INFORM Carbon Reduction
TARGETS
Electronics giant Sony has announced plans for a zero environmental footprint by 2050.
Its targets are based on four
environmental perspectives – climate change, resource con- servation, control of chemical substances and biodiversity – across all product lifecycle stages, from research and development to recycling. Midterm targets will be implemented globally across the Sony Group next year. These include: ■ 30% reduction in annual ener- gy consumption of products
■ 10% reduction in product mass
■ 50% absolute reduction in waste generation
■ 30% absolute reduction in water consumption
■ 14% reduction in CO2 emis- sions from transport
■ 16% reduction in incoming parts packaging waste
■ increase of waste-recycle ratio to 99% or more
■ 5% cut in use ratio of virgin oil-based plastics in products
PERFORMANCE
Global cement company Lafarge has made a break- through in reducing its carbon
footprint by exceeding its CO2 emissions reduction target a year ahead of schedule. For ten years the Group has been committed to reducing its global net emissions per tonne of cement by 20%, from 1990 to 2010, within a partnership with WWF International. At the end of 2009, emis- sions had been reduced by 20.7%, due to mobilising of operating units in three areas: ■ the improvement of energy efficiency through mastered production processes
■ the substitution of fossil fuels by alternative energy sources, such as biomass
■ the development of new ranges of products meeting market requirements, using additives and recovering by- products from other industries
DATA
US industry failing its green targets
Despite the rhetoric coming from the US to go green, its businesses are playing a bigger role than ever in global warming.
According to the latest figures from the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the emissions of the S&P 100, America’s top com- panies, increased by 0.36% last year.
And that puts them far off track in meeting President Obama’s tar- get of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 17% by 2020 – a goal that requires a 1.05% cut every year until then.
“These trends show business needs to take more active meas- ures to reduce emissions, especial- ly as the economy improves, we can expect to see more significant increase in emissions,” said CDP CEO Paul Dickinson.
The utilities and manufacturing industries are responsible for most of the increase, experiencing an annual growth in emissions of 1.64% and 2.03% respectively. The materials and energy sectors have shown an average decrease in emissions over the last three years of 0.77% and 1.01% respectively. According to the figures, if US companies carry on as usual, they
FOOTPRINTING
A new approach to healthy eating
A restaurant is claiming to be the first in the world to carbon foot- print everything it serves. The first in a planned chain of vegetarian restaurants, Otarian, opened in New York last month, with two more locations planned for London later in the year. Carbon reduction company Sustain measured the carbon foot- prints of each menu item, which appears alongside the footprint of a comparable meat dish. The aim is to encourage cus- tomers to think about how their food choices impact on the planet and understand the benefits of reducing meat consumption. The food items that represent the biggest carbon savings will
then be actively promoted to their customers. Working with food sustainabil- ity consultancy Eat England, Sustain carried out comprehensive “cradle to grave” carbon foot- printing, which calculates green- house gas emissions from each stage of the products’ lifecycles. This includes sourcing the raw materials for each ingredient, manufacturing, packing, trans- porting, cooking and disposal of the product.
The calculations were per- formed according to PAS 2050 – the Government’s carbon foot- print specification.
Otarian founder Radhika Oswal, said: “With Otarian I
hope to show that food can be delicious and good for the planet. “If each vegetarian meal saves one kilogram of carbon emissions or grain, the cumulative benefits of eating at Otarian can change the planet’s current trajectory.” Dr Jean-Yves Cherruault, envi- ronmental accounting manager at Sustain, added: “The work we have been doing for Otarian is relevant given the ongoing debate about low carbon food choices. “The carbon footprint assess- ment was instrumental in identi- fying ways of reducing green- house gases from the menu. “This hopefully marks the start of a new way of doing things for the restaurant industry.”
BRIEFS THE ASH CLOUD PRODUCED BY EYJAFJALLAJÖKU IN ICELAND THAT GROUNDED EUROPE’S PLANES LAST MONTH SAVED 2.8 MILLION TONNES OF CO2
6 May 2010 ❘ Sustainab le Business
Manufacturing and utilities increased their greenhouse gas emissions in 2009
will not only miss their 2020 tar- gets, but emissions will have increased by more than 3% on 2009 levels.
“Some corporations are moving in the right direction, with the energy sector decreasing average absolute reported emissions at a rate close to the US annual tar- get,” added Dickinson. “However, the industrials and utilities sectors, which are respon- sible for a high proportion of emissions, are still reporting rising emissions. Much greater commit-
ment is needed to meet President Obama’s targets, and certainly those of the IPCC.”
The CDP holds the largest database of corporate climate change information in the world. Around 2,500 organisations across the world’s largest economies now measure and disclose their greenhouse-gas emissions and climate-change strategies through the CDP, in order that they can set reduction targets and make performance improvements.
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