One-day shipping? Fast comes at cost to planet

Convenience and speed can come at a cost — especially as more individuals turn to online shopping to purchase their necessities and their wants, often choosing behometh Amazon as their retailer of choice.

But when choosing to buy online, consumers still can reduce what impact their collective purchases make. First, don’t select one-day shipping. Quick deliveries often mean trucks aren’t full to capacity, so drivers use less efficient routes to get goods to consumers on time. That wastes fuel. Drivers often have to make multiple trips from warehouse to neighborhoods to meet the promised delivery time.

Postponing delivery a few days means the company can fill up the vans or trucks for a more efficient system. Combining all orders on one delivery day also means the shipper can reduce package waste — everything in one box, as opposed to one box one day, another box the next. Less package waste is easier on the environment.

The key for consumers is to pay attention at checkout. Default settings often schedule the delivery for the shopper; an alert buyer can override the default and schedule delivery so all packages arrive on the same day. Businesses, too, can encourage consumers to pick same-day delivery — even if that takes a little longer — by offering coupons or other incentives.

It’s possible for the retailer to provide an emissions menu to accompany each delivery choice — think of restaurant menus that list the calories alongside dishes — so consumers know which delivery option emits the fewest greenhouse gas emissions. Knowledge can change habits, and most purchases aren’t the sort that need to be delivered yesterday. Often, we can wait — and waiting will pay dividends in reducing emissions because of fewer delivery trips and less packaging.

For years, online retailers argued their form of shopping could benefit the environment. Instead of tens of thousands of shoppers making individual trips in their cars or trucks — and all those emissions adding up — online shopping benefited from economies of scale, with one driver in one truck serving dozens of people at once.

Now, as consumers make individual purchases, several in one day, the packages come dribbling in. That had been increasing the carbon footprint of big retailers such as Amazon, as well as delivery companies such as FedEx or UPS.

Amazon has pledged to reduce its carbon footprint, which has risen around 40% since the e-retailer began reporting its numbers back in 2019. A bit of good news is that Amazon’s carbon dioxide emissions declined 0.4% in 2022 from 2021; the company’s figures reported emitting the equivalent of 71.27 million metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2022. The company has a varied strategy, everything from installing fleets of electric vehicles to investing in wind and solar energy to power warehouses and office. The goal is for the entire business to reach net zero carbon by 2040.

In the meantime, consumers can help the goal along. Buying locally made goods means companies aren’t expending carbon to make long-distance deliveries. If what you need isn’t made locally and you are shopping online, group packages for sameday delivery and don’t overnight purchases.

One-day shipping, after all, is hardly convenient for the planet. Remember that when choosing a delivery option.