Iberia takes flight towards energy sustainability

The airline industry is ambitious and determined in its commitment to reduce its carbon dioxide (_CO2) emissions. Today, only 2% of total global emissions come from airlines and only 12% of emissions from the transport sector are from airlines. But, aware that these figures are not enough in the fight against climate change, International Airlines Group (IAG), a group to which Iberia belongs, announced last October its commitment to achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2050, thus becoming the first airline group in the world to set this goal.

IAG’s commitment to sustainability on a global scale aligns with the United Nations goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It also contributes to the British government’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. By well before that date, specifically by 2020, British Airways, an airline also under the IAG umbrella, is expected to have achieved its goal of reducing its net _CO2 emissions to zero on all its flights within the United Kingdom.

In addition, from 2021, IAG airlines have committed to neutral emissions growth, that is, everything they emit above the base year 2019-2020 will be compensated with CO2 absorption projects, through a system called CORSIA and established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The IAG group has drawn up a timetable to progressively reduce its _CO2 emissions to zero. By 2025 it plans a 10% reduction in _CO2 emissions per passenger/km, as well as fleet renewal and operational fuel efficiency improvements. Already in 2030, the percentage reduction of net emissions will have to be 20% compared to that of 2020. The goals set for 2030 also include reducing weight and waste on board aircraft, as well as spending less energy in flight, using renewable energy and expanding the use of electric vehicles. They also contemplate an investment in innovative technology, consisting of sustainable fuels, hybrid and electric aircraft and carbon capture technologies. Not forgetting an investment in _CO2 compensation projects, including solar energy and reforestation.

For Iberia, sustainable growth in all its operations is also a priority. The airline is working on different initiatives, both on the ground and in flight, to achieve cleaner flight. Its projects arise from its strong commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially with two of them, number 12, Responsible production and consumption, and number 13, Climate action. Both are goals consistent with IAG’s roadmap.

Reducing, reusing and recycling all the waste generated on board the aircraft during the catering service is the main objective of Life Zero Cabin Waste, a project started in 2016 that is part of SDG 12. This initiative seeks to make flights more sustainable with the aim of recovering 80% of the waste generated in airplanes (through recycling, composting or energy recovery) in order to achieve a direct benefit for the environment, derived from the saving of raw materials and the efficient use of natural resources.

To this end, Iberia has introduced on board its aircraft a new model of waste management through compartmentalized trolleys that make it possible to separate plastic containers, cans and bricks, and paper and cardboard from the rest. So far, more than 5,200 kg of waste has been collected selectively on short- and medium-haul flights, representing 61% of the total waste generated on those flights. It is estimated that this project will stop emitting 4,340 tons of _CO2, the equivalent of the consumption of 340 flights between Madrid and Barcelona.

Another initiative that Iberia has implemented in line with the 12th Sustainable Development Goal is the gradual elimination of plastics in the products it delivers to the traveler on the plane. At the moment, the airline has reduced the plastic on board by 68.5 tons with measures such as replacing the plastic bag that wrapped the blankets and duvets with a paper band; stop wrapping with plastics products such as headphones, toiletries and the children’s kit that is given to children on long-haul flights, or offer bamboo removers and paper straws for drinks. On land, this reduction in plastic has resulted in measures such as changing plastic containers and cans for returnable glass, in the Premium Lounge rooms of the Adolfo Suárez Madrid Barajas Airport, which allows reducing waste by one million cans and 200,000 containers per year, or asking suppliers to prioritize the bulk format over the individual one for some products.

Iberia has also launched several actions in line with the United Nations SDG 13, aimed at reducing fuel consumption and _CO2 emissions. One of them affects the airline’s fleet. Since 2018, the company is replacing its aircraft with new, more efficient ones. The new model chosen for long-haul flights is the Airbus A350-900, the quietest aircraft on the market, capable of saving up to 25% of fuel and reducing its CO2 emissions in the same proportions.

For its part, the Airbus A32neo is the aircraft selected for short and medium radio flights, as it reduces both the sound footprint and NOx emissions by 50% and those corresponding to CO2 by 15%. Land vehicles have also undergone notable changes. Not surprisingly, in the last four years Iberia has renewed 80% of its motorized fleet. Almost 40% of the ground handling equipment that belonged to a typology with the possibility of being electric already is, so they generate zero emissions, and in those that cannot be, catalysts have been installed that make their engines more efficient.

The sustainable solutions that Iberia has put in place before the customer takes a flight have proven to be extremely effective. This is the case of the use of the boarding pass on the mobile, which saves up to 80 tons of paper per year. Just as at the time it went from paper to digital ticket, this new boarding pass, downloadable from iberia.com or the Iberia app, is increasingly implemented.

From the Iberia app, as well as at the time of check-in, the customer can also download the digital press, with the option of choosing from more than 7,000 press publications and magazines. It is estimated that this gradual replacement of the paper press by the digital one will allow to consume 640 tons of paper less per year, which translates into much less weight in airplanes and, therefore, in less fuel consumption and emissions.

Energy also plays an important role in the airline’s roadmap to reduce its environmental impact. In this sense, Iberia joins green energy. And it does so by adopting renewable energies in all its facilities (Antigua Zona Industrial La Muñoza, Cargo Terminal, Intercentro Committee in Núñez de Balboa and maintenance hangar in Barcelona, among others). Today, all the electricity consumed in facilities owned by the airline already comes from 100% renewable sources.

Less fuel consumption, less emissions, less waste, more recycling and more green energy. Flying can be more sustainable.

Taking care of the environment is a commitment to which all Iberia employees have also joined. Among the many projects they have launched to achieve this, one stands out that practically does not require effort, but will: to drink coffee in a personal cup instead of in disposable cups. Since this initiative, proposed by the workers of the Iberia offices, is underway, 8,000 disposable cups of coffee machines have been stopped. A success, if you take into account that each disposable cup takes seven million years to decompose or that every year 400 tons of waste are dumped into the sea, according to the UN. The routine of drinking coffee in the office in personal cups is one more example that each small gesture adds up to a lot in the preservation of the environment and the care of the environment.

Iberia is decreasing the use of paper when boarding with the use of the Iberia app to board and with new aircraft that save more fuel.

The climate change roadmap

The IAG Calendar

2025 10% reduction in _CO2 emissions per passenger/km.

2030 20% reduction in net _CO2 emissions compared to 2020.

2050 Net zero _CO2 emissions.

Sustainable growth figures in Iberia

33 15-25% more efficient aircraft have been incorporated into Iberia’s air fleet since 2013.

7.8% is the average percentage of reduction in _CO2 emissions intensity per passenger and kilometer transported by Iberia in the last four years.

80% percent of the airline’s fleet of ground handling vehicles has already been renewed in the last four years.

68.5% tons of plastic have been reduced during Iberia flights.

80% The goal of the Zero Cabin Waste project is to recycle 80% of the waste generated on board

80 tons of paper per year is the savings that the digital boarding pass allows.

Source: The Vanguard