JetBlue has become the first US airline to achieve carbon neutrality on all domestic flights. The airline committed to becoming carbon neutral back in January of this year and began offsetting carbon emissions in July.
JetBlue Airbus A320 painted in the New York International Livery. Photo by Matt Lino | AeroNewsX
The airline which is based in New York, began offsetting its carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) back in 2008. Since then, the airline has successfully trialled one month of carbon-neutral network flights in 2015 and another as recently as 2019. JetBlue then announced that they would be offsetting CO2 emissions for all domestic flights from July 1st of this year. Since starting the program in July the airline is “now the first U.S. airline to achieve carbon neutrality on all domestic flying.” Carbon offsetting is a typical practice in the aviation industry where the airline puts funds towards organisations which help the environment by lowering or reducing carbon emissions.
President and Chief Operating Officer of JetBlue, Joanna Geraghty said: “The global pandemic reinforces the need to mitigate risks that threaten the health of our business. Our commitment to sustainability has only become more important as we prepare our business for a new climate reality.”
She added that “with a long recovery ahead following the COVID-19 pandemic, JetBlue remains focused on short- and long-term environmental opportunities, particularly lessening our largest impact – carbon emissions – and more fuel-efficient flying.”
Some of the projects that JetBlue plan to use as carbon offsetting schemes include landfill gas capture, solar and wind farms and finally forestry. Landfill gas is a natural byproduct of the decomposition of organic material in landfills, this material can then be converted and used as a renewable energy resource. The airline also plans to support the development of expansive solar and wind farms, these will generate power that may otherwise have been supplied through the burning of fossil fuels. Finally, the New York airline plans to support the forestry industry through conservation projects that prevent deforestation. The airline said in its statement that the company “selects projects around the globe that will balance the emissions from its jet fuel. Many projects operate in developed countries where a bigger community impact can be made.”
As JetBlue only sees carbon offsetting “as a bridge to other industry-wide environmental improvements” the airline is also “investing in sustainable aviation fuel (SAF)”. In addition to becoming a carbon-neutral airline, JetBlue has also started purchasing and flying on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Neste. The airline began using the sustainable aviation fuel in July of this year on flights from San Francisco International Airport (SFO). The sustainable aviation fuel is produced from 100 per cent renewable and sustainably sourced waste and residue materials and has a carbon footprint of up to 80 per cent smaller compared to jet fuel, according to Neste the sustainable aviation fuel producer.
Vice President for Renewable Aviation at Neste North America, Chris Cooper said: “We are bringing additional SAF production capacity online and stand ready to provide JetBlue with even more of this low-emission, high-quality fuel to help them achieve carbon-neutral growth. Our work with JetBlue is sending a clear signal to anyone wondering what the future of air travel is - it will be lower-emission, it will be more sustainable, and it will be increasingly powered by SAF.”
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