Environmental Initiatives
CAL actively supports and participates in the sustainability initiatives and organizations at home and abroad, expanding the environmental and sustainability vision of Taiwan's aviation industry internationally, while also allowing the world to see the sustainable Taiwan.
International Participation
In response to the increasingly stringent international regulations of carbon management and growing awareness of consumers on low-carbon development, despite being a member of Taiwan's aviation industry and challenged by international politics, domestic regulations, and technical R&D difficulties, CAL remains an active participant in domestic and international stakeholder negotiations. Through participating in relevant international associations and alliance meetings, CAL acquires first hand data, immediately discusses response targets and strategies, and also provide data to our government and think tanks, lobbying and providing assistance for establishing industry response strategies, thereby promoting our aviation industry to align with international potential competitions in and targets for sustainable development.
Since 2016
Flight Safety Foundation (FSF)
Through the foundation's industry – government exchange platform and functions, promote information communication and exchanges of flight operations and environmental protection between industry -government environmental protection departments.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
Served as FSF's convener of the technical regulations group, promoted and established systematized collection and research mechanisms for international flight safety and relevant regulations, and proposed regulatory amendments or recommendations for the formulation of response strategies to relevant units and institutions, thereby improving the domestic regulatory environment and industry competitiveness.
Since 2015
International Air Transport Association(IATA) Sustainability and Environment Advisory Council since 2020 / Environment Committee from 2015 to 2020
Assist IATA committee to devise global aviation industry environmental management and sustainable development policies and strategies, and supervise and execute relevant strategies and programs.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
Served as a member/observer, participated in the discussion of international civil aviation environmental affairs, and supported investigations and studies on relevant environmental discussions.
Since 2014
Association of Atmosphere Protection in Taiwan (AAPT)
Promote atmosphere protection in Taiwan, including protecting the ozone layer, preventing greenhouse effect, and improving air quality, as well as facilitating international exchange.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
Serving as one of the directors, CAL assists in promoting the atmosphere-protection related national policies, regulations, academic exchange, technological R&D, and industry–government exchange to provide counseling and services.
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
Global Market-Based Measure (GMBM) planning processes.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
As a member of the IATA delegation, CAL actively participates in ICAO side events and technical negotiations, and collects meeting data. In addition to the use of internal analytic processes,
Civil Aeronautics Administration, MOTC (CAA)
According to the outlook suggested by ICAO's Basket of Measures, CAL encourages and promotes industries to adopt voluntary reduction management measures, promotes the National Airlines Company Promotion of GHG voluntary Reduction process, and facilitates domestic low-carbon transportation service environment.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
Integrate corporate Carbon Management Task Force’s resources to evaluate operation conditions, in order to set stipulate, and release China Airlines Voluntary Greenhouse Gases Emission Reduction Statement. Devised Aviation Passenger Transportation Service—Carbon Footprint Product Category Rules (PCR) with CAA in 2016, and then received the carbon label in 2017 and carbon reduction label in 2020 from Environmental Protection Administration.
Since 2013
EPA—Clean Development and Carbon Rights Management Strategic Alliance
Assist industry through low carbon transformation, create carbon reduction opportunities, promote industry cooperation while assume responsibilities of corporate sustainability.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
As a founding member of EPA's Clean Development and Carbon Rights Management Strategic Alliance, CAL actively exchanges carbon management experience and opinions with the industry, government, and the academic field, helps navigate through grasping the global trend of the development of carbon management in the international aviation industry, assists industries through low carbon transformation, and facilitates industry collaborations toward sustaibability.
Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA)
Executive committee
Acquire aviation regulations of various nations, provide member information exchange, support industry development and process complaints.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
Invited to serve as a member of AAPA's executive committee to participate in discussions on increasing aviation fuel efficiencies and developing biofuel strategies.
International Air Transport Association (IATA)
Air Cargo Carbon Footprint
Working
Group (ACCF)
ACCF discusses the method used to calculate carbon footprint in the air cargo transport industry and the principles for information disclosure.
CAL's role of participation and response measures
As a member of the IATA ACCF, CAL participates in technical discussions to facilitate the production of RP1678 carbon footprint calculation guidelines.
Trans-Pacific Climate Observing System
Since 2007, CAL has participated in the "Pacific Greenhouse Gas Measurement (PGGM)" program, which is supported by the Taiwan and EU governments and implemented by the National Central University. The In-service Aircraft for a Global Observing System (IAGOS) Instrument is installed on the No. B-18806 A340-300 passenger aircraft, which was officially launched on June 26, 2012, making China Airlines the only airlines in Taiwan, the first airline in the Asia-Pacific area, the second airlines in the world to implement the EU IAGOS project. The upper-air observation data from the aircraft has contributed to the research of the institutes from Taiwan, EU and even the World Meteorological Organization (learn more from IAGOS). The device officially operated on Jun 26, 2012, making CAL the world's second, after Lufthansa, and Asia's first airline company to execute the IAGOS project. The aircraft was also the world's first civil aircraft equipped with IAGOS to collect high altitude gas data above the Pacific Ocean. The collected results have also been contributed to World Meteorological Organization's (learn more from WMO) and make which as an important reference for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The outstanding achievements have been unanimously affirmed by the governments of Republic of China (Taiwan) and the EU, and have been selected for inclusion in the important deeds of the ROC (Taiwan) National Yearbook.
PGGM Instrument Installation Diagram
IAGOS Collect Atmospheric Data
The IAGOS carrier is installed below the cockpit. The detection instrument extends from the fuselage to collect atmospheric data (water vapor, ozone, carbon monoxide, NOx, carbon dioxide) during each aircraft range, and automatically connects to Taiwan's, Japan's, and European and American satellite systems after landing to transmit data to European research organizations and provide live observational air pollution and climate change data, thereby enhancing the construction of the global climate model.
Add Two Additional A330-300 Observation Aircrafts
The PGGM project has achieved outstanding achievements so that two additional A330-300 aircrafts were added into the observation in 2016 and 2017. CAL was the first Airline in Asia to observe pacific climate using dual type aircrafts. The project was expanded to Oceania and assisted academic units save approximately NT$1.4 billion in aircraft dispatch cost each year. The efforts demonstrated CAL’s corporate social responsibility through the active contribution to global environmental protection. As of December 31, 2021, CAL has collected high-altitude gas data from 14,628 flights.
Ecological Conservation
To support the Biodiversity Convention, CAL has implemented transport policies including the prohibition of transporting shark fin and non-human primates, vowing to stay clear of food ingredients of conservation species and participating in IATA related conservation transport operations discussions through the IATA SEAC platform. CAL signed in 2017, together with other benchmark airline companies, the Declaration of the United for Wildlife International Taskforce on the Transportation of Illegal Wildlife Products, or the Buckingham Palace Declaration (More information), and to adhere to IATA's Guidance on Prohibited Carriage of Wildlife and Related Products by Passengers and commit to implementing subsequent IATA work plans, including: condemning illegal trades of endangered animals and animal products; increasing passenger, supplier, and staff awareness on the adverse consequences of conducting illegal trades of endangered animals. In response to the global trend of forest and biodiversity conservation and the expectations of internal and external stakeholders, China airlines enhances supply chain management and leads Taiwan's transportation and service industry to release the "Forest and Biodiversity Conservation Commitment".
CDP
Because of global warming and drastic climate change, relevant risks and carbon reduction are becoming a crucial sector in corporate management. Increasing number of investment institutes and corporate clients are requesting relevant data from corporations or their suppliers as a reference for investment or cooperation. Invited by the independent international nonprofit institute, CDP, CAL participates in carbon disclosure operations every year since 2012 to report environment management schemes, climate change risk management, and GHG verification data; and is the first transportation service corporation in Taiwan to participate in CDP operations.
Since 2012, CAL has conducted greenhouse gas inventory training and surveys of greenhouse gas emissions for the Group on a regular basis and disclosed its climate governance, strategies, management of risks and opportunities, indicators and targets, greenhouse gas emissions, and reduction management and performance. CAL has been recognized as a benchmark enterprise. CAL continues to review and improve carbon management strategies through participation in the CDP. CAL was ranked as Leadership in CDP Supplier Engagement Rating (SER) in 2021.
Also, in response to the Paris Agreement, CAL had participated in the 2017 Science-Based Targets (SBT) initiative and related engagement. After SBTi ‘s publication of aviation industry guidelines in 2021, China Airlines will propose SBT targets again in line with SBT guidelines in 2022.
Disclosure of Carbon Footprint
The carbon footprint is defined to assess the environmental impact of a product or service from GHG emissions from raw materials, production, transportation, and usage to disposal throughout the life cycle. In order to fulfill carbon management and carbon reduction responsibilities, CAL Group not only monitors its overall carbon emissions on an annual basis, actively promoting various energy-saving operations for key emission sources and responding to the coming Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), but also assumes the role of consumers to analyze and disclose their flight carbon emissions with actual data from fuel consumption and passenger/cargo loadings according to ICAO and IATA calculation methodology. China Airlines also launched the ECO TRAVEL offsetting program in 2018 to assist its customers in making their journey net emissions carbon neutral or zero carbon emissions.
Taipei－Amsterdam
-
Economy Class
714 Unit: Kg CO2 / person
-
Business Class
1,428 Unit: Kg CO2 / person
-
Cargo
4,897 Unit: Kg CO2 / ton
Note 1: Passenger transport carbon footprint: Carbon footprint (Kg
CO2 / person) produced per passenger in the economy / business cabin
Note 2: Cargo transport carbon footprint: Carbon footprint (Kg CO2 / ton) produced by
transporting 1 ton of cargo
Support the promotion of TCFD
CAL proactively responded to the development trend of international carbon management and is the first Taiwan transportation industry to sign support for TCFD (Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures) initiatives in 2018. TCFD was issued by the Financial Stability Board (FSB) which was established by the G20. China Airlines believes that TCFD can help enterprises to further improve the identification and control quality of risks and opportunities of climate issues, and through appropriate linking of financial information, TCFD can help strengthen the enterprise decision-making and management, and improve the communication and negotiation with stakeholders. China Airlines supported multiple industrial and governmental promotion events to assisted in promoting the development of TCFD in Taiwan. From 2020 onwards, CAL discloses an independent "Climate-Related Financial Disclosure Report", and publicly disclose the corporate sustainability website after reporting to the board of directors every year. For more information, please visit Concern for Climate Change
Local Actions
In response to the International Coastal Cleanup Day, CAL has organized the annual coastal cleanup campaigns in Taoyuan, New Taipei City, and Kaohsiung since 2011. In 2021, in order to avoid gatherings in compliance with Taiwan epidemic prevention regulations, CAL held an e-learning course in cooperation with a NGO to share the key points of coastal cleanup, preparation, implementation, and recycling with staffs to enhance their knowledge of coastal cleanup. There were 761 employees completed the training. For more information, please visit Social Development
Moreover, in response to Taoyuan City's eco-city afforestation plan, China Airlines plant hundreds of native plants such as Taiwan Incense Cedar, Camphor tree, and Red Cedar in Taoyuan cultural landmark "Hengshan Calligraphy Art Park" in 2022 Q1. Those trees species are with high carbon adsorption capacity, and the 5-year carbon absorption capacity is about 1.1 tons of CO2. China Airlines is the first enterprise to propose a "sustainable shading afforestation" proposal to Taoyuan City Government, and voluntarily extends the maintenance period from one year to five years.
IAGOS flight routes
(Source：IAGOS website)