10 Green Ways to Minimize the Impact of Your Business

Going green isn't just great for your business's image—it can also benefit your bottom line. Here are ten ways that you can make your business more sustainable and unlock new efficiencies along the way.

In an effort to curb rising global temperatures, we must work together as citizens and business owners to minimize our carbon emissions. Ensuring that your business operates on more eco-friendly terms doesn’t just benefit our environment, but it can help you lower operational costs. There are many methods to help your company lower its carbon footprint, but it all starts with understanding your options. Start by using a carbon footprint calculator to evaluate your business and then work to implement the following 10 strategies.

1. Employ the Use of Renewable Energy.

One way to make your business environmentally conscious is to employ the use of renewable energy, such as wind or solar power. Though costly to implement at first, there are many grants and incentives provided by the government and corporations to help make the transition more affordable. You can go online to find out what your local incentives are.

2. Optimize Smart Lighting.

You can lower your carbon footprint and increase the efficiency of your office by using smart buildings technology. Using dimmable lights and LED bulbs with built-in smart technology allows you to fully control the lighting in your office. You can switch off the lights when they’re not needed by leaving them running on automatic sensors.

3. Improve Air Quality.

Better air quality in the workplace can help benefit your employees and make them feel better at work. Since COVID, many of us are quite conscious of air quality. Good air quality makes for a healthier environment to work in. An air quality system also helps with the eco- friendly nature of the building, as it eliminates the need to open windows or change heat settings. Take a look here to see how to measure air quality.

4. Maximize Energy Consumption Efficiency.

Many offices simply waste energy while employees are working as their efforts are tied up elsewhere. Here are a few precautions you can take as a business to increase your energy usage efficiency:

• Choose equipment that’s energy efficient, such as printers and computers that don’t waste electricity.
• Connect all desk equipment to power strips, as they allow employees to switch off their workstations when heading home.
• Prolong the life of office equipment through educating responsible usage and reading the instruction manuals.

5. Reduce Waste and Recycle Often.

Practice reducing, reusing, and recycling in your office to protect office equipment and supplies from decaying in landfills. It’s crucial to objectively familiarize yourself with the amount of waste your business produces, as it allows you to streamline and implement eco-friendly waste recycling practices.

Try purchasing supplies for your office that actively use less plastic. Additionally, make it a point to recycle paper waste that comes from your printer or copier. Most importantly, always recycle toner cartridges once they run out of ink to ensure that they don’t end up in a landfill somewhere.

6. Implement Smart Shipping Practices.

If your business is reliant on shipping products on a regular basis, consider ways you can lower your carbon emissions in this category. For example, opt to send packages via ground delivery, as air travel burns more fossil fuels. Reducing the sheer number of shipments can also help your company become more efficient as you optimize your packages into fewer, larger shipments.

7. Join the Fight With Sustainable Partners.

You’re not alone in trying to do a lot for the environment! You can maximize the good you do for our environment by finding local sustainability partners to help you optimize shipping operations. When you need to purchase resources for your company, opt to support local vendors instead of large-scale national corporations. Near-sourcing reduces carbon emissions while also allowing you to support your local economy. Additionally, partnering with other local businesses can help you all lower your carbon footprints effectively in the long haul.

8. Educate and Encourage.

Every good business is built on the foundation of solid teamwork. Bring your employees together to help our environment by educating them on what greenhouse gas emissions are and what it takes to reduce them effectively. Provide evidence of what you’re saying to serve as a motivator for employees to follow through with implementing greener processes. You can also help by providing monthly incentives in the workplace.

9. Conserve Water.

Processing wastewater and heating water are two large contributors for wasted energy. There are ways to conserve water usage in the office, such as ensuring all leaks are repaired, lowering heated water temperatures, and using aerated water faucets in the sink. If your business relies on hot water usage on a larger scale, consider recycling wastewater and implementing a heat recovery system.

10. Use Smart Temperature Systems.

In just a few, seemingly short months, inappropriate thermostat usage can raise your carbon emissions tenfold. Ensure that your office temperatures are adequately adjusted for the seasons and lower or raise temperatures by a few degrees to make a difference. When leaving the office overnight, adjust temperatures by up to 15 degrees to prevent wasting energy. Installing well-insulated, energy-efficient doors and windows can make your office more eco-friendly. Most importantly, closely monitor the thermostat in your office and keep your usage in check. Installing a thermostat you can control via an app can also help keep temperatures moderated in the office.

This article was written by Bhok Thompson from Green Prophet and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive Content Marketplace. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.

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