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Online shopping 'more eco-friendly'

(Sideways News 30 March 2009)

Shopping online is greener than heading out to shops in person, a new study has revealed.

The report by Heriot-Watt University found that it is more environmentally friendly for consumers to have shopping delivered to their homes rather than travelling to retail outlets themselves.

Experts at the institution's Logistics Research Centre, which was established in 1997, compared the carbon footprints of online and conventional shopping for a number of goods including books and CDs, with a particular focus on the delivery process.

It found that while an average trip to the shops produced 4,274 g of carbon dioxide, a typical van-based delivery created just 181 g.

This suggests that when people drive to a shop to buy fewer than 24 small, non-food items, home delivery is more eco-friendly. However, the report does add that this makes no allowance for failed deliveries or returns.

Professor Alan McKinnon, director of the Logistics Research Centre, said the study highlighted how consumers should be encouraged to think about how they spend, as it is "clearly important to minimise the environmental impact of both conventional shopping trips and home delivery".

Read the full article at Sideways News - Click Here

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