Hewlett-Packard Company which Involved in Carbon Trading - Research Paper Example

Carbon Trading Global warming is becoming one of the major threats to the existence of man and other forms of life on earth. The average global temperatures are continually rising, and the environment and specific wildlife habitats are progressively becoming unconducive for living. In addition, there are an increased number of life threatening climatic conditions like floods, heat waves, floods and droughts. All these are a result of human actions that lead to the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). A major example of such human actions is manufacturing. Manufacturing contributes to global warming through energy consumption, producing products that use large amounts of energy or those that generate a lot of carbon dioxide during their use. This therefore indicates that global warming can only be controlled satisfactorily by involving all major stakeholders. Carbon trading has provided one important way of involving emitters of GHGs in the effort of curbing global warming. Carbon trading is simply a means through which individuals, countries, light industries and heavy industries offset their compliance to the mandated emission levels through the purchase of extra emission credits (WRI par 1). It could also provide a way for plying the market for profits for profits by selling unused emission allocations to others. There are five major forms of carbon trading namely Carbon offsets, emissions trading, emissions credits, cap and trade and carbon exchange markets (WRI par 4). Hewlett-Packard (HP) is one of the global companies that is greatly involved in carbon trading through carbon offsets. Goodward and Alexia (1) defines carbon offsets as the reduction of GHGs emission or the sequestration or avoidance of the emission of GHGs in order to offset or compensate an emission made elsewhere. Each Carbon offset represents 1 ton of carbon dioxide or other GHGs reduced or sequestrated as a result of an action undertaken by a country or organisation to ensure reduced emission levels. HP is a multinational information technology corporation that provides a range of software and hardware products as well as support IT structure and design. Specific examples include printers, digital cameras, PDAs, servers, calculators, scanners, computers for office and home use, workstation computers among others. Energy use in accounts for 98% of the GHGs generated by the operations of the company. This also represents one of the highest operational costs in the company facilities. The remaining 2% of HP GHGs emissions comes from the HP manufacturing process and refrigeration equipment (Hp par 5). Outside the company facilities, the company contributes to GHGs emissions through product transportation and employee business travel. Although emissions coming from product manufacturing and transportation are not unavoidable and beyond the control of the company, the HP has put in place programs to reduce them. One of the way in which the company has achieved a good level of carbon offsets is through the control of energy consumed. The company has purposed to reduce its energy consumption levels to lower its GHG emission levels. As per 2009, the company had intergated 465 former EDS sites into their current energy-efficiency program (Hp par 6). The company is also implementing or undertaking the Global Workplace Initiative at these locations. Following the integration of EDS, the company has re-established a 2005 baseline for its target for emissions reduction to include the former company EDS sites and all other acquisitions made since 20005. The company’s new baseline is 2,273,800 tonnes CO2 equivalent (Hp par 7). The company’s new goal is to reduce its levels GHG emissions from HP-leased and HP-own facilities to less than 20% the 2005 levels by 2013. This GHG emissions goal is a replacement of the company’s previous goal to lower energy consumption and the resulting emissions of GHG HP-leased and HP-owned facilities worldwide to less than 16% the 2005 levels, by 2010. By the time of revising the company goals, HP had already lowered the energy consumed its operations by over 9% (Hp par 6). This was in 2008. After the acquisition of EDS, the company set an interim target to lower energy use in its facilities by 7% below 2008 levels by the end of 2010. In 2009, the company decreased its energy consumption by 9% compared with 2008, capitalizing on opportunities for energy efficiency and real estate consolidation due to the acquisition. The company maintained these gains through 2010. HP has also managed to reduce carbon emissions by increasing its workplace energy efficiency. In 2009, the company launched a major initiative to enable it to further step up the energy efficiency of its operations. The initiative, by the name Global Workplace Initiative, simply built on the company’s earlier efforts to increase real estate efficiency. Because of the integration of EDS, the company now owns and leases 46% more space than a year ago. This scenario provides the company with fresh opportunities to make improvements on its energy efficiency. Under the new initiative, HP is streamlining its operations to utilize fewer sites, more efficiently. The company is consolidating its numerous operational locations to key or core sites. the company has also adapted its buildings to support a more mobile and higher density workforce. The main activities for achieving the above include decommissioning surplus office space and increasing flexible workspace and installing technologies that are more energy-efficient in research labs, offices and data centers. It also includes consolidating the many data centers into fewer sites that are more efficient, utilizing recyclable and recycled materials in construction of facilities and products and features of sustainable design in new buildings. In 2009, the company completed operational changes and projects. These were expected to enable the company to achieve savings of over 66 million kWh of electricity in the year 2010 (Hp par 10). The company invested $5 million in initiatives such as lighting retrofits in office spaces and parking garages, installing motion sensors, fluorescent lights and other energy-saving technology across its operations. HP also introduced Power to Change, an initiative that challenges the company employees to save energy in conference rooms and offices turning off equipment and lights at their desk when leaving the office at evening and putting off projectors and lights when conference rooms are not in use. Company employees can use a dedicated website to track and record their involvement in the initiative and share ideas. Currently, all legacy HP buildings located in the UK meet the Carbon Trust Standard. However, this does not include the company’s former EDS sites. Carbon Trust Standard is a certification that recognizes businesses that lower their carbon footprint and commit themselves to further annual reductions. HP has also invested in the use of renewable energy as a way of reducing its GHG emissions. In 2009, the company purchased about 131 million kWh of renewable energy globally. During the same year, voluntary purchases of renewable energy, including energy generated on-site and credits represented 3.6 percent of the company’s electricity use. This energy was in addition to the renewable energy that was originally available in the power grid. This figure represented a 30% rise from the amount purchased in 2008. The company aims at achieving a 8% of voluntary purchases of electricity from obtained from renewable sources by 2012 (Hp par 10). To meet this goal, the company is exploring opportunities with providers of solar and wind power. The company has contracted an energy provider located in Texas to supply one of the company’s Austin data centers with 19 million kWh of wind power every year for 20 years. This figure is equivalent to 20% of the energy needs required currently at the center. In 2009, the company met 50% of the energy needs for Irish operations using wind power. Solar energy is generated for the company by SunPower Corporation at the company’s San Diego facility (HP2 par 1). SunPower uses 6,256 solar panels to achieve this. The panels produce 1.7 million kWh annually, meeting over 10% the energy needs of the facility and reducing CO2 emissions by over 550 tonnes. The company has committed to purchase this type of energy from SunPower for 15 years. This will enable the company to save $750,000. As part of the initiative, the company in conjunction with SunPower offered HP employees solar panels at discounted prices for their homes. Over 88 retired and current employees have had the panels installed in their homes as a result. The company has already approved two additional solar energy projects. In Grenoble, France, the company will be able to claim the carbon credits from a 175,000 kWh per year project that supplies or feeds the electricity grid. In Kyriat-Gat, Israel, an 81,000 kWh annual project will help to power the company’s digital press facility located in Indigo. The company’s new 35,000-square-meter data center located near Houston will have photovoltaic solar power system that will produce about 280,000 kWh of electricity annually. To meet the remaining portion of its renewable energy goal, the company also buys renewable energy credits (RECs) as part of its voluntary electricity contracts in the US (HP2 par 12) To lower its emissions further, the company sources huge hydroelectric energy contracts in Italy, the UK and Belgium. HP has also involved its customers in attaining its carbon offsets by establishing a carbon offset scheme that targets its customers. The company has already launched another emission reduction initiative in New Zealand and Australia to help its customers minimize their environmental footprint. Customers who purchase any HP LaserJet printer are in a position to claim a bonus carbon offset for the carbon emissions produced over the printer’s lifetime. This is a bonus funded by HP at no cost to the customers (Istart par 1). The company is partnering with Climate Positive, a not-for-profit organisation, to source carbon offsets that lower global GHG emissions. Works Cited Goodward, Jenna & Alexia, Kelly. "Bottom Line on Offsets". World Resources Institute. August 2010. Web. 12 December, 2011 http://www.wri.org/publication/bottom-line-offsets HP. Energy use. 2011. Web. 12 December, 2011 http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/globalcitizenship/09gcreport/enviro/energy/energyuse.html HP2. Expands Renewable Energy Use in its Global Operations. 2007. Web. 12 December, 2011 http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/newsroom/press/2007/071127xb.html Istart. HP gives printer customers the (carbon) credit. 2011. Web. 12 December, 2011 http://www.istart.co.nz/index/HM20/PC0/PVC197/EX245/AR210732 WRI. Bottom Line on Offsets. 2011. Web. 12 December, 2011 http://www.wri.org/publication/bottom-line-offsets Read More