AMSTERDAM, Netherlands, June 24 (UPI) -- Critics are labeling Pascal Husting, Greenpeace's international program director, a hypocrite after it was discovered he flies 250 miles to work twice a month.
Husting lives in Luxemburg with his family while the headquarters for Greenpeace are in Amsterdam. Husting's 250 euro ($340) commute is paid for by Greenpeace and has produced enough carbon emissions over the past two years to equal the consumption of 17 barrels of oil, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Greenpeace advocates for decreasing aviation activity as it ruins the "chances of stopping dangerous climate change."
Husting defended his travel to the Telegraph, saying he would rather not take the trips but feels it's necessary since the trip takes 12 hours by train.
"I spend half my life on Skype and video conference calls," he said. "But as a senior manager, the people who work in my team sometimes need to meet me in the flesh, that's why I've been going to Amsterdam twice a month while my team was being restructured."
While Greenpeace executives are standing by Husting, advocates and volunteers are frustrated.
"I volunteer with Greenpeace but work in the commercial world and if I took a job in another country I'd expect to move to where the job is and if I couldn't for family reasons I wouldn't take the job -- so I find Pascal's travel arrangements almost unbelievable," said volunteer Richard Lancaster.
