Canadians profess concern about the sky-high carbon emissions caused by air travel, but nonetheless to regard ticket price as the most important factor when choosing an air carrier, according to a travel industry survey.

More than half (55.2 per cent) of the 752 Canadians who participated in an online travel vendor survey indicated that air carriers' green initiatives were "important" to them, but an overwhelming 82.4 per cent indicated that they would nonetheless purchase the lowest price ticket.

FlightNetwork.com's second State of Air Travel Poll found that green programs only accounted for 2.7 per cent of the factors that Canadians take into consideration when choosing an air carrier, lagging behind not only price but also flight times (74.4 per cent) and customer service (21.5 per cent).

The unscientific survey allows participants to self-select, and does not necessarily represent a cross-section of air travelers.

"Consumers can still make a difference by choosing to fly with carriers like Air Canada that offer a carbon offset program, or putting some of the savings from discount air fares towards purchasing carbon offsets directly," FlightNetwork CEO Naman Budhdeo said in a release.