◆Choosing green electricity generated in France
Groupe ADP has taken a further step towards carbon neutrality by becoming one of the very first French companies to use electricity generated by solar farms built specifically to make its own demand for power. In February 2020, it signed a 21-year agreement with the two voltaic farm developer and power generator Urbasolar and supply company GazelEnergie to purchase the power generated by three new photovoltaic parks commissioned in France.
◆Leading by example with the Airports for Trust charter
As one of the world’s leading airport networks, Groupe ADP is also committed to leading by example in building a fully responsible and accountable airport community; that vision is encapsulated in its Airports for Trust charter. From Liège to Zagreb, and Amman to Santiago de Chile, 23 ADP network airports signed up to this charter in January 2021, confirming their commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. Signatories are also committed to participating more actively in delivering the aviation industry environmental transition, becoming increasingly integrated into local economies and ecosystems (through short supply chains, the circular economy, on-site energy generation, etc.) and reducing the environmental footprint of their infrastructure and development projects.
The charter, which promotes the coordinated and sustainable development of airport facilities, is also designed to create value for host areas and build closer relationships with local communities.
RAISING AWARENESS TO STAND UP FOR BIODIVERSITY
The three therefore platforms in the Paris region incorporate around
3,000 hectares of grassland and other landscape spaces provide habitats for more than 800 plant and animal species. The company has given its commitment to protect this impressive biodiversity by joining the National act4nature initiative.
In 2020, Groupe ADP widened the scope of its biodiversity initiatives to encompass its entire business cycle and sphere of influence. The purpose of this extension is to work closely with airlines and customs services to bear down on trafficking in protected species, encourage airport retail outlets, restaurants and hotels to be biodiversity-friendly, and ensure that all purchasing policies contain strict criteria governing materials such as timber, paper, food and bio-based energy, all of which may pose an increased risk to biodiversity as a result of their production methods.
◆The non-profit organisation AéroBiodiversité is helping the teams at Groupe ADP to record the range of species present within airport perimeters (here at Paris-Charles de Gaulle).