Natural Resources Defense Council releases sustainable aviation scorecard

In California, air travel emits more than 650 million metric tons of carbon pollution annually –  equivalent to the pollution from 136 million cars– making the increased use of sustainable biofuels a critical  to reducing the industry’s carbon footprint. According to a first-of-its-kind scorecard released on Tuesday by the Natural Resources Defense Council, the industry is making strides in adopting sustainable biofuels, with some airlines doing better than others as they incorporate these new fuels into their fleets. Air France/KLM is by far the leader of the pack.

NRDC’s Aviation Biofuel Sustainability Scorecards evaluated airlines’ adoption of biofuels, focusing on the use of leading sustainability certification standards, participation in industry initiatives to promote sustainability certification, public commitments to sustainability certification in sourcing, and the monitoring and disclosure of important sustainability metrics. The top-scoring carrier was Air France-KLM, followed by British Airways, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, Cathay Pacific, and Alaska Airlines.