Delta Air Lines today joined the growing green travel movement with plans this summer to launch a carbon-offset program. Delta said the initiative would make it the first U.S. airline to make such an offering available to customers.
Beginning June 1, Delta customers worldwide purchasing tickets through the carrier's Web site would be able to donate $5.50 for domestic roundtrips and $11 for international roundtrips to The Conservation Fund, which plants trees to offset carbon emissions.
Delta said the carbon-offset initiative through delta.com is one of several efforts it has engaged to "affect positive environmental change." Delta said it has enacted fuel conservation initiatives "such as weight reduction efforts, engine washes, engine refurbishment, the institution of continuous descent approaches and industry leadership in single-engine taxis with more than 25 million gallons of fuel saved in 2006 alone." The carrier said it also has reduced water consumption by 50 percent at its Technical Operations Center and has incorporated more than 600 electric ground vehicles and other "support equipment" into its fleet.
Proponents of environmental protection have said airlines have done little to curb CO2 emissions and offset the transportation sector's impact on the environment, while some airlines cite efforts to reduce fuel consumption that have reduced emissions significantly in recent years
(BTN, Oct. 9, 2006).