How You Can Reduce your Business’ Carbon Footprint

Consumers, businesses and governments around the world are becoming more concerned about the state of the environment, and the extent to which human activity is impacting the natural world. The world of business in particular has a strong incentive to make a shift to more environmentally-friendly practices. But what exactly are these practices? Let’s take a look at some ways to drive down your business’ carbon emissions, and to generally improve your green credentials.

Equipment

The equipment you use, and the way that you use it, will have a considerable impact on your emissions as a business. Reducing your consumption might mean investing, for example, in more energy-efficient monitors and computers. You might also look at the power-saving measures you have built into your operating system, and change in your workplace culture – like turning off equipment that isn’t in use.

Premises

You might also make changes to your actual premises themselves. Installing insulating material, or more efficient lighting, might make the difference. You might also downsize by moving to a smaller site. This sort of move might be facilitated by making the shift to a working-from-home culture – but bear in mind that remote working can be more environmentally costly, since it requires more energy to heat ten apartments than it does to heat an office with ten people in it.

Transport

Getting your workers into the office will undoubtedly have environmental downsides, but some methods of transport are inherently greener than others. A car tends to be more polluting, per passenger, than a train. By the same token, a car with three passengers and one driver is more efficient than four cars being driven separately – which is a good reason to set up a carpooling scheme.

If you’re providing your staff with company cars, then you might look into making them electric. This might be facilitated by investing in electric car insurance. You might install charging facilities in your car park in order to make electric transport more feasible.

Of course, the greenest means of transport are those that rely on human power – namely cycling and walking. Incentivise these by providing a space to get changed, and perhaps even shower, after a physically-active commute.

Recycling

Reusing items and reducing your consumption tend to be preferable to recycling, from a green perspective. Making sure that all three practices permeate your company’s culture, and that you’re making it as easy as possible for your employees and customers to recycle, will help you to drive down waste, and make your company as green as can be.