Sustainable holidays specialist operator Pura Aventura is to ‘carbon label’ all of its trips including international flights.
The company, which runs trips to Latin America, Spain and Portugal, claims to be the first operator in the UK to take the initiative.
Co-funder and chief executive Thomas Power said: “Measuring and publishing the carbon produced on all holidays is crucial in helping us all understand the environmental impact of our travels.
“With this information, consumers can demand to see what action is being taken, empowering them to make more considered choices about their travels.”
Pura Aventura carbon balances its operations in partnership with a rural development project in Nicaragua.
The scheme creates new local employment opportunities, restores depleted ecosystems and helps mitigate climate change.
The company’s calculations demonstrate that, on average, international flights routinely account for more than 70% of a trip’s total carbon footprint.
Pura Aventura has measured the carbon from all of its operations, including all client travel, whether or not it was booked independently, since January 2019.
This was calculated to have been 1,476 tonnes by December 2020, despite the pandemic.
In the same two-year period, it invested to “double up” with carbon mitigation using a Nicaraguan rural development/tropical re-forestation project to the tune of 2,835 tonnes.
Pura Aventura’s carbon action is independently verified and administered by C-Level, a leading carbon consultancy and fellow B Corp organisation.