Delhi Airport achieves new height in Asia Pacific for Carbon Accreditation
Nov 18, 2020
New Delhi [India], November 18 : Delhi International Airport Limited has become Asia Pacific's first Level 4+ (Transition) accredited airport under ACI's Airport Carbon Accreditation program, said GMR Group, which owns and operates the airport.
"DelhiAirport becomes the first airport in Asia-Pacific region to get Level 4+ accreditation under ACI's Airport Carbon Accreditation, affirming our constant efforts towards sustainability and a greener future. #BeyondCarbonNeutral #NetZeroCarbonEmission2030," the Delhi Airport tweeted on Wednesday.
The announcement was made by the ACI during the ACI EUROPE Annual Assembly and Congress, which said that "the airport is a pioneer in sustainability in their region & is now setting its climate goals in alignment with the ambition of the Paris Agreement. HATS OFF!"
Airport Carbon Accreditation is the global standard for carbon management in the airport industry. It aims to encourage and enable airports and its stakeholders to implement best practices in Greenhouse Gas (GHG) management and achieve emission reductions.
The Airport Carbon Accreditation programme of ACI was launched in 2009. Initially had 4 Levels- "Level 1: Mapping", "Level 2: Reduction", "Level 3: Optimisation" and "Level 3+ Neutrality". Delhi Airport reached "Level 3+, Neutrality" in 2016, as the first Carbon Neutral Airport in Asia Pacific region. This was the highest level of accreditation at that time and DIAL has maintained "Level 3+, Neutrality" accreditation since then.
In 2020, ACI had revised the program's Levels and added two new levels, Level 4 (Transformation) and Level 4+ (Transition).
These two Levels have been introduced to make the programme objectives in line with Paris Agreement and to limit the increase of global average temperature to 2degrees Celcius above pre-industrial levels and aim to not exceed 1.5°C. This is also in line with IPCC's recommendations & ICAO's Aviation Climate Change mitigation objectives. Level 4+ encourages airports to reduce their emissions as per the latest scientific developments and meet to stakeholder expectations.
Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, CEO, DIAL, said, "Achievement of the Level 4+ accreditation is a testimony of our commitment towards ensuring sustainable development at IGIA. Going forward, we will continue to develop best in class infrastructure and provide services using innovative and sustainable technologies. Our aim is to achieve 'net zero carbon emission' airport by 2030, following the Airport Carbon Accreditation guidelines. With this achievement, we have set up new benchmark for other airports in this region to follow."
"The current crisis is accelerating the process of the aviation sector's transformation. Sustainable growth, in line with the Paris Agreement's target to progressively decarbonize the environment, is an essential part of this process. Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport is raising the bar in Asia-Pacific by becoming the one of the first airports in the world to obtain the new important Airport Carbon Accreditation Level 4+ Transition accreditation," said Stefano Baronci, Director General, ACI Asia-Pacific.
