Epoc Messe Frankfurt, the UAE arm of the German trade fair business specialist Messe Frankfurt, has planned its two upcoming exhibitions to be carbon neutral.

The firm has signed an agreement with EcoVentures, a leading emissions reductions company, to offset the carbon footprint of Garden+Landscaping Middle East and Light Middle East taking place from October 31 to November 2 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

EcoVentures will calculate the carbon footprint for the shows and the equivalent amount worth of carbon credits will be purchased to offset these unavoidable emissions.

In addition, 2010 will be the first year where emissions benchmarking for the shows will commence allowing for the implementation of carbon reduction strategies in subsequent years.

Both Light Middle East and Garden+Landscaping Middle East already address the environmental concerns, with a key focus on sustainability and innovation in design, and so taking measures to become carbon neutral was an obvious step, a statement said.

“Environmental issues are at the forefront of today’s society and it is important that everyone contributes in some way to helping the cause,” said Wilbert Heijmans, group exhibitions director, Epoc Messe Frankfurt.

“Our upcoming trade fairs cover pertinent topics for a greener environment within their fields and so we wanted to make further efforts to show our dedication to environmental concerns in general.”

“Through our partnership with EcoVentures we have been able to calculate the carbon footprint that these industry focused exhibitions generate,” he added.

“Every conceivable element that goes into producing the events, such as flights, carpet and electricity is considered when calculating our footprint. We will then buy emission reduction credits so that the two exhibitions became carbon neutral.”

Armen Vartanian, managing director, EcoVentures, said: “We hope that through increased education by industry experts, media focus as well as government legislation in the areas of reducing and offsetting carbon footprint, many more businesses will play a larger role and take active steps in helping reduce global warming.”

Light Middle East concentrates on urban, architectural, theatrical and retail lighting solutions and as such is a dedicated lighting platform explicitly relevant to the Gulf and Mena regions.

The Light Focus Conference will be an integral feature of the event, focusing on energy efficient lighting solutions such as LED technology.

Garden+Landscaping Middle East is the international trade exhibition for garden, landscaping and outdoor living, focusing on innovation and sustainability in design.

New to the 2010 edition is Green Talks which is a series of seminars focusing on the latest innovations and green technology available in the garden and landscaping industry. – TradeArabia News Service