Avis and the environment
Our commitment to make the world greener
Avis was the first car rental company to launch a Corporate Social Responsibility policy in 1997, and for more than two decades we have been committed to doing our bit for the environment by measuring and taking action against our CO2 emissions.
Today we maintain a CarbonNeutral® operations certification and aim to continue offsetting thousands of metric tonnes of CO2. Since 1997, our total emissions offset exceeds 200,000 metric tonnes.
Visit the Avis Greener World website and find out more about our commitment, our initiatives and the projects we support to make the world a little greener.
Carbon Neutral Operations
Avis is committed to reducing the impact our business has on the environment and we have been awarded CarbonNeutral® operational status since 2000. This was achieved through measuring and reducing our CO2 emissions to net zero through a combination of internal and external reduction initiatives.
For every one tonne of unavoidable CO2 we produce, we pay for one tonne to be saved by a validated emission reduction project that has met international standards.
Our commitment is for the long term and carbon management is a key part of our business strategy. We are looking to drive the environmental agenda forward in the car rental industry and make being green easier for our customers and employees.
When it comes to the environment, as in every area of our business, We Try Harder.
"Avis is one of our longest standing and most valued partners and we have managed to work on some fantastic projects together. Avis' current offset matching scheme here in the UK and the launch of the Avis Eco Collection only goes to further underline its commitment to working collaboratively to help protect our climate."
Jonathan Shopley
Managing Director of The CarbonNeutral Company
Carbon Neutral rentals – offset your CO2 emissions
Avis was the first car rental company in the world to offer CarbonNeutral® driving to all its customers.
For just £1 you can offset the CO2 emissions from your rental and limit the impact you make on the environment.
Make your pledge online with The Carbon Neutral Company or speak to a member of our station staff who will be delighted to help you.
If every customer donated just £1, that would be the equivalent to one million kilogrammes of CO2 emissions taken out of the atmosphere.
Our Achievements So Far
Since 1997, Avis has offset over 200,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions to become a CarbonNeutral® operational.
That is equivalent to:
- The average greenhouse gas emission produced by 31,800 cars a year
- The average amount of electricity per year used in 20,222 homes
- Equivalent of the CO2 emissions from 525,652 households’ food waste in the EU each year
- 48,694 return flights between London Heathrow airport and Melbourne, Australia
- 16,247,454 return trips between London and Paris on the Eurostar
- The carbon footprint of making nearly 900,000 laptops
- A year of 1,323,866 people sending emails
- Enough to offset emissions from global text messages for 5.5 years
- Enough to fill 1,070,490 double decker buses
- Equivalent volume of enough gas to fill 178,772 hot air balloons
Environmental Projects
Avis EMEA is involved in a number of worldwide environmental projects such as the development of renewable energy, methane capture schemes and tree planting.
In 2013, Avis helped fund a wind turbine development in India, a hydroelectric power project in China and a geothermal power project in Indonesia.
In 2009 we were able to work in partnership with The CarbonNeutral Company on a number of exciting initiatives:
- Renewable Energy Projects – including an initiative in South West China's Sichuan Province, where we supported the construction of hydro power capacity to displace fossil fuels
- Methane Capture Projects – such as the collection of methane from animal waste at three farms in Germany, where special equipment uses captured methane to generate both electricity and heat
- Forestry Projects – among them a program in Mynydd-Y-Garnedd, Wales, which combines natural regeneration and new planting to create diverse woodland in the heart of Snowdonia
- Clean Technology Projects – including a biomass co-generation power plant in the Indian state of Maharashtra, switching the energy supply at manufacturing plant to a renewable source