Airport Carbon Accreditation Recognizes Three GAP Airports

The Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) organization highlighted that Mexico’s Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP) has three airports on its Level 3 ‘Optimization’ phase: the Puerto Vallarta International Airport, Aguascalientes International Airport and Guanajuato International Airport. 

The organization explained that in Latin America and the Caribbean, there are 11 Level 3 certified airports, which transport 5.5 percent of the total air passenger traffic in the region. The Level 3+ 'Neutrality' rank, which follows the ‘Optimization’ phase, has been out of reach for Mexican airports. Only 1.1 percent of air passenger traffic in Latin America and the Caribbean uses one of those airports.  

“In the sustainability objectives to 2030, Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico prioritizes environmental measures that allow it to reduce its carbon footprint, so the ACA certification processes of the Airports Council International (ACI) are an essential tool to measure the progress of the implemented actions,” said Raúl Revuelta Musalem, General Director, GAP, to A21. 

France has the largest number of airports with an ACA certificate, with 63 out of its 425 airports complying with ACA. Those 63 French airports represent nearly 30 percent of the total of accredited airports in the EU (219) and 15 percent of those around the world (425). 

ACA, the only institutionally endorsed, global carbon management certification program for airports, recognizes the efforts of airports in reducing carbon emissions through six levels of certification: ‘Mapping’, ‘Reduction’, ‘Optimisation’, ‘Neutrality’, ‘Transformation’ and ‘Transition.’ “Through its six levels of certification, Airport Carbon Accreditation acknowledges that airports are at different stages in their journey towards comprehensive carbon management. It is a program for airports of all sizes, extending beyond hubs and regional airports with scheduled passenger traffic, to include general aviation and freight-focused airports,” reads ACA’s press release. 

GAP currently has six airports at the Level 1 ‘Mapping’ Phase: the Guanajuato International Airport, La Paz International Airport, San Jose Del Cabo International Airport, Mexicali International Airport, Morelia International Airport, Manzanillo International Airport.