Online sales have increased tremendously since its advent in 2014. In 2020, eCommerce sales reached an impressive US $4.2 trillion. The current pandemic scenario contributes significantly to these numbers. It’s evident that this growth is unstoppable, as the eCommerce industry is projected to reach a staggering US $6.5 trillion.
Online shopping goes hand-in-hand with the shipping industry – as the increase in sales has led to a significant increase in the number of shipments globally. While this growth is good for the economy, it has certainly harmed the environment.
In this article, we will see the harmful effects of shipping and how they can be mitigated by choosing a carrier that works in reducing the environmental impact.
Impact of Shipping on the Environment
Any carrier you choose to ship your products to, irrespective of the mode of freight, contributes to environmental degradation. Unfortunately, any fuel used by these vehicles emits many harmful gases that are detrimental to the atmosphere and life on Earth.
The packaging used by companies to ship their products to customers is also harmful to the environment. To ensure that your product reaches the customer swiftly with no damages, plastic, styrofoam, or cardboard is used inside of parcels. The outer layer may also use plastic to protect from rain and other environmental factors. Unfortunately, all the packaging is discarded and ends up in landfills.
Since many businesses rely on carriers to ship their products, it is impossible to stop using fuel in shipping or even reduce the packaging of products.
However, it is possible to reduce the impact of the harmful effects on the Earth.
UPS Carbon Neutral Shipping
UPS, as one of the carriers, takes a proactive approach to reducing the carbon imprint caused by logistical activities. Every day, UPS ships thousands of products worldwide. UPS offers its users the option of UPS Carbon Neutral to mitigate the harmful effects of carbon emissions.
In this worthwhile endeavor, UPS employs various methods. They calculate how many natural resources they use during their operating processes, find ways to reduce air pollution caused by airplanes, and work on clearing harmful gases in the atmosphere. Additionally, UPS partners with many charitable and non-profit organizations that strive to preserve natural resources and safeguard the environment.
A few ways that UPS has contributed to preserving the environment are by partnering with organizations that support reforestation, treatment of wastewater, reducing methane impact, and others.
PluginHive & UPS Carbon Neutral Shipping for WooCommerce
WooCommerce UPS Shipping Plugin with Print Label by PluginHive is an end-to-end logistical solution for all your shipping needs. With real-time rates picked from the UPS database, it is effortless to choose the price you need for your orders based on weight and other dimensions.
The UPS plugin enables the shipper to easily choose carbon-neutral shipping, demonstrating the shipper’s awareness of the harmful effects of carbon discharge caused by fuel use and their hope to offset the environmental impact.
The UPS carbon neutral option is available in the shipping labels under WooCommerce settings in the plugin. Simply checking this option ensures that in the print label, ‘UPS Carbon Neutral’ is visible.
To understand the other features of the WooCommerce UPS Shipping Plugin with Print Label, visit our product page.
