FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football – Premier League – Watford v Manchester United – Vicarage Road, Watford, Britain – December 22, 2019 General view of Sky Sports microphones before the match. REUTERS/David Klein/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) – European pay-TV group Sky has pledged to go net zero carbon by 2030 by cutting the emissions created by its customers, employees and suppliers as part of its effort on the “critical” long road to climate recovery.
Founded by Rupert Murdoch and now owned by Comcast (CMCSA.O), Sky has long campaigned on environmental matters through its programming and with such projects as the Sky Ocean Rescue which highlighted the amount of plastic in the sea.
Britain last year passed a law targeting net zero emissions in the economy by 2050, and several major companies have outlined plans to reduce their carbon footprint.
Sky said on Tuesday it would make all its tech products more efficient, improve the sustainability of its film and TV studios, transform its 5,000 vehicles to create a zero emissions fleet and help the 11,000 companies that work with Sky to improve their emissions.
“We are entering a critical decade on the long road to climate recovery, and all businesses have the opportunity to accelerate progress and become part of the solution,” Chief Executive Jeremy Darroch said.
For the emissions it still cannot cut Sky will work with teams to plant trees, mangroves and seagrass to absorb carbon.
Sky is Europe’s leading media and entertainment company with 24 million customers and 32,000 employees across seven countries.
Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Alistair Smout and Ed Osmond