The environmental awakening e-commerce needs
Source: https://www.greenbiz.com/article/environmental-awakening-e-commerce-needs
Author: Veena Harbaugh
The jury is still out on how much environmental benefit may come from the shift to remote work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fewer commuters and cars on the road are breaths of fresh air. But another trend has seen a boom from the pandemic: more delivery trucks bringing us the spoils of our online shopping addiction. E-commerce transportation accounts today for 3 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions but is on track to become 17 percent by 2050. How significant is 17 percent? Currently, global transportation activities (aviation, rail, shipping, heavy and light trucking) are responsible for about 17 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Corporations, small businesses, consumers and the shipping industry as a whole must all be accountable and work together to reduce the environmental harms of e-commerce, mitigate further harm to the environment and find a more sustainable path forward.