost of travelling by plane and it is little wonder that so many Brits are thinking twice before booking a foreign holiday this year. But while UK family breaks can be a lot of fun, there’s often one thing lacking on a British beach holiday – sun.

Luckily there are alternatives to flying for green travellers who want to escape to the continent. Spain is the number one destination for British tourists and is easily accessible by land and sea as well as by air.

Travelling by train by Eurostar opens up a wealth of opportunities to travel around France by road, while better rail connections to European cities are becoming available as a result of heightened customer demand. A new ferry route is set to open in September, connecting Nantes with the port of Gijon in Northern Spain.

Brittany Ferries sail direct several times weekly from Portsmouth and Plymouth for the port of Santander in Cantabria. Several holiday destinations can easily be reached by road from Santander including the Spanish cities of Bilbao and San Sebastien, or Biarritz in south west France.

To cut your carbon footprint further still, ditch the hire car and use the train when you arrive. A regular service connects Santander with destinations across the coast of Cantabria and neighbouring Asturias, while coach company Alsa connects Santander with cities all across Spain including Barcelona and Madrid.

Holidaymakers are being urged to think of green travel when packing their suitcases this summer. Not only is carrying heavy luggage bad for backs, but it’s bad for the environment too.

Over-burdened suitcases are being blamed for increased carbon emissions as heavy loads cause aeroplanes to use more fuel.

Only 16 per cent of holidaymakers actually use and wear everything they’ve packed and over a third only use 25 per cent of the items in their case. The figures were revealed in a survey published by Thomson earlier this week.

The holiday firm is asking travellers to think twice when packing their bags and cut their carbon footprint. Thomson say that if a third of holidaymakers left that extra 25 per cent of unused luggage behind it would save 7,537 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually – the equivalent of taking 2,216 cars off the road.

TV fashion expert Brix Smith-Start has been recruited to back Thomson’s Holidays Forever green packing campaign. She said this week: “Everyone wants to look fabulous when they are on holiday, yet too many of us don’t think about what outfits we’ll actually want to wear and so we end up with clothes that won’t see the light of day once we are away. I’m providing travellers with some top tips on how to make their luggage more green and advising how holiday makers can bring fewer items, but still look great.”

Brix’s top tips include:

• Check the weather before you leave
• Take a look at the weather forecast and plan accordingly. If the Met promise seven days of sunshine, you won’t be needing a heavy jumper and jeans!
• Cut down on shoes
• Shoes weigh a lot and take up loads of room in your case. Resist the temptation to pack footwear to go with every outfit – take some flat sandals, flip flops for the beach and plimsolls for walking.
• Pack statement pieces
• Bright kaftans and maxi-dresses are easy to dress up and down, making them ideal for day to night dressing. Pack a couple along with a few pieces of statement jewellery and you’ll have enough to see you through your holiday.
• Ditch the towels
• Bulky towels are heavy and take up a lot of room. Use towels provided by your hotel or buy a cheap one when you arrive.
• Cut down on toiletries
• Think about what you really need and what you’ll actually use. Take travel sized versions of your must-have products and co-ordinate with holiday buddies if you’re travelling as a group.

Book your romantic eco-friendly wedding at the Banyan Tree Mayakoba resort on the Riviera Maya, Mexico. Credit: Courtesy Banyan Tree

Exchange your wedding vows on the glorious Riviera Maya in Mexico, and you can make a commitment to your future together as a couple, and to the future of the earth.

Staff at the Banyan Tree Mayakoba have organizers who will put together your entire wedding package at their carefully preserved ecological site. The Banyan Tree Mayakoba is the first resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico to offer event and wedding planners the option to hold their events in a carbon responsible manner.

By choosing Banyan Tree Mayakoba as the venue for their events, the companies that will help you plan your wedding will also be playing their part to support the reforestation of areas of Mexico and provide employment to the local indigenous population, even as the resort absorbs the cost of carbon offset.

The Banyan Tree Mayakoba r resort is 40 minutes’ drive from Cancun International Airport and 10 minutes from the cosmopolitan town of Playa del Carmen. A total of 107 pool villas are discreetly built into the carefully conserved landscape, which preserves four ecosystems in balance – the mangroves, dunes, low forests, and coral reefs, making it a perfect wedding destination. The resort offers a range of unique wedding packages including the Just for Two package, which includes an in-villa Mayan ceremony presided by a local Shaman, surrounded by ceremonial decorations and Mayan musicians for the occasion.

Carbon responsible wedding and customized event packages have been available since April 2010. The organizers will receive an event verification certificate provided by Reforestamos Mexico. Each guest receives a wooden artifact crafted by a local workshop based in the Buenavista community, which salvages wood from trees felled by natural causes and crafts them into forms that represent the beauty of Mexico’s Riviera Maya.

Banyan Tree Mayakoba uses the internationally accredited EarthCheck Program to carefully manage and measure the amount of energy and water consumed as a result of the individual guest’s stay. A symbolic carbon measure is then offset locally through Reforestamos Mexico, a certified organization, which in turn links to the Scolel Te project. This forestry carbon sequestration initiative involves the indigenous communities of Tzeltales, Tzotziles, Choles and Lacandones in Chiapas, and the Chinanteca communities in Oaxaca. The project is based on the Plan Vivo System, using a guiding methodology for land-use based carbon project development that permits participation from cooperative farms and communities in carbon capture, biodiversity preservation, endangered species protection and the environmental services market.

If you consider yourself a Green, responsible traveler, then you’ll want to download the “Green Travel Choice,” the latest iPhone app that gives responsible travelers a simple and effective way to make informed travel choices. The app will help you reduce your carbon footprint, whether you’re taking a round the world trip or a short visit to the center of your hometown.

The Green Travel Choice app is designed by Pocketweb Ltd and is the brainchild of The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) and Cleaner Climate. Click on the Green Travel Choice app and the Green Travel Choice map will provide you nine possible travel options for your trip and the expected CO2 emissions for each choice.

What sets this tool apart from others of a similar ilk, is that Green Travel Choice lets you track and monitor your emissions while you are moving. The app includes a Travel Logbook that stores information for each trip and summarizes your carbon footprint over time.

“TIES team is excited to support and be part of this joint initiative to raise awareness of the climate impact of individual travelers,” said Ayako Ezaki, TIES director of communications.

And as a special bonus, when you download the app and you’ll receive a US$15 voucher to join The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) as a Traveler member.