In November, New York mayor and public transport devotee Michael Bloomberg (pictured) touched down in Hong Kong to chair a meeting of the climate change network C40.
His mode of transport? A Falcon 900EX private jet.
That trip alone produced more than 100 tonnes of carbon dioxide - 8 per cent of the carbon footprint for the entire C40 Climate Dialogue, a four-day international conference promoting low-carbon living.
Only one private jet shows up on the carbon footprint report calculated by Reset Carbon and released yesterday by event organiser Civic Exchange. The conference was attended by 1,679 international delegates.
The Hong Kong Airport Authority will be offsetting the carbon emissions of all guests - including more than HK$10,000 towards Bloomberg's flight. The report found that 670 international flights accounted for 95 per cent of the entire conference's carbon footprint.
It is not the first time Bloomberg has been caught not practising what he preaches. A 2007 New York Times investigation found that, despite his frequent claims he took the subway to work every day, an SUV drove him 22 blocks, past two stations, before he boarded an express train.