There is a lot of talk in business about going carbon neutral, but how realistic is it to achieve it?
If you’re running a company you may be wondering whether carbon neutrality is something you can afford to aim for but the real question is whether you can afford not to.
The thing is, your customers are increasingly conscious of the environmental impact of the products and services they use. That means you need to take it into account too. Here are some ways that you can target that goal.
You can offset any carbon production by buying carbon credits to be used for energy generation and other environmentally friendly and sustainable projects so that you can truly brand yourself as a carbon neutral business
Assess Your Current Position for Your Environmental Impact
First of all, it’s important to assess where you actually are so you have a starting point from which to base your activities. One of the best ways to do this is to carry out a life cycle analysis so that you can see exactly what is happening to your products and services and where you can implement initiatives to reduce their environmental impact. You need to hire an expert for this but the data that you will gain will be invaluable in positioning you to better serve your client base.
Getting Started With Environmenal Initiatives
Once that is done, then it’s time to implement some actual initiatives. Some companies find a way to reduce their delivery miles by streamlining routes. They can also reduce their fossil fuel consumption by swapping petrol-based vehicles for electric delivery vans. Some even eliminate vans altogether for short run deliveries which can be made on foot or by bicycle, reducing the environmental impact of ferrying products around.
Streamlining Production
Perhaps it’s possible to change your manufacturing process so that you use more recycled materials and increase the lifespan of your products. The longer they last, the less likely it is that they will end up in landfill. You can also implement innovative recycling schemes so that your products don’t go to waste at the end of their initial use.
Perhaps you can also make your products more energy efficient and maybe you can implement the use of renewable energy in their manufacture. Within your commercial office and your manufacturing plant you can set up energy efficient policies which reduce electricity consumption and waste and promote recycling.
Finally, once you have done all you can, you can offset any carbon production by buying carbon credits to be used for energy generation and other environmentally friendly and sustainable projects so that you can truly brand yourself as a carbon neutral business.
Freelance writer Sharon Hurley Hall tries to make green choices. Today she writes for the leading London water cooler company, Eden Springs, who are certified carbon neutral.