Carbon Footprint— Environmental 1
Definition The carbon footprint is the total set of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions caused by activities at the airport within the airport’s control, expressed in terms of the amount of carbon dioxide or its equivalent in other GHG emitted. Excludes emissions caused by airline/tenant operations and the public. Applicability All airports, but particularly important for larger airports Drivers Emissions from sources within the airport’s control, such as airport vehicles, heating and cooling equipment, lighting and other electrical uses. Emissions vary with total energy consumption, use of cleaner and more efficient energy sources, use of lower emission vehicles, emission control technology, and climate factors. Benchmarking Useful for internal benchmarking. Comments Tracking this PI requires airports to conduct an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions which requires the use of industry models for which there is not yet an industry standard. In addition, airports control a relatively small portion of total GHG emissions associated with the use of their facilities. (GHG emissions from airlines and public vehicles may be tracked separately from airport-controlled emissions.) Because the Carbon Footprint of an airport depends on the activities it controls, airports that provide ground handling using internal resources will have larger Carbon Footprints than airports that outsource this function—without any resulting difference in total greenhouse emissions from the airport premises. Many European airports use the methodology prescribed by the Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) program established by ACI Europe, which defines the set of emissions sources included and requires that airports have their carbon footprints independently verified in accordance with ISO 14064.
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ACI Guide to Airport Performance Measures