Delta Airlines this week released its Corporate Responsibility Report, which details the airline's environmental, employee, community, safety and financial performance throughout last year.
The airline reported significant progress in 2012, such as reducing annual aircraft greenhouse gas emissions by 8.4 million metric tons since 2005, an 18.5 percent decrease. Delta verified the reduction through The Climate Registry, a nonprofit organization with established standards for calculating, verifying and publicly reporting carbon footprints.
The airline also says it has replaced many of its 50-seat regional jets with larger, more fuel-efficient, two-class aircraft.
“We made great progress as an airline in 2012, continuing our work to build a business model that will improve Delta's sustainability for the benefit of our customers, employees and shareholders for many years to come,” said Delta CEO Richard Anderson. "We believe that transparency goes hand in hand with sustainability.”
"Keep Climbing: Reaching New Heights" mentions the success of Delta’s award-winning in-flight recycling program, which now spans 29 participant cities. More than $380,000 has been donated to Habitat for Humanity and Delta's Employee and Retiree Care Fund for recycling rebates since 2007.
As part of its employee engagement efforts, the airline says it has allocated $372 million in profit sharing and $91 million in bonuses for meeting operational goals.
Several other airlines also have made headway in their sustainability efforts. United Airlines last week announced its goal to save 85 million gallons of fuel for this year; and Virgin Atlantic recently partnered with the Sustainable Restaurant Association to have its entire global catering operation assessed for sustainability.
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Mike Hower is the founder of Hower Impact — a boutique consultancy delivering best-in-class strategic communication advisory and support for corporate sustainability, ESG and climate tech.
Published Apr 19, 2013 11am EDT / 8am PDT / 4pm BST / 5pm CEST