Mastering Carbon Footprints for Sustainable Tourism

Carbon footprinting is steadily gaining attention as a tool to monitor and mitigate carbon emissions. This article will explain the basics of footprinting and how you can use it for your sustainable tourism business. So buckle up for a journey into the world of carbon footprinting, your secret weapon for curbing emissions in the realm of sustainable tourism!

Tourism is a carbon intensive industry contributing a huge 8% of global carbon emissions. Much of the blame for this rests on planes, plates and shopping sprees. Transitioning to a more sustainable form of tourism means keeping tabs on emissions, and the tool to do this is carbon footprinting. It's the key to quantifying the emissions generated by a trip or operation, and once you've measured it, you can use reduction tactics and carbon offsetting to manage your impact.

Demystifying Carbon Footprints

A carbon footprint is a measurement tool that reveals the amount of CO2 equivalent emitted by an individual or entity over a set period of time. Not limited to just CO2, carbon footprint includes all the main greenhouse gasses, like methane and f-gasses, each with its own warming potential. For example, 1 kg of methane gas emissions is equivalent to 28 kg of CO2 emissions. To keep things simple, we translate them all back to CO2 equivalents. This way, in addition to CO2, a whole spectrum of emissions is counted, providing a more comprehensive picture.

Scoping it Out: The Three Dimensions

A carbon footprint is a term used for the sum of total CO2e emissions for a specific person, activity or organization. For example, the carbon footprint of a flight to London represents all emissions in CO2 equivalents that are released when making this trip. There are three scopes of emissions calculated, which are defined by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the leading industry standard. Scope 1 includes direct emissions, Scope 2 covers indirect emissions and Scope 3 are emissions from the supply chain. Directly emitting greenhouse gas, for example by turning on a gas burner or burning fuel in a car, falls under Scope 1. Scope 2 is related to energy usage, turning on a lamp does not directly emit greenhouse gasses, but these were released at an energy plant. Scope 3 refers to other indirect emissions that are created as part of your supply chain.

Scope 1 – Emissions that occurred from burning fuel in assets under your control, e.g. on your sites or in your vehicles.
Scope 2 – Emissions that occurred out of your control but as a result of energy you have directly consumed.
Scope 3 – Emissions that occurred in your supply chain. They are all indirect emissions (not included in Scope 2) that occur in the value chain of the reporting company, including both upstream and downstream emissions. from activities of the organization, occurring from sources that they do not own or control. These are usually the greatest share of the carbon footprint, covering emissions associated with business travel, procurement, waste and water.

The Road to Carbon Management in the UAE

Setting goals for carbon management starts with measuring your current emissions. In 2021, the United Arab Emirates emitted 19.47 tons of CO2e per capita, but by 2022, it ramped up to 29.33 tons per capita. To have the best chance of avoiding the catastrophic environmental impacts caused by a 2℃ increase in global temperatures, the average global carbon footprint per year must fall below 1.9 tons by 2050. The UAE's zero-emission ambitions mean it's high time for individuals and organizations alike to step up their carbon tracking game.

Inforgraphic source: GHG Protocol.
Crunching the Numbers: How can you calculate and manage your emissions?

Using a carbon calculator is the first step to understanding and reducing emissions year by year. By tracking consumption data and converting it to CO2 equivalents, a business can identify hotspots of high emissions and measure up against industry benchmarks. The carbon footprint can be used to create a blueprint and management plan, by revealing the impact of natural gas, oil, biomass, and more. But the key to carbon footprinting is ongoing measurement. The data should be updated every year, with the aim of gradually reducing emissions through emission control measures. By doing this calculation yearly (or even monthly) you can track the results of carbon mitigation measures and meet national or corporate reporting requirements.

Offsetting the Impact: Carbon Credits

While the ultimate goal is to cut emissions, some are simply unavoidable. That's where carbon offsetting comes in. Carbon credits are the currency of the carbon world, traded on marketplaces. They're measurable, verifiable emissions reductions from certified climate protection projects, like planting trees or investing in renewable energy. These projects reduce, eliminate or avoid greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon credits can be bought or sold by companies, organizations and individuals when they emit more or less CO2 than legally permitted. Each credit is equivalent to the reduction of one tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). When you use the carbon calculator on this website, you can determine how much you need to offset after reduction measures are put in place.

It is important to note, as previously mentioned, offsetting does not reduce emissions but can be used as a transition strategy to move from carbon-intensive models to climate-positive models. CO2 compensation is a means to accelerate the transition to a climate-friendly world, but not a goal or standalone strategy. It is imperative that we all make sure offsetting is not used as permission to continue with unchecked emissions. Reducing emissions as much as possible comes first, and offsetting is a means for those emissions that cannot be avoided.

Are you ready to step into the world of carbon footprinting? Let's start measuring and managing for a greener, more sustainable tomorrow!

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Mastering carbon footprints for sustainable tourism

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Crunching the Numbers: How can you calculate and manage your emissions?

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