NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - April 08, 2015) - JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ: JBLU) today announced its eighth annual "One Thing That's Green" initiative. JetBlue is partnering with Carbonfund.org Foundation, a leading environmental non-profit organization, to offset the carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (CO2e) for all scheduled flights from April 1 to April 30, 2015. Over the past seven years, JetBlue has partnered with Carbonfund.org Foundation, allowing travelers to offset part of the carbon footprint from their flights by making a donation to support carbon reduction projects. To date, JetBlue has purchased offsets totaling more than 350 million pounds (158,000 metric tons) of CO2 and CO2e emissions.
JetBlue, with the assistance of its customers who voluntarily offset CO2 emissions, help fund technology and forestry projects designed to help reduce the environmental impact of aircraft and prevent harmful greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere, all through a process administered by Carbonfund.org. Offsetting all scheduled flights in April for its customers will allow JetBlue to reduce the carbon impact of 500,000 metric tons of CO2e or 57.1 million gallons of jet fuel. JetBlue will purchase the equivalent offsets which will be used to protect a 400,000 acre rainforest in Brazil. This protection will in turn generate several million carbon offsets over the next few years.
"Within the bounds of what technology currently allows for, we are reducing our greenhouse gas emissions wherever possible. As traditional jet fuel is still crucial to our operation, we won't be able to completely eliminate them. However, we offset to lessen our impact," said Sophia Mendelsohn, head of sustainability, JetBlue Airways. "Protecting existing forests is a logical way to fund emission absorption and helps us all adapt to a changing climate."
"With JetBlue's support, Carbonfund.org has been able to develop several forest conservation projects that are protecting nearly one million acres of threatened tropical rainforest, while simultaneously helping local communities and preserving areas with some of the highest levels of biodiversity," said Eric Carlson, president of Carbonfund.org Foundation.
Created by JetBlue to encourage a healthier planet, the "One Thing That's Green" annual campaign highlights the airline's commitment to environmentalism and encourages its customers and crewmembers to undertake one green initiative in their daily lives to reduce their carbon footprint. As part of JetBlue's "One Thing That's Green" initiative, nearly 3,000 JetBlue crewmembers and community volunteers have planted more than 3,500 trees and cleaned nearly three tons of trash in cities including New York, Boston, Los Angeles and Orlando, Fla.
"We are working to change our customers' behavior when purchasing flights. As an airline, we are always considering our environmental impact. As we work to lessen our footprint, we are encouraging our customers to also take action to lessen their impact," said Icema Gibbs, director, corporate social responsibility, JetBlue Airways. "Through our partnership with Carbonfund.org Foundation, we are able to fund renewable energy and carbon-reduction projects throughout our network."
Over the past eight years, JetBlue has worked with a variety of community partners across its network to help create a healthier planet and reduce its impact. Since October 2014, JetBlue in partnership with Carbonfund.org Foundation began offsetting the CO2e emissions for an entire year on all A321 flights between San Francisco and New York's JFK Airport. Those offsets are already being put to good use in Utah where more than 2,500 crewmembers live and work. JetBlue is supporting a methane capture landfill in Salt Lake City that will reuse CO2 emissions to power homes in the area.
This year, JetBlue is also encouraging a friendly rivalry between cities within its network. The airline is purchasing offsets for scheduled flights for the month of April to help raise awareness and would like to encourage customers and TrueBlue members to purchase offsets for their own future travel. To help encourage this effort, the city whose TrueBlue members donate the most TrueBlue points to CarbonFund.org via JetBlue.com/donate during the month of May will receive a new greenspace, such as a park or garden, to help breathe new life into their local community. The winning BlueCity will be announced in June 2015.
Last year, JetBlue's annual "One Thing That's Green" campaign included a sweepstakes which asked JetBlue's Facebook fans for input. Customers in cities in JetBlue's network were encouraged to vote on where the company should build a new greenspace. Hartford, Conn. topped the list with 42,000 votes and will receive its new greenspace on May 18, 2015 as crewmembers and community members join together to revitalize Heaven Skate Park with the City of Hartford and Knox Parks.
For more information on JetBlue's partnership with Carbonfund.org or carbon offsetting, visit http://www.jetblue.com/green/offsetting/.
About Carbonfund.org Foundation
Carbonfund.org Foundation was founded in 2003 and is a leading US-based nonprofit carbon reduction and climate solutions organization with over 750,000 individual supporters and over 2,000 business and nonprofit partners including JetBlue. In addition, Carbonfund.org has funded over 70 carbon reduction and tree-planting projects across 30+ states and 15+ countries, including the development of several forest conservation projects in Brazil that have attained the industry's highest level of certification. For more information, please visit www.carbonfund.org.
About JetBlue Airways
JetBlue is New York's Hometown Airline™, and a leading carrier in Boston, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood, Los Angeles (Long Beach), Orlando, and San Juan. JetBlue carries more than 32 million customers a year to 87 cities in the U.S., Caribbean, and Latin America with an average of 875 daily flights. Upcoming destinations include: Cleveland on April 30; Reno-Tahoe, Nev. on May 28; Grenada on June 11, 2015 (subject to receipt of government operating authority); and Albany, N.Y. on Dec. 10. For more information please visit JetBlue.com.
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