Tuesday 7 June 2022

Royal Mail pledges to deliver net zero emissions by 2040

Royal Mail pledges to deliver net zero emissions by 2040

Royal Mail has brought forward its commitment to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040.

It aims to reduce average carbon emissions per parcel it delivers in the UK from 205g of CO2 equivalent today to 50g of CO2 equivalent – about the same carbon emissions as making a cup of tea with milk.

Royal Mail's near term targets include reducing absolute Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 25% by 2025/26 and Scope 3 emissions by 25% by 2030, from a 2020/21 base year.

Its 90,000 posties walk more than a billion steps a day, delivering to 31 million addresses, making it the greenest option for delivering parcels.

To achieve its goals, Royal Mail plans to roll out more electric vans for last-mile deliveries, with 5,500 vans expected by Spring 2023 and use 100% renewable electricity across the business from 2022.

https://twitter.com/RoyalMail/status/1533844902534172678

It is also calling for standardised industry-wide reporting on carbon emissions equivalent per parcel so customers can make informed decision and collaborating with partners to speed up the rollout of electric and low emission vehicles across the UK.

Simon Thompson, Chief Executive Officer at Royal Mail said: “A seven-day parcel service, to and from the customer’s door, delivered by a postie you trust and with the lowest emissions is the winning proposition. Environment is the next battleground for businesses and we are determined to lead. Setting an ambitious target to reduce parcel emissions to 50gCO2e demonstrates our commitment to driving change and minimising our impact on the environment.

“We now merchandise the emissions per parcel for every delivery on the Royal Mail App so customers can understand the impact of their order on the planet. We want to go much further and transform the way we collect, process and deliver the 10 billion letters and parcels we handle each year. All this means we can pull forward our net zero target by 10 years to 2040.”

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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