CARBON REDUCTION
Harnessing technology to help meet Net Zero targets
David Williams, Vice President, Transactional Business, UK & Ireland, at Schneider Electric, argues that achieving Net Zero is ‘a whole company initiative’, and that businesses and other organisations – including healthcare providers – serious about their carbon reduction efforts will likely need to invest in a combination of technologies and processes that work together to manage energy use. He warns against procrastination, saying ‘the time to act is now’.
Forget 2050: we will know where we are in the fight against climate change by 2030. To stand a chance of meeting commitments to limit temperature rises to 1.5 °C by mid-century, experts agree that we must halve global emissions in just seven years’ time. Yet the recent energy crisis, sparked by the post-pandemic economic rebound and the conflict in Ukraine, is hindering progress towards Net Zero goals. Record high prices for gas and electricity have had knock-on impacts on operations, pricing, profitability, and more. This explains why business leaders
have been focused on combating what they perceive to be more immediate challenges, such as economic pressures, supply chain delays, and skills shortages. Our research shows that 85% of UK and Irish business leaders in healthcare admit that the energy crisis will affect their ability to meet decarbonisation targets. This is in stark contrast to boardroom ambitions on tackling climate change: 87% of the healthcare organisations we surveyed have Net Zero plans in place, and 42% believe that climate change and Net Zero ambitions will become more of a priority over the next three years. Yet despite their best intentions, business leaders are not fully committed to their decarbonisation goals - a worrying setback for both the climate and for business. Moreover, 50% of healthcare leaders are finding it difficult to get board-level buy-in to tackle the energy crisis.
A difficult balance to strike Our research findings highlight the fine balance that needs to be struck between addressing immediate threats while preparing for future ones. Although few in the boardroom will argue against addressing climate change, kicking the climate ‘can’ down the road won’t just impact broader efforts to address climate change – it doesn’t make business sense. As energy market volatility becomes the new norm, delaying decarbonisation
87% of the healthcare organisations Schneider Electric surveyed have Net Zero plans in place, and 42% said they believed climate change and Net Zero ambitions would become more of a priority over the next three years.
goals will present organisations with new business risks associated with fluctuating energy prices and extreme climate events. Businesses that continue to address their carbon reduction ambitions, however, will see tangible benefits in terms of lower costs and greater efficiency. The good news is that practical steps can be taken now to get businesses back on track and reap the added benefits of embracing automation, digitisation, and sustainable technologies. These benefits include reduced exposure to variable energy pricing, operational efficiencies
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through automation, electric vehicle cost savings in low emissions zones, phasing out dependence on finite fossil fuels and the futureproofing this creates, and the reputational benefits of being more sustainable.
When getting started, lower cost, ‘quick win’ measures can deliver immediate benefits for businesses, helping leaders to obtain crucial stakeholder buy-in for longer-term projects. Indeed, once the wider benefits of being carbon- neutral become clear to senior decision- makers, Net Zero will rise up boardroom
As energy market volatility becomes the new norm, delaying decarbonisation goals will present organisations with new business risks associated with fluctuating energy prices and extreme climate events
January 2024 Health Estate Journal 63
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