Why the design world needs to cut its carbon footprint

All life boils down to a simple equation between carbon, oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen. Before the industrial revolution this equation was balanced out by the biosphere’s natural systems (Gaia theory).

The industrial revolution, or what you might call ‘the dawn of commercial design’ relied on the use of a new energy source – fossil fuels. From coal, to coal tar, to crude oil, to natural gas, their use began to alter the dynamic and the planet increasingly had to store the resultant carbon emissions in the atmosphere rather than in its vegetation, soils and oceans.

The international community (informed by the IPCC) now recognises the risks of global warming and that there is a ‘safe’ upper limit of CO2 in the atmosphere – 350 parts per million, or 1.5 degrees of warming since pre-industrial levels. Since the Paris Agreement in 2015 ‘the world’ has committed to achieve or undershoot these limits – but governments and markets around the world are struggling to comprehend the urgency and magnitude of the challenge we face.

We are currently at 417 ppm and 2 degrees above pre-industrial level. No one yet is being forcibly told to reduce their carbon emissions on a scale sufficient to deliver on the Paris Agreement.

We are however, beginning to embrace the adage ‘if you measure it, you can manage it’ and there are now widely accepted protocols on measuring carbon emissions and the requirement of certain businesses to declare their figures. This should naturally lead to the motivation to ‘offset’ these emissions and this is beginning to happen, as seen with companies declaring themselves ‘carbon neutral’. So increasingly we have the ability to make ‘responsible’ choices by opting for companies or products that declare their CO2 emissions, offset them and commit to reducing them.

We need to unpick this a bit to enable us to compare like for like.

Carbon emission counting

Carbon emissions are measured in three Scopes:

• Scope 1 is the resultant emissions from energy use.
• Scope 2 consists of the emissions created by the generation of that energy.
• Scope 3 take in all the ensuing emissions created in the supply chain, manufacturing, administration and product delivery/purchase.

For the vast majority of products, the greatest emissions occur in Scope 3 and are the hardest to measure. For this reason, it is not uncommon to find companies declaring only their Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions.

How to cut your carbon emissions

By measuring CO2 emissions in this way, it becomes clear where the burden lies and it prompts the changes that can be made.

This means energy efficient devices and efficient use of them. It means using trains, public transport or electric vehicles.

No company generates 100% of the energy supplied to their customers but Ecotricity are a ‘not for profit’ company that continually invests in new renewable energy generation. Using electricity at night is more likely to be wind generated, which is good to know when recharging an EV or if you have installed heat exchangers. You can also try generatinh your own electricity with solar panels or wind turbines.

Some suppliers are already better than others, but consider not using any companies that do not declare their full CO2 emissions. Opt for suppliers who then offset their emissions. DPD are investing in an electric fleet for instance.

Most importantly conduct your own carbon audit – for your workplace, but also for yourself – you may be surprised to find that you are more carbon intensive than your company!

Consider including your lifestyle emissions into your business emissions. For instance, those of Edward Bulmer Natural Paint include the space heating for the office and factory, but also for the home attached, Court of Noke. The more circular you see your work/life profile, the more honest you are being. It is obvious to say that the more you fly, the higher your direct emissions and the more meat you eat the higher your indirect emissions.

It is worth reflecting that our shared biosphere has a finite capacity to absorb carbon and that it equates to an average of something over a tonne per head. In the UK our average emissions are 6 tonnes per head. This means that we use up 6 times as much as our ‘global fair share’ should be. If we are mindful of fairness then we might also reflect that the humans on the planet who only emit their fare share are generally those far more likely to feel the effects of global warming such as drought, flooding and extreme weather. The world’s poor are literally losing their lives and livelihoods to our ‘carbon habit’. Heavy stuff, but with a responsible attitude to our carbon emissions, we can reduce our footprint (less flights for instance) and mitigate what we cause through carbon offsets.

At EBNP we consider our carbon emissions as a cost to the business because they need to be offset, that way we incentivise ourselves to reduce them in order to increase our profitability.

We consider our CO2 emissions to be ‘your business’ and so we measure and declare them in a meaningful way – currently 0.86 kg per litre of paint. No other paint company will give you this figure, but if it helps to put it in perspective our total emissions are about the same as 6 UK citizens.

Suppliers will only tell you their CO2 emissions if you ask for them!

-Words by Edward Bulmer