Brussels, 31 January 2012: Following the inclusion of the airline industry into the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme as of 1 January 2012, ACI EUROPE today released an update on its flagship climate change initiative, Airport Carbon Accreditation, detailing the progress made by airports in lowering their own CO2 emissions.

As of today, some 55 airports in Europe welcoming 52% of European passenger traffic each year are now Airport Carbon Accredited at one of the 4 available levels of certification (‘Mapping’, ‘Reduction’, ‘Optimisation’ and ‘Neutrality’).

Olivier Jankovec, Director General ACI EUROPE commented “With Helsinki airport, Dusseldorf airport, Warsaw airport and the 6 airports of Finavia’s Lapland Group now accredited, joining 46 others, our industry continues to make tangible progress in addressing its carbon footprint and becoming more efficient. More than 750 million passengers a year are travelling through European airports that are now Airport Carbon Accredited!”

Siim Kallas, European Commission Vice-President responsible for Transport said “Genuine progress on greening transport and curbing emissions can only occur when the regulator’s work is complemented by citizens and businesses taking action of their own. Airport Carbon Accreditation is a fine example of an industry taking the initiative in this regard. I am delighted to see so many airports are now participating in the programme - it is clearly helping to move European aviation onto a more sustainable footing.”

Connie Hedegaard, European Commissioner for Climate Action said “I am of course very happy to see that more than half of European passenger traffic is now passing through carbon accredited airports, congratulations! It is important that all parts of industry and society join in our efforts against climate change, and examples like yours are inspiring."

Initially launched in Europe in June 2009, the institutionally endorsed¹ programme Airport Carbon Accreditation has moved up several gears in the past two and half years. In November 2011, the programme expanded to the Asia-Pacific region, gaining the support of ICAO at that time too.

Abu Dhabi Airport was the very first to become Airport Carbon Accredited in the Asia-Pacific region of ACI.

The recent ‘first time’ accreditations of a significant number of airports have seen the programme shoot past the 50% mark in Europe in the past weeks. Final results of the CO2 reduction² achieved for Year 3 of the programme, will be announced at the 22nd ACI EUROPE Annual Congress in Madrid, 20-22 June 2012.

Recent renewals within the programme have also seen Gothenborg- Landvetter Airport renew its status as a carbon neutral airport as well as Eindhoven Airport in the Netherlands achieve ‘Reduction’ for the very first time.

ENDS

Notes for Editors:

Full listing of all accredited airports & collective CO2 reductions achieved

The IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) has estimated that aviation’s total CO2 emissions account for 2% of global emissions’ impact on climate change. Of that figure, airports’ own operations only account for up to 5%, but European airports are keen to tackle their greenhouse gas emissions – several individual airports operators having already committed to becoming carbon neutral in the past few years with some having already achieved this.

¹The programme is administered by leading consultancy WSP Environment & Energy and overseen by an independent Advisory Board including representatives of the European Commission, ECAC (European Civil Aviation Conference) EUROCONTROL, ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) and UNEP (United Nations Environmental Programme).

²In Year 1, 18 accredited airports achieved a reduction of 411,390 tCO2. In Year 2, 43 accredited airports achieved a reduction of 729,689 tCO2, equivalent to removing around 180,000 cars from the roads. 

Airport Carbon Accredited for ‘NEUTRALITY’ (8 airports)

- Avinor: Oslo Airport & Trondheim Airport, Norway

- SEA Milan Airports: Milan-Linate & Milan-Malpensa, Italy

- Swedavia: Arlanda Airport & Bromma Airport, Stockholm, Sweden

- Swedavia: Goteborg-Landvetter Airport, Sweden

- Swedavia: Umea Airport, Sweden

Airport Carbon Accredited for ‘OPTIMISATION’ (7 airports)

- Aeroporti di Roma: Leonardo da Vinci- Fiumicino Airport, Rome, Italy

- BAA: Heathrow Airport, London, UK

- Geneva Airport, Switzerland

- MAG: Manchester Airport, UK

- Munich Airport, Germany

- Schiphol Grp: Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, the Netherlands

- Zurich Airport, Switzerland

Airport Carbon Accredited for ‘REDUCTION’ (19 airports)

- Aéroports de Paris: CDG Airport & Orly Airport, Paris, France

- Athens International Airport, Greece

- Avinor: Kristiansand Airport, Norway

- Brussels Airport, Belgium

- Dublin Airport Authority: Cork Airport & Dublin Airport, Ireland

- Eindhoven Airport, the Netherlands

- Frankfurt Airport, Germany

- Gatwick Airport, London, UK

- Hamburg Airport, Germany

- ICF Airports: Antalya Airport, Turkey

- Finavia Lapland Group: Ivalo, Enontekiö, Kittilä, Rovaniemi,

Kuusamo & Kemi-Tornio Airports, Finland

- TAG Aviation: Farnborough Airport, UK

Airport Carbon Accredited for ‘MAPPING’ (22 airports)

- Aeroportos de Portugal: Faro, Flores, Horta, Lisbon, Oporto,

Ponta Delgada & Sante Maria Airports

- Bologna Airport, Italy

- Budapest Airport, Hungary

- Chisinau Airport, Moldova

- Dublin Airport Authority: Shannon Airport, Ireland

- Dubrovnik Airport, Croatia

- Dusseldorf Airport, Germany

- Helsinki Airport, Finland

- Nice Cote d’Azur Airport, France

- Prague Airport, Czech Republic

- TAV Airports Holding: Ankara, Istanbul-Ataturk, Izmir, Turkey

- Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, France

- Warsaw-Chopin Airport, Poland

- Abu Dhabi Airport, UAE*

For more information, please visit www.airportcarbonaccreditation.org

For information about aviation and the environment please go to: www.enviro.aero or contact  Robert O’Meara, Communications Manager, ACI EUROPE (Airports Council International) 
E-mail: robert.omeara@aci-europe.org

Mobile: +32 (0)486 54 14 71 or Tel: +32 (0)2 552 09 82.

ACI EUROPE is the European region of Airports Council International (ACI), the only

worldwide professional association of airport operators. ACI EUROPE represents over 400 airports in 46 European countries. Member airports handle 90% of commercial air traffic in Europe, welcoming more than 1.5 billion passengers each year.