International Airlines Group announced on Thursday that it will commit to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The owner of British Airways is the first airline group worldwide to do so.
Shares in International Airlines Group (LON:IAG) were up during Thursday morning trading.
International Airlines Group said that it will “contribute to both the UK government’s commitment to a net zero carbon economy by 2050 and the United Nations’ objective to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees”.
Over the past few weeks, people have joined across different timezones, cultures and generations in an attempt to unit against the growing climate crisis.
International Airlines Group said that British Airways will offset carbon emissions for all of its UK domestic flights from 2020. The company also said that it would invest $400 million in sustainable aviation fuel in the next 20 years and replace old aircrafts with more carbon efficient versions.
“Today aviation represents two per cent of global CO2 emissions,” Willie Walsh, IAG’s Chief Executive, said in a company statement.
“We’re investing in new aircraft and innovative technology to reduce our carbon footprint in an industry where there’s no current alternative to jet fuel,” the Chief Executive added.
“In addition to our own initiatives, there must be a global solution and we’re participating in the new United Nations’ aviation offsetting scheme which allows our industry to invest in carbon reduction in other sectors.”
“Aviation’s dependency on fossil fuels means that it’s essential that governments support its efforts to decarbonise by providing incentives to accelerate investment in new technologies. Global warming needs a global solution and all these initiatives will help limit the world’s temperature increase to 1.5 degrees”.
Climate activist Greta Thunberg addressed world leaders recently on the topic of the climate crisis:
“Right here, right now is where we draw the line. The world is waking up. And change is coming, whether you like it or not.”
My full speech in United Nations General Assembly. #howdareyou https://t.co/eKZXDqTAcP— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) 23 septembre 2019
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Shares in International Airlines Group (LON:IAG) were trading at +0.5% as of 11:04 BST.