Celebrating One Year of Carbon Neutrality!
January 1, 2009 marks a ‘green’ anniversary for Harbour Air. This auspicious date is the first anniversary of Harbour Air becoming completely carbon neutral in both its flight services and corporate operations.
Harbour Air began purchasing carbon offsets for its flights on October 1, 2007 and for corporate operations on January 1, 2008. “It has been quite a year for Harbour Air,” notes Senior VP of Sales and Marketing, Randy Wright. “We have received an overwhelmingly positive response from our customers and staff, supporting the program, and wanting to know how they can do more.”
Did you know?
It is our pleasure to see your pet accompany you on your travels! In order to fly with us, Fluffy or Fido must be in an approved hard-shell carrier. Because your pet will travel in the luggage area in the rear of the aircraft cabin, the carrier must be no larger than 15 inches in width. We would also like to note that the weight of the carrier and your pet will contribute to your luggage allowance. Please feel free to contact our Reservations Department for further information. We look forward to seeing you and your best friend on your next flight!
Harbour Air began with a five-step action plan including a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) inventory management system, internal reductions plan, target setting, investment in offsets for corporate emissions, and offsets for all flight services. In December, Harbour Air once again conducted its annual Greenhouse Gas audit.
“The audit is extremely comprehensive, covering all scopes of our operation including heat, lighting, ground transportation, employee commuting, and paper usage, just to name a few. This task is not taken lightly,” says Wright.
In 2008, Harbour Air announced that it would be funding a ground-sourced heat pump for a local palliative care facility, the Delta View Habilitation Centre. In addition, Harbour Air has an offset project that is pending third-party verification and is expected to be announced in early January. In the meantime, additional credits have come from the Offsetters BC portfolio which includes social and agricultural projects on the Lower Mainland and throughout the rest of the province. Look for new projects to come in the New Year. “We are continuing to look for additional projects to diversify our portfolio,” notes Wright. “We are particularly interested in wind and hydro power projects, and would like to find a project located on Vancouver Island.”
