Tuesday 3 November 2009

Vancouver Olympics: Carbon neutral status for push


Twenty five partners of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games have joined forces to help make the Games carbon neutral.
The partners including corporate sponsors, governments and broadcasters have volunteered to offset some of their own carbon emissions related to the Games, such as emissions generated by delegations travelling to and from the region.
These partners will invest in a portfolio of B.C. clean energy technology projects, as well as international Gold Standard offset projects. The 2010 Legacy Portfolio is developed and managed by Vancouver based Offsetters, the Official Supplier of Carbon Offsets for the 2010 Games.
The energy efficiency and renewable energy projects will help offset a newly updated forecast of 268,000 tonnes of carbon emissions 118,000 tonnes from direct emissions and 150,000 tonnes from indirect emissions resulting from Games-time travel by participants and spectators.
This updated estimate, prepared by the Centre for Sustainability and Social Innovation at the University of British Columbia's Sauder School of Business, was released this morning.
A preliminary estimate prepared by the David Suzuki Foundation and reviewed by PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2007 suggested the Games would produce approximately 330,000 tonnes (110,000 direct, 220,000 indirect) of carbon emissions.
"We're excited to announce that 25 of our partners are helping us make the 2010 Winter Games carbon neutral and we expect more to join in the near future," Linda Coady, VANOC's vice-president of sustainability, said in a release. "What's more, athletes at the Games will be the first carbon neutral athletes in Olympic and Paralympic history the result of our partnership with Offsetters where the travel and accommodation of close to 7,000 athletes, coaches and officials will be offset as part of the Games' direct carbon footprint."
The first companies and governments participating in the 2010 Carbon Partner Program for voluntary offsets include: Acklands-Grainger, Afexa Life Sciences (COLD-FX), Aggreko, Atos Origin, Australian Broadcast Corporation (ABC), BC Hydro, Bell, Bombardier, the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC), Canada's Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium, Canadian Pacific, Canwest Publishing Inc., City of Surrey, Coca-Cola, Hudson's Bay Company, the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), McDonald's, Panasonic, the Province of British Columbia, Royal Bank of Canada, Resort Municipality of Whistler, Ricoh Canada, Samsung, The Globe and Mail, and Visa.
In another Olympic first, Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay presenting partners Coca-Cola and RBC joined VANOC in offsetting all their emissions arising from the 45,000-km journey across Canada, as well as from their entire operations related to the Games.
"We're proud to be the first Official Carbon Offsetter in Olympic and Paralympic history and have the opportunity to showcase how British Columbia is playing a leadership role within Canada and internationally in the fast growing clean technology sector," said James Tansey, president of Offsetters, a leading BC-based carbon asset management company and supplier of high-quality carbon offsets. "We also invite spectators participating at the Games, along with members of the public, to help play a role in making the 2010 Winter Games carbon neutral by voluntarily offsetting emissions from their travel to and from the Games region."
Spectators can calculate their carbon footprint and purchase carbon credits online at www.offsetters.ca .
As part of the offset portfolio for the Games, Offsetters is working with B.C. clean technology companies to establish demonstration projects, such as: biomass gasification systems for renewable heat and power production, manufacturing of cellulosic ethanol (biofuel made from wood debris), proton exchange membrane hydrogen fuel cell technology, computer controlled hybrid fossil fuel and electric building heating systems, and reduced carbon footprint silviculture.

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