“Sustainability, says Edgar Hirt, President of AIPC (International Association of Congress Centres), is an issue that can present long-term challenges when it come to assessing the success of our own impacts”.
In keeping with these statements, made by one of the great experts on the international convention sector, the Barcelona International Convention Centre (CCIB) has calculated, in collaboration with a specialized consultancy firm, its carbon footprint for 2009, thus demonstrating its commitment as a company in the fight against climate change.
Being aware of the importance of this phenomenon, the CCIB has decided to take a step further and become a CO2 emission neutral organization.
To achieve this, in addition to the energy efficient measures that are being applied, the CCIB will be offsetting its 2009 emissions by purchasing units with official value under the Kyoto Protocol.
These credits come from the Monte Rosa Bagasse Cogeneration (CHP) Project in Nicaragua, under the standards of the United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The main objective of this plan is to increase the energy efficiency of cogeneration to supply electricity, substituting the use of fuel oil with cane sugar bagasse (name of the residue that remains from a material after extracting its juice).
This initiative will not only help to mitigate climate change, reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with activity, but also to increase the competitiveness of cane sugar’s agricultural production in this area of the country.
In addition, the CCIB will offer its clients the option of offsetting the emissions of each event held at its facilities; an effective means of showing environmental commitment and offering greater service quality.
In this regard Marc Rodríguez, the CCIB’s General Manager, points outs: “Nationally as well as internationally, leading companies are increasingly assuming their corporate social responsibility in this area."
"Consequently, and picking up on suggestions from many of our clients, this year we have decided to go a step further and offer corporations this service with a preliminary calculation of the emissions their event will produce, including proposals to reduce and offset it through participation in international sustainable projects”.
An initiative that, for Carolina García Serra, the CCIB’s Director of Sales and Marketing, highlights the progress the CCIB is leading in environmental policy: “The aim is to help organizers and companies conceive carbon neutral events, in line with the CCIB’s environmental strategy”.
This pioneering initiative comes in addition to the one the CCIB carried out in October 2008, when it inaugurated an onsite temporary waste transfer plant, which sorts waste into six different types –one more than established by municipal regulations-, increasing the reduction of environmental impact.
“Having a space like the CCIB guarantees our clients, explains Carolina García Serra, compliance with the sustainability criteria confirmed by its ISO 14001 environmental certification and upcoming European EMAS (an EC ecomanagement and Audit Scheme), which we are presently working on and that involves a voluntary commitment to continuous improvement, checked through independent audits”.
Image: Barcelona International Convention Centre
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