YVR unveils net-zero carbon by 2030 plan
Posted October 7, 2021 12:28 pm.
Last Updated October 7, 2021 12:32 pm.
RICHMOND (NEWS 1130) – Vancouver International Airport is out with its plan to hit net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.
YVR will be transitioning most of its fleet to electric and renewable diesel options, with changes set to impact some of the vehicles you see, like shuttle buses.
According to the Vancouver Airport Authority’s environmental analyst, YVR has 123 light-duty vehicles and 281 heavy-duty vehicles. When possible, YVR says it tries to look to electric options first.
If there are no options to electrify a vehicle, she says a renewable diesel option will be considered.
You may also notice some of the lights changing around the airport, as LED lamps replace those in place in order to reduce the energy load.
Meanwhile, when it comes to YVR’s carbon output, the airport notes the biggest driver is natural gas usage. The airport authority says renewable alternatives, like Renewable Natural Gas, are key to reducing emission footprints.
The airport says it has been carbon neutral since 2020, but that more work needs to be done.
A screenshot of Vancouver International Airport’s emissions footprint. (Courtesy YVR)
It’s goal is to move from carbon offsetting to carbon removal.
“Should new technology come along somewhere along that pathway that is actually faster, smarter, more efficient, we can switch that out, but we know we can get to zero by using what we know already,” said Marion Town, the director of Climate and Environment at YVR, in a video Thursday.
Tamara Vrooman, YVR’s president and CEO, says one of the sources of inspiration for the road to net-zero has been the airport’s partnership with the local First Nation.
“We are located on the traditional and the unceded territory of the Musqueam people, and they have been very generous as custodians of the land in teaching us about Sea Island,” Vrooman said in the video. “They have been very generous as custodians of the land in teaching us about how Sea Island, before there was even an airport, was always a gateway through the mouth of the Fraser River.”
YVR’s plan for net-zero carbon is set to cost up to $135 million.
