Head of UN agency urges worldwide postal sector to act to reduce emissions and grow the business at the same time
According to its first worldwide survey, the Universal Postal Union – the United Nations specialized agency for postal services – estimates that Posts in its 191 member countries generated at least 26 million tonnes of CO2 in 2008 through the operation of postal vehicles and buildings.
These Posts, employing more than 5 million people, operate a global network of more than 600,000 post offices and almost one million postal vehicles. They represent the planet's largest physical distribution network. The United Nations Environment Programme estimates total annual worldwide greenhouse gas emissions at 38 billion tonnes, meaning that postal operations produce 0.07% of these emissions.
Posts in industrialized countries emitted around 11 million tonnes of CO2, or 41% of the total, while those in the developing and least developed countries released 15 million tonnes, or 59% of the total.
A commitment
On the flip side, many Posts have environmentally friendly practices, with thousands of letter carriers delivering mail on foot or using bicycles. In France, for example, it is estimated that La Poste’s 100,000 letter carriers cover the equivalent of 50 trips around the world every day. And Japan Post uses 10,000 bicycles, France’s La Poste 28,000 and the Belgian Post 4,200. Posts are also increasingly investing in alternative vehicles.
On the eve of the World Climate Summit in Copenhagen, the postal sector is committed to curbing climate change and finding more eco-friendly ways to process and deliver mail items.
“This first global inventory is a major step forward in our efforts to combat climate change,” says UPU Director General Edouard Dayan, who will attend the Copenhagen conference on 15 and 16 December. “The UPU will work with all its partners, including the United Nations Environment Programme, to encourage the polluters of today and tomorrow to reduce their environmental impact in the long term. Sound management of environmental issues can drive growth. In taking up the challenge of green growth, businesses can rethink their logistics chain processes, improve their efficiency, plan long-term energy saving measures, develop new products and services less harmful to the environment and project a responsible business image,” adds Dayan, whose agency is looking into setting up a financing mechanism to compensate Posts’ carbon emissions.
52% response rate
The survey results are based on Posts' replies to a UPU questionnaire sent to all member countries, together with data from PostEurop, a European postal organization, which also gathers data on the carbon footprint of its members.
A total of 99 Posts completed the questionnaire, representing a response rate of 52%. For the others, the UPU drew up estimates based on key variables such as the country's postal traffic, number of post offices, number of postal staff, surface area of the country, population, level of development, and national greenhouse gas emissions provided by the World Bank.
The questionnaire was restricted to emissions produced by postal installations and vehicles. The UPU will continue to refine its survey in 2010, by including data on indirect emissions, such as those generated by private operators and subcontractors, air transport, waste management, or the manufacture of envelopes and parcels. The UPU distributed a guide to all its member countries to help them gather data and make the necessary calculations to draw up the inventory.
The UPU will represent the postal sector at the UN Conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen.