<
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/apr/02/climate-integrity-australia-dutch-court-klm-emissions-reductions-climate-claims-qantas-virgin>
"Australian airlines could be found to have misled consumers in the way they
present their net zero goals and market offset options during flight bookings,
climate advocates have claimed, after a landmark legal decision on aviation
“greenwashing”.
The warning from Climate Integrity, a new Australia-based advocacy group,
follows a Dutch court late last month ruling that airline KLM misled customers
with vague environmental claims, and that its affirmation to the goals of the
Paris Agreement was “misleading and therefore unlawful”.
The Dutch greenwashing decision found 15 of 19 of KLM’s claims about its
environmental ambitions were misleading, including that marketing statements
about offsetting flights and sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) painted “too rosy
a picture” of the technologies’ feasibility.
A billboard ad showing a child on a swing with the statement “join us in
creating a more sustainable future” was also declared misleading because it
failed to explain how it related to any environmental benefit. The impression
was reinforced by the background of sky, mountain and water, the court said.
Claire Snyder, the director of Climate Integrity, said “Australian airlines
should be paying close attention” to that decision.
“The ruling is a timely wake-up call to airlines with public net zero
commitments, that they must put forward concrete and credible decarbonisation
plans or face the legal risk of misleading consumers and investors,” Snyder
said."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
