They may be behind in women’s rights, but two Middle East countries Qatar and United Arab Emirates seem to be ahead of the pack in their bid to fight global warming. Two important announcements were made in the last week:
Etihad Airways from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it is working with Masdar - the same body developing the world’s first carbon neutral city - to measure, manage and reduce the carbon footprint of the international carrier. It will focus on sustainable and energy-efficient measures, reports the company.
According to a company-issued press release Masdar will help Etihad develop carbon management solutions so the company complies with the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, coming into effect for aviation in 2012, and Masdar will also support the airline’s voluntary carbon reduction initiatives.
Improving waste management plans and advising Etihad on energy saving initiatives, are also part of the (flight) plan.
This good news announcement dovetails another Middle East initiative: Qatar Airways, based in Doha, will now be encouraging customers to purchase carbon offsets for every flight. Also advertised in a press release, the company signed a “ground-breaking agreement with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to spearhead the global carbon offset trading scheme designed to help fund global environmental projects,” reports The Peninsula.
After booking a ticket, the company –– which has already calculated the carbon footprint of your flight –– will ask you to offset it. The money paid to do so, says Sheikh Akbar Al Baker, the company’s CEO, will go towards various offsetting projects. With no details mentioned, the projects will include those supporting “alternative energy, reducing noise, recycling of waste products, and other environmentally friendly endeavors that will reduce the dangers of global warming.”
The airline also says it will also invest in cleaner and more efficient aircraft to keep carbon emissions at bay.
I laud the companies for taking stock of greenhouse gases, making it easier for them to comply with standards, no doubt essential to meet in the future at European and North American airports. It would be more noble, however, for these airlines (or any airline) to shoulder the cost of carbon offsetting themselves, or at the very least give customers a choice as to what projects they’d like to support.
Most of us can already choose to offset by our ourselves, using Carbon Catalog’s handy guide to help us pick the best projects. If so, why would I support offset projects or carbon offset providers that I know very little about, or which are serving a company’s own interest?
I guess we will have to wait for more results to assess the impact and value of these two initiatives. In the meantime, you can read about the carbon offset kiosk pilot project at the San Francisco airport.
Concerned about global warming and the quality of the offsets? Browse through our hand-picked list of carbon offset projects, each given a rating for their value.