Those who work from home save themselves the commute – and, according to a new study, up to 54 percent of carbon dioxide. However, home workers often behave less climate-friendly in their free time.
The corona pandemic first made working from home necessary, then a matter of course – and even after that, many companies are at least taking a two-pronged approach: some employees come to the office, but are also allowed to work from home where possible. Many employees find this to be a great help and relief in their everyday lives.
But working from home not only offers advantages to employees, according to a new study it also has a positive impact on the environment. As researchers from the US private university at Cornell discovered when analyzing data from Microsoft employees, this saves CO2 emissions compared to working in the office. One day of home office per week doesn’t make a big difference; according to the study, this only reduces CO2 emissions by two percent. But the more often people work from home, the more the climate is protected.
Cars and heating cause high carbon dioxide emissions
With two to four days of home office per week, the savings in climate-damaging carbon dioxide are already up to 29 percent. If you work entirely from your home computer, i.e. five days a week, it even rises to up to 54 percent. The carbon footprint of employees who stay at home 100 percent of the time is therefore only half as large as that of their colleagues who go to the office every day. The main reasons for this are the pollution caused by the commute, which is often done by car, and the heating and cooling in the office. CO2 emissions often increase on the way to the office due to traffic jams.
Do people who work on site have to have a guilty conscience from a climate perspective and can others who work from home be proud of their carbon footprint? That’s not enough, explains Fengqi You, professor of energy engineering at Cornell and co-author of the study: “Some people say: ‘I work from home, I’m carbon neutral.’ But that’s not correct.”
During the work time
What private things can I do in the home office?
Home office employees often consume a lot of CO2 in their free time
The study showed that people who work from home often pursue more CO2-intensive activities in their free time – and thus offset their emissions savings. This includes, for example, traveling by plane or car. Home office employees also often live further away from the company. When they do come to the office, they consume even more CO2 on the way. And working from home is no guarantee of significant CO2 savings – it also depends heavily on the technical equipment there.
“Remote work has potential to reduce carbon footprints, but careful consideration of commuting habits, building energy use, vehicle ownership and non-commuting travel is essential to reap the full environmental benefits,” they emphasize Authors of the study. The challenge for companies is to make their workplaces more climate-friendly.
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Source: Stern
