The effort made by Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport (YQB) to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions has been recognized by Level 2 certification under the Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) program.
“This certification recognizes the effort we are making to efficiently manage our atmospheric emissions and reduce the environmental impact of our activities. We are proud to be one of only four airports in Canada and sixteen in North America to obtain Level 2 certification,” says Gaëtan Gagné, YQB’s president and CEO.
“Our goal is to improve our environmental performance on an ongoing basis and to become a leader in the airport industry,” he adds.
ACA is a worldwide certification program for carbon management set up by Airport Council International (ACI) to assess and recognize the greenhouse gas reduction efforts made by airports. It is based on verification by an independent third party. There are four certification levels: mapping (level 1), reduction (level 2), optimization (level 3) and neutrality (level 3+).
“Our medium-term objective is to achieve Level 3 certification, based on optimization of our CO2 reduction. This means that YQB must address category 3 emissions, in other words emissions over which we have no direct control, but which directly affect the airport,” Mr. Gagné explains.
The emissions covered include those produced by handling equipment on the ground, as well as aircraft movements (landing, take-off, parking and taxiing).
The ACA program gives airports a common framework for active carbon management, with measurable objectives.
Carbon emissions at each airport are verified independently in accordance with ISO 14064 (greenhouse gas accounting) and on the basis of tangible evidence.
