Ascona-Locarno, SWITZERLAND – 6th April 2010 — The Deutsche Bank Ladies’ Swiss Open will remain a leader on climate change as the only carbon-neutral golf tournament on the Ladies European Tour in 2010.
Organiser and title sponsor, Deutsche Bank, remains committed to the policy of sustainability and corporate responsibility after hitting its carbon neutral target at last year’s tournament.
Deutsche Bank is one of the world’s leading financial institutions and is committed to protecting the environment for future generations. Hoelz added: “This is a matter of corporate responsibility and one of the greatest challenges of our time.”
The organisers will be taking a series of measures to help tackle climate change during the fifth edition of the €525,000 event, due to take place at the Golf Gerre Losone championship course in the Ascona-Locarno region, Switzerland, from 17-20 June, 2010. The measures include:
- Waste reduction
- More energy efficient transportation and traffic management
- Using renewable energy sources
- Using local, organic, food products in catering
“Every event, however, will always produce a certain amount of emissions that are unavoidable, regardless of the level of effort put forth”, according to Tournament Director Hoelz. Therefore, the total emission volume or “carbon footprint” of the tournament is determined in advance and the event organizer neutralizes the emissions that cannot be avoided through reduction, by purchasing and retiring emission certificates. Hanns Michael Hoelz: “Thus it is ensured, that we will see first-class golf during the Deutsche Bank Ladies’ Swiss Open, without polluting the environment with greenhouse gas emissions.
The philosophy is supported by several high profile golfers, including the LPGA Major Champion Anna Nordqvist. A “green ambassador” at last year’s event, she commented: “Of course I have to use the plane a lot with what I do, but I am very conscious about our eco system and try to pay attention to how I live, in what I consume and wear. Like there are no shortcuts to success, there are no shortcuts to saving our planet either. We only have this one.”Johanna Westerberg of Sweden, who claimed her maiden Ladies European Tour title last year in Portugal, added:”Of course I am worried about the planet. Every day you are seeing news about climate change so I am a little bit worried. I would say that I am a little bit of a green person. I think about little things that I can do like trying to use less electricity and trying to use the car less. I buy environmentally friendly products and food that is produced closer to home.”
England’s Felicity Johnson, who was a first time winner at the Tenerife Ladies Open, also supported the initiative. She said: “Anything that we can do to help offset the carbon footprint that we make is a good thing.”
There can be no more fitting a venue for an eco friendly initiative than Golf Gerre Losone,which is located at the foothills of the Swiss Alps, in the Ascona-Locarno region, known as the hot spot of Switzerland. It is one of the most breathtakingly beautiful stops on the Ladies European Tour schedule and was voted as the players’ favourite course on the tour in a recent survey conducted by Golf365.
On the fifth anniversary of the event, the crème de la crème of European women golfers will converge in the Alps and thrills are guaranteed.
Previous event champions are Gwladys Nocera (2006), Bettina Hauert (2007), Suzann Pettersen (2008) and Marianne Skarpnord (2009), all of whom bar Pettersen were first time champions at Losone. These players have gone on to become multiple champions, demonstrating that as well as being a scenic venue, the course is a true test of golf.
