We were the first airport in North America to achieve ISO 14001 certification. And, our Environmental Management system is award-winning.
As industry leaders, we’re always striving to be better. We're committed to finding innovative ways to better manage our environmental impacts. This includes a commitment to reporting back to you on our progress.
Thank you for your feedback
In Fall 2020, We asked you to give us feedback on our updated long-term Environmental Sustainability Strategy. Thank you to everyone who participated in surveys and briefings.
We’ll launch our new Environmental Sustainability Strategy later this year. And we’re committed to reporting back to you on our progress as we deliver on our commitments.
Sign up for regular updates on our program through Checking In newsletter at TorontoPearson.com/CheckingIn.
Learn more about our environmental programs at torontopearson.com/environment.
How we updated our goals
Our environmental goals have always focused on climate change, healthy environment, and resources.
We've been updating our Environmental Sustainability Strategy to streamline our goals and improve our ability to report back to you.
We’ve built our goals into six programs with ambitious goals.
How Pearson’s goals compare
We did a best practice review to make sure our environmental sustainability goals stay industry leading. We compared our proposed long-term goals to the published goals of other leading airports and our governments. See some highlights below.
Many other airports are raising the bar:
- Airport Council International – Europe: all member airports have committed to net zero carbon emissions by 2050
- Los Angeles World Airports has net zero carbon emissions and zero waste targets
- Montreal has had a full recovery and re-spray program for deicing glycol in place since 2014
- Vancouver is constructing a new parking facility with geothermal heating and rainwater capture
- Edmonton is building the world’s largest solar farm and uses low carbon concrete solutions for their deicing pad
The Government of Canada has set targets:
- The City of Mississauga plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 40% by 2030 and 80% by 2050 (below 1990 levels) by focusing on buildings and clean energy as well as resilient, green infrastructure. Read about their plan on their Climate Change Action Plan page.
- Government of Ontario has a goal to reduce its emissions by 30% below 2005 levels by 2030. Their plan includes a focus on clean air, clean water, climate change, waste and soil, and land conservation. Read the Ontario Environment Plan to learn more.
- The Government of Canada has environmental targets in the areas of emissions reduction, adaptation and resilience and clean technology. Some highlights include emissions reductions in electricity, the built environment, transportation, industry, forestry, agriculture and waste. Read the PAN‑CANADIAN FRAMEWORK on Clean Growth and Climate Change for more details.
How Pearson’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy programs compare:
Our long-term environmental sustainability goals
Our already industry leading environmental program integrates environmental practices into our day-to-day operations. The Environmental Sustainability Strategy is how we're going to further reduce our environmental impacts.
We're introducing updated long-term goals in our six streamlined programs.
Climate Change Resilience Plan
This plan prepares the airport for changing environmental circumstances. The program looks at how our business practices and infrastructure will withstand climate change.
We want to become a global champion for climate change resilience. And we'll do it by protecting our airport and building strategic industry partnerships.
Carbon Neutrality & Emissions Action Plan
Our long-term goal is to be carbon neutral with net zero GHG emissions by 2050. This action plan focuses on our airport buildings and machinery fleet. We’re also working with our aviation industry partners to develop programs to reduce emissions from air travel.
Strategic Energy Master Plan
We're committed to reducing energy consumption and transitioning to more renewable energy sources. This plan looks at how we can combine technology and renewable energy into our building and infrastructure systems. The strategic energy master plan supports our efforts to become net zero GHG by minimizing the energy we consume and transitioning to clean energy sources such as solar and geothermal.
Water Management Master Plan
Protecting the water systems around the airport is a core focus for us. This action plan focuses on water conservation and responsible water consumption. We're setting goals for everything from storm water management to reducing water usage. To do this we’re auditing our baseline water consumption to identify the areas for improvement.
Natural Resources Action Plan
Approximately one-third of our airport land is made up of open space and creek valleys. We're committed to minimizing our impact on the natural resources around us. This plan aims to protect plants and wildlife and partner with the community to restore green spaces.
Zero Waste Action Plan
Our long-term goal is to have zero waste by 2050. This action plan aims to reduce our contributions to landfills from in-terminal and airside operations.
Aviation & Environment
The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) has a ground lease with Transport Canada with the mandate to develop, manage and operate Toronto Pearson International Airport efficiently and effectively.
When it comes to environmental management, we have direct control over the programs that relate to the lands, buildings and infrastructure, and the policies that we ask tenants and contractors to follow.
We recognize the overall impacts of aviation and aircraft emissions on the environment and will continue to work with our airline partners and other stakeholders to move the needle on our combined impact.