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As national governments negotiate targets for reducing carbon dioxide emissions, parallel efforts are under way at the level of individual businesses.
A report by the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, published at the end of 2001, examined some of the companies around the world that have made voluntary commitments to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, in order to understand the motives behind such apparent altruism. Several factors emerged, notably:
- Improving competitiveness by lowering production costs;
- Anticipating future regulations and market instruments;
- Helping to shape government programmes that take into account the interests of business;
- Enhancing corporate reputation.
The authors of the report, Michael Margolick and Doug Russell of Global Change Strategies International, point out that individual, voluntary emission reduction programmes carry an element of risk. For example, governments may set a later baseline for greenhouse gas reductions, 'rendering early reductions less valuable'. More seriously, they may not regulate at all, leaving the more progressive organizations at a disadvantage relative to the foot-draggers.
All of the companies examined in the Pew Center report are members of the Business Environment Leadership Council, an alliance of around 40 organizations that have put in place programmes to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
Some of the targets that have been adopted by BELC member companies are outlined below.
| ABB |
Reduce GHG emissions by 1% each year from 1998 to 2005. Develop 'environmental product declarations' for every product. Meet plant-specific energy targets. |
| Alcoa |
Reduce GHG emissions by 25% from 1990 levels by 2010, and by 50% over the same period if inert anode technology succeeds. |
| Baxter International |
Reduce energy use and associated GHG emissions by 30% per unit of product value from 1996 levels by 2005. |
| BP |
Reduce GHG emissions by 10% from 1990 levels by 2010. |
| CH2M Hill |
Source 5% of electricity from renewables by 2000. |
| Deutsche Telekom |
Reduce energy use by 15% from 1995 levels by 2000. |
| DuPont |
Reduce GHG emissions by 65% from 1990 levels by 2010, hold total energy use flat using 1990 as a base year, and source 10% of global energy use from renewable sources by 2010. |
| Entergy |
Stabilize carbon dioxide emissions from US facilities at 2000 levels by 2005. |
| IBM |
Conserve, in each year, 4% of the energy that would otherwise have been consumed. Reduce carbon dioxide emissions associated with fuel use and electricity consumption by an average annual 4% of what would otherwise have been emitted, over the period 1998-2004. Have 90-100% of the new models introduced during the year meet the Energy Star criteria. Reduce perfluorocarbon (PFC) emissions from semiconductor manufacturing worldwide by 40% from 1995 levels by 2002 (indexed to production). |
| Intel |
Reduce PFC emissions by 10% from 1995 levels by 2010. |
| Interface Inc. |
Reduce non-renewable energy use per unit of production by 15% from 1996 levels, and increase renewable energy use to 10% of total energy use, by 2005. |
| Ontario Power Generation |
Stabilize carbon dioxide emissions at 1990 levels through 2000 and beyond. |
| Rio Tinto |
Reduce on-site GHG emissions per unit of production by 5% from 1990 levels by 2001. |
| Rohm and Hass |
Reduce energy consumption by 5% per pound of product from mid-1999 levels by year-end 2001, and establish further five-year goals at year-end 2001, targeted at a total reduction of roughly 15% per pound of product by 2006. |
| Shell |
Reduce GHG emissions by 10% from 1990 levels by 2002. Meet energy targets per tonne of product for global business units. |
| Toyota North America |
Reduce energy consumption per unit of production by 15% from 2000 levels by 2005. |
| TransAlta Corporation |
Return GHG emissions to 1990 levels by 2000. Achieve zero net GHG emissions from the company’s Canadian operations by 2024. |
| United Technologies Corporation |
Reduce energy consumption as a percentage of sales by 25% from 1997 levels by 2007. |
Click here to download a copy of the Pew Center report in PDF format.
Nationally co-ordinated schemes
Several countries now have voluntary registers which companies can sign up to, committing themselves to progressively reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Three of these are outlined below.
Canada
One of the leading business programmes is the Canadian Voluntary Challenge & Registry, or VCR, which was created in 1994. By early 2002, the number of VCR-registered companies in Canada had reached nearly 800. Participants are encouraged to submit a baseline report outlining current greenhouse gas emissions, together with an action plan setting out how it intends to reduce them plus regular progress reports.
All these documents are posted in an on-line registry, and can be freely inspected.
Australia
A similar scheme has been set up in Australia by the federal government's Australian Greenhouse Office. In early 2002, more than 700 organizations had committed themselves to individual greenhouse gas reduction programmes.
It is estimated that in the year 2000, the scheme's industrial participants succeeded in preventing nearly 25 million tonnes of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere - a 16% reduction compared with 'business as usual'. Several sectors, including oil and gas extraction, coal mining and cement manufacturing, are expecting to return significant reductions in emissions.
The scheme's organizers are now turning their attention to business sectors that are under-represented among the participating organizations.
United States
In the USA, the Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Program enables companies to publicly record their efforts and achievements on greenhouse gas mitigation. Organizations can post a record of their baseline emissions, followed by annual progress reports, on a variety of greenhouse gases besides carbon dioxide. To date, nearly 2,000 projects have been logged.
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