As part of our efforts to address climate change, Delta announced the relaunch of its CO2 offset program this past Earth Day in partnership with The Nature Conservancy (TNC). To help celebrate the event, we announced that the program would match all customer contributions made from Earth Day (April 22) through May 22, up to $25,000. Thanks to $27,000 contributed by you, our customers, together we gave over $52,000 to The Nature Conservancy to support their carbon sequestration efforts in the Lower Mississippi River Valley.

Here’s a breakdown of the proceeds:
Customer Donations to TNC – $15,928
Customer CO2 Offsets – $11,374
Delta’s Matching Donation – $25,000
Grand Total – $52,302

How much of an impact will this have? 2,600 tons of CO2 were directly offset by the over 800 trees planted, which is the equivalent of eight 747 flights from Tokyo to Los Angeles.

The great news is that offsetting like this is becoming much more common. Since the relaunch of our program, there has been three times as much CO2 offset versus the same three months last year! Starting this month, you’ll also see the following slide on Delta’s in-flight entertainment system before takeoff to encourage even more participation in our carbon offset program.

Remember, you can offset your travel after booking your next flight on delta.com by selecting “Learn More” under “A Greener Way to Fly” at the bottom of your confirmation page. Have you offset your emissions lately? We’d love to hear about other ways you’re reducing your carbon footprint. Please leave a comment or tweet us @Deltablog.

Aaron Robinson
Program Manager, Carbon Emissions and Environmental Sustainability

I hope everyone had a good Earth Day! My name is Aaron Robinson, and though I have only been working in Environmental Affairs for a few months, I have been an extended part of our environmental team for the last few years. I used to work in fuel efficiency and fuel conservation, efforts that directly translate into CO2 emissions reductions. Today I focus primarily on measuring our CO2 (including estimating the carbon footprint for your flight) and national and international regulations involving CO2. CO2 emissions are the biggest part of Delta’s environmental footprint, so in future posts I’ll be talking more about the steps we take for improvement and the issues we face in this area.

Last week Delta relaunched its CO2 offset program in partnership with The Nature Conservancy. This allows customers like you to offset the CO2 emissions associated with your flight by supporting The Nature Conservancy’s ongoing forest conservation and reforestation projects, in particular in the Lower Mississippi River Valley. This project is located near Monroe, Louisiana, which is actually the birthplace and original home of Delta.

Three years ago Delta launched our partnership with The Nature Conservancy with a $1 million donation. Having visited the site myself, I can personally attest to the positive impact from passenger offsets. Together we have turned unproductive agricultural fields into a bottomland hardwood forest by purchasing and planting more than 175,000 trees (about 50 have my name on them). This has restored the wildlife habitat to its natural state and is expected to capture 120,000 tons of CO2 over the forest’s lifetime.

To encourage you to get in the habit of offsetting your emissions, Delta is matching all offsets you make through May 22. You can make an offset contribution online now or after booking your next flight by selecting “Learn More” under “A Greener Way to Fly” at the bottom of your confirmation page. You can also help by making a tax-deductible gift, giving miles through our SkyWish program, or joining The Nature Conservancy’s online community to learn how you can help protect our world.

Next time you book on delta.com, please consider offsetting the emissions from your flight. Also, I’d love to hear your comments about your experience with our offset program, as well as ideas you have for improvement, expanding our partnership with The Nature Conservancy, or further topics you’d like to read about on this topic. You can share your comments below or tweet them @deltablog.

Aaron Robinson
Project Manager, Environmental Affairs

As many people know, Delta Vacations has opened and is opening a lot of new destinations this year, in addition to expanding product in current destinations! In order to launch the many new and exciting destinations, the Delta Vacations product department has been experiencing an extra busy travel schedule. Site inspections have been taking team members to such places as Latin America, the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, and countless other destinations where Delta Air Lines have service. With all the business travel going on in the product department, and in the company in general, it’s important to try to make the same conservation efforts on the road as we would at home. Any traveler should always remember that just because they’re out of town, the need to decrease our impact on the environment does not go away.

Here are a few helpful tips to keep in mind while traveling. As you pack for your next trip, close the door to your next hotel room, and hail that next taxi, hopefully these ideas will come to mind…

Bring a re-usable water bottle in your carry on and fill it after security.

Many airports don’t have recycling bins available at every turn, so tons of plastic, metal and glass end up in the trash.

When packing toiletries, always use and refill small bottles.

Even if you purchase a smaller version of your favorite brand of shampoo, remember to refill it from your home supply rather than buying another one when it runs out.

Use your towels for the duration of your hotel stay

If you don’t change your towels on a daily basis at home, there’s no need to do so while traveling. Hotels worldwide go through tons of gallons of water every day washing linens. If you use the same towels for the duration of your stay, you help cut back on water use.

Turn the lights off in the hotel room

Just as re-using towels conserves water, remembering to turn the lights off when leaving the room saves energy as well.

Use public transportation when possible…better yet, ride a bike

When in a new city, one of the best ways to get around is to do as the locals do. Take the bus or take the train. For the added bonus of burning a few calories as you get around, find somewhere to rent a bike and start peddling.

Challenge yourself to try even a couple of these easy tricks, and pat yourself on the back for making the effort to take your everyday green habits on the road!

Do you have tips to share on what have you done on vacation to lessen your impact on the local environment? Tweet them @deltablog or post your comments here.

Lauren C., Delta Vacations