Gold Coast Airport has been recognised for its commitment to sustainability, achieving Level 1 accreditation under the Airports Council International’s Airport Carbon Accreditation program.

The Airport Carbon Accreditation program is the only independent global standard for carbon management at airports which recognises and accredits the efforts of airports to manage and reduce emissions.

Level 1 ‘Mapping’ requires an airport to collect independently verified data relating to its carbon emissions.

Gold Coast Airport Chief Operating Officer Marion Charlton said the accreditation provided confirmation the airport’s carbon footprint was mapped in accordance with relevant standards, with the next step being to formalise a carbon reduction strategy.

“This exercise allows us to understand the sources and quantity of our carbon emissions which is critical to inform the decisions we make in reducing our carbon footprint,” she said.

“From here we start work on putting in place a formalised carbon management strategy to build on and guide future emissions reduction initiatives.”

Airports Council International Asia-Pacific Regional Director Patti Chau congratulated Gold Coast Airport on the accreditation.

“The accreditation is a demonstration of Gold Coast Airport’s commitment in operating the airport in an environmentally sustainable manner which is crucial for the long-term development of our industry,” she said.

Queensland Airports Limited Chief Executive Officer Chris Mills said Gold Coast Airport’s commitment to reduce carbon emissions sat within a company-wide sustainability strategy.

“It is great to see the Gold Coast Airport team achieve this accreditation, and it highlights their ongoing work in monitoring and reducing our airport’s carbon footprint,” he said.

“Across all of our airports we are implementing many sustainable initiatives in accordance with our social responsibility strategy.”

Sustainability considerations form part of GCA’s broader environment strategy which has seen the introduction of a range of initiatives aimed at reducing the airport’s carbon footprint, including LED lighting and air-conditioning system upgrades.

Gold Coast Airport is owned and managed by Queensland Airports Limited (QAL) which is a regional airport specialist also operating Townsville, Mount Isa and Longreach Airports.