John Kerry Flew Private Jet to Iceland to Receive 'Environmental Award'
'Only choice for somebody like me,' Joe Biden's climate czar responded
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John Kerry, Joe Biden's recently appointed climate czar, flew to Iceland on a private jet to receive the Arctic Circle award for climate leadership, according to reports.
Kerry defended his gas guzzling choice of travel, calling it "the only choice for somebody like me who is traveling the world to win this battle."
The interview was obtained by Fox News and has not been previously reported in the American press.
Kerry faced criticism from Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, who led the Arctic Circle Roundtable, for using his private jet, the Icelandic outlet RUV reported.
Kerry received the award for being "a consistent voice pressuring the American authorities to commit to tackling environmental matters," the outlet noted.
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Kerry was confronted by Icelandic reporter Jóhann Bjarni Kolbeinsson for using his private jet.
"I understand that you came here with a private jet," Kolbeinsson said.
"Is that an environmental way to travel?"
Kerry responded:
"If you offset your carbon -- it's the only choice for somebody like me who is traveling the world to win this battle."
"I negotiated the Paris Accords for the United States," he added.
"I've been involved with this fight for years."
"I negotiated with [Chinese] President Xi to bring President Xi to the table so we could get Paris.
"And, I believe, the time it takes me to get somewhere, I can't sail across the ocean."
"I have to fly, meet with people, and get things done," Kerry said, avoiding the fact he used a private jet.
"But, what I'm doing, almost full time," he continued.
"Is working to win the battle on climate change, and in the end, if I offset and contribute my life to do this, I'm not going to be put on the defensive."
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Private jets emit upward of 40 times as much carbon as commercial passenger jets, according to estimates.
Neon Nettle reported last month:
The plane registered to U.S. Special Envoy on Climate John Kerry's family pumped out a staggering amount of carbon into the atmosphere over the past year.
The luxury plane emitted as much carbon as around 36 typical passenger cars would in a year.
The Kerry family's Gulfstream GIV-SP spent around 22 hours and 22 minutes in the air over the past year, flight logs obtained via aviation data firm FlightAware show.
A report from Fox News calculated the emissions from the climate czar's jet using Paramount Business Jets emissions calculator.
The report found that Kerry's planed accumulated an estimated 166 metric tons of carbon between trips dating from February 9, 2020, to January 10, 2021.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that the typical passenger car emits about 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, for comparison.
