SFO Wins Sustainability Award for Green Building Policy Leadership Airport honored by the US Green Building Council Cal

SAN FRANCISCO - May 22, 2025 - The San Francisco International Airport (SFO) has been honored with a statewide award for sustainability efforts. The U.S. Green Building Council California (USGBC California) selected SFO for their 2025 Policy Leadership Award, which "honors a municipality or agency that is leading the way in advancing green building and sustainability for California and beyond." The award was announced at their 24th Annual California Green Building Conference in San Francisco.

"Our journey to become the world's most sustainable airport requires a well-articulated policy for green building construction and management to ensure our facilities continue to push the envelope of sustainable design and operation," said Airport Director Mike Nakornkhet. "Being recognized with this award from the U.S. Green Building Council California is the ultimate validation of our efforts, and our thanks go out to our entire SFO team for this achievement."

Over the past 10 years, SFO has accomplished the following in the field of sustainability:

• To prevent food waste going into landfill, the Airport launched the "SFO Unites Against Hunger" food donation program in 2017. Participating restaurants that have excess food near or past the sell-by date, but is still consumable, deliver the food to one of the Airport's food donation hubs. In 2024, SFO donated the equivalent of over 11,000 meals.
• Since 2018, SFO has been working with airlines and fuel suppliers to advance the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), made from renewable materials, such as waste biomass or food scraps, with emissions 80% lower than conventional jet fuel. SFO now leads the world in SAF deliveries with six million gallons delivered in the past fiscal year, a figure expected to double this year.
• In 2019, SFO became the first airport in the world to prohibit the sale of water in plastic packaging. The Airport has since expanded this program to all beverages and is moving towards reusable dishware and fiber-based disposable foodware to simplify sorting for composting and recycling, and to reduce waste going to landfill.
• In 2022, SFO became the first in the world to earn airport-wide certification at the Platinum level under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Harvey Milk Terminal 1 is also the first in the world to receive FitWel and WELL certification for the health of passengers and employees who use the facility.

SFO's goal is to be the first airport in the world to attain zero carbon emissions, zero waste going into landfill, and zero net energy (unless it comes from renewable sources). This bold goal is driving a wide variety of initiatives and has established SFO as an industry leader in airport sustainability.

For more information on SFO's sustainability efforts, visit: sustainability.flysfo.com/.

About USGBC California

USGBC California is a 501(c)3 non-profit and member-based organization whose vision is to transform California's built environment into a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable region for all. USGBC California, an independent chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council, comprises green building communities across the state. We lead by inspiring leaders throughout our communities to take action on climate change, public health, and environmental justice while educating, developing, and empowering a diverse talent pipeline through our training, mentorship, and direct-to-community programs. We connect by merging interdisciplinary perspectives and collaborations to create positive systemic change. We advocate through promoting innovative, impactful policy solutions addressing the most urgent environmental and social challenges of our time. (https://www.usgbc-ca.org)

About San Francisco International Airport

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