The convenience of ultra-fast online shopping comes at a hidden cost: the environmental impact of “last-mile” deliveries. In a recent interview with Time, Dr. Sreedevi Rajagopalan, director of the MIT Sustainable Supply Chain Lab, explains how expedited shipping increases emissions by forcing multiple trips and inefficient routes. As retailers like Amazon and FedEx electrify fleets and encourage package consolidation, consumers can also play a role by choosing slower shipping and thoughtful purchasing habits. Learn how small changes in your online shopping can reduce carbon emissions and waste.
“If you have expedited shipping, then you are not actually able to consolidate [packages,]” says Dr. Sreedevi Rajagopalan, director of the MIT Sustainable Supply Chain Lab. “As a result, you end up delivering less goods in a short period. You also end up visiting the same route, maybe multiple times the same day or consecutive days. So that actually results in very high emissions.”
