June 13, 2008—Telecom giant BT has announced that it will cut its carbon emissions intensity by 80 percent across its entire global footprint by 2020, setting one of the most aggressive corporate carbon reduction targets worldwide. BT has a presence in more than 170 countries worldwide.
The company also published a new model for measuring and tracking carbon emissions, backed by the Carbon Disclosure Project. This represents an important step in measuring carbon emissions in a consistent way across the globe, notes BT. The company explains that the majority of worldwide CO2 emissions result from activities in the corporate sector, but up until now it has not been clear what targets an individual corporation needs to achieve to make its contribution to the international challenge.
The Climate Stabilisation Intensity (CSI) Target is a simple and effective tool that links a company’s financial and environmental performance to the necessary CO2 reductions. It is fully in line with the worldwide reduction imperatives outlined in the Stern Report and reports by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The model is unique in that it allows for business growth while still respecting stringent global CO2 reductions.
BT intends to meet the 80 percent reduction target through a continued combination of energy efficiency, on-site renewable generation (aiming for 25 percent of its UK electricity to come from dedicated wind turbines by 2016) and purchased low-carbon electricity. The CSI target will enable the company to draw up an international road map to achieving this reduction. BT says it has already reduced emissions in the UK by nearly 60 percent between 1996 and 2008.
