Delta Air Lines CEO announces the carrier will go ‘fully carbon neutral’ next month

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC on Friday that the company is going “fully carbon neutral” on a global basis starting March 1.

“It’s a big challenge and it’s a big commitment,” Bastian said on “Squawk Box.”

Delta is committing at least $1 billion over the next decade to reduce environmental impact, Bastian said. That’ll focus on clean technological investments for engines and carbon removal, he added.

“There’s no greater challenge that I know of that we need to be investing in and innovating in as environmental sustainability,” he said.

The company, which has made environmentally-conscious moves in the past, will still continue to rely on jet fuel.

“We will continue to use jet fuel for as far as the eye can see,” Bastian said. “We’ll be investing in technologies to reduce the impact of jet fuel, But I don’t ever see a future where we’ll eliminate jet fuel from our footprint.”