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Trade show to be a carbon-zero event

With measures that range from the creation of an environmental seal of approval for acknowledgment of exhibitors, to discussions of sustainability in the sector, to the utmost reduction of emissions of CO2 (carbon dioxide) produced by and as a consequence of the event, M&T Expo 2009, which takes place June 2 – 6 at Centro de Exposições Imigrantes (Imigrantes Exhibition Center) in São Paulo, Brazil, has become a ‘green event’, demonstrating that the sector of equipment for construction and mining is also concerned with the health of the planet and of its inhabitants.

The process targeting accomplishment of this ‘green’ objective is simple. Among the activities to be carried out are: use of biodiesel-powered public transportation to take visitors from Metrô stations to the venue; rational use of paper and, when required, the use of recycled paper; and the planting of trees acquired in cooperation with SOS Mata Atlântica (SOS Atlantic Forest), a non-governmental conservationist organization (NGO).
To calculate emissions of greenhouse gases, first one must establish and list the sources responsible for such emissions, such as the use of electrical energy, generation of residual waste, burning of fossil fuels by motor vehicles, among others. After the assessment of those sources, we check how much each source is capable of emitting carbon, quantifying emissions by using a unit called ‘carbon equivalent’, CO2.

Each greenhouse gas has a greater or lesser impact on climate change with CO2 (carbon dioxide) being the lesser impacting and, therefore, chosen as the base unit. For this quantification to be transformed into carbon emissions, it is necessary that we use a number that will convert or ‘translate’ consumption into emissions.

“M&T Expo 2009 has a particularity: its organizers are sparing no effort to reduce the emissions produced by the trade show through sustainability-enhancing actions which will be taken by all the sectors of the event”, explains Cláudia Veiga Jardim, consultant with Instituto Totum. The evolution of the process for reduction of CO2 emissions will be measured based on calculations of their elimination promoted by the 2006 edition of M&T Expo compared to CO2 emissions this year. The balance will be announced right after conclusion of the event.

The consultant explains that as a result of the growing coverage of environmental problems by international and national media, especially as they refer to climate change, the expectations of society and of the market with regard to the products and services that it consumes have also grown. “Practices on behalf of the environment, put into action by the event and by companies, promote awareness in society and in other sectors of the economy with regard to this theme”.

fonte: M&T Expo 2009
Data: 16/04/2009

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