DHL Unveils Guilt-Free Shipping
by Andrew Posner, Rhode Island, USA on 03. 9.08
Shipping has been trying to go green now for several years. UPS has efficient delivery vehicles, bicycles are being used to deliver all kinds of goods, FedEX is using diesel hybrid electric vans and there are now even electric delivery vans on the road. But as with anything claiming to be green, we have to take the claims with a grain of salt. Shipping is still a carbon-intensive activity. In order to address some of those emissions, DHL has unveiled a program called Gogreen Express "to give environmentally conscious shippers the ability to choose carbon-neutral package delivery. Using Gogreen Express is as simple as paying an additional three percent fee on top of the cost of the overall bill. DHL then invests the money into green projects like vehicle technology, solar panels and reforestation."
Of course, a 3% fee isn't going to be enough to invest in solar projects, so most likely the money will end up in forest offsets, which can have questionable carbon benefits. Also, the service is currently only available in the Asia Pacific region, meaning that American consumers will have to use a service such as Carbonfund.org's Carbonfree shipping to assuage their guilt. (Or they could simply consume less.) After all, how many plastic backscratchers made in China does one need?
Via: ::Autobloggreen and ::Times of India
See Also: ::Zerofootprint Guides: Offsetting, Pary 4--Why Offset With Trees When Fossil Fuels Are to Blame?, ::Survey of Carbon Offset Services, ::Carbon Neutral Myth? Protesters Take On Offset Companies, ::How to Green Your Carbon Offsets, ::Shipping's C02 Record Not so Shipshape, After All and ::TerraPass Partners with uShip to Offer "Carbon Balanced Shipping"
A few more things to knew. In shipping there is this stuff known as shrink wrap and its intent is to bind packages together. It is a plastic, and is gone through fairly readily. Plastic bags to place other packages in to once again bind things together are frequently used, a lot!
So while it may use a lot of fuel, there is also a lot of plastic packaging that tends to go to the way of the waste stream.
Actually I think of package shipping as car pooling for items, and could be more green then you picking it up yourself.
My logic is that one van to dropping off items in the most efficient order has to be better then a hundred customers driving to a bunch of stores and back home.
Again, what this article reveals once again, is the fact that corporate America finally is on the right track, not because they are increasingly environment friendly but simply because they have no choice. You either go green or you alienate your constituents (shareholders, customers, employees).
I have to agree that this is a positive developemnt. There is no question that it is not going to help the environment, but it certainly is one more example that companies everywhere can not ignore the 'green wave' sweeping the nation.
(Looking forward to the first major shipping company to make all shipping with their company 'carbon neutral' and adjust their prices accordingly.)