ACI: Abu Dhabi first in region to receive Airport Carbon Accreditation

Abu Dhabi International Airport has become the first airport in the MENA region to be carbon accredited as part of the new industry standard introduced by the Airports Council International (ACI) and recognised by IATA.
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The ADAC airport celebrated achieving Airport Carbon Accredited status at the ‘Mapping Level’ at an event be alongside the ACI Europe and ACI Asia-Pacific Airport Exchange Conference, hosted by ADAC at ADNEC this week.

The ACI Airport Exchange brought together more than 1,000 air transport executives from Europe and Asia­-Pacific to work towards the future development of the aviation sector and airports’ operations.

The scheme was introduced in Europe two years ago with more the 40 airports now accredited.

Leonie Dobie, the head of sustainable aviation and airports that worked with ACI in developing the accreditation system said that those airports had reduced carbon emissions by a remarkable 711,000 tonnes last year – the equivalent of taking 188,000 cars off the road.

The system is now being rolled out to ACI’s Asia Pacific region, which stretched from Turkey across the Asian continent.

ADAC initiated its application to the programme by mapping emission sources within the direct operational boundaries of Abu Dhabi International airport calculating the annual carbon emissions, compiling a carbon footprint report and verifying it independently. The airport footprint forms the baseline measure to which future activities and targets will be aligned.

A certificate was presented to ADAC chairman Khalifa Al Mazrouei, at the official ACI dinner at the Emirates Palace on Tuesday evening.

Speaking at the press conference today to announce the roll-out and confirm ADAC accreditation, CEO James Bennett said: “We are proud to be the leading airport operator in the region to start playing our part in addressing aviation’s impact on climate change. A key milestone for us is the participation in Airport Carbon Accreditation . The certification recognises ADAC’s efforts towards applying comprehensive carbon management in the capital’s airport.  This application also demonstrates ADAC’s commitment towards developing a sustainable future in aviation and effectively managing the environmental impacts of our operations across our five airports in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.”

Bennett said that the second phase of the accreditation would see ADAC identifying the potential and then reducing the carbon footprint. “Our goal is to be carbon neutral in those areas that are directly under the control of the Airport,” he said.

Olivier Jankovec, Director General of ACI Europe, said a key part of the accreditation process was for the airport to reach out and engage with other players at the airport such as the airlines and the retail providers.

 

 

Pictured: Abu Dhabi International Airport receives its Airport Carbon Accredited certificate at the Mapping level of the programme. Left to Right: Patti Chau , Regional Director ACI Asia-Pacific, His Excellency Khalifa Al Mazrouei , Chairman of Abu Dhabi Airports Company;  Kosaburo Morinaka ACI Asia-Pacific Vice President & President & CEO of Narita International Airport