Xerox Cuts GHG Emissions by 20% from 2002

November 4, 2009

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Xerox Corp. reports greenhouse gas emissions fell 20 percent from 2002 to 2008, and says it will deliver a 25 percent reduction in total GHG emissions by 2012 from a 2002 baseline, according to the company’s 2009 Report on Global Citizenship (PDF).

Xerox’s environmental sustainability goals (PDF) center on climate protection, preserving biodiversity and the world’s forests, preserving clean water and air, and preventing and managing waste.

Xerox’s equipment and supplies returns and recycling programs diverted 106 million pounds of waste from landfills, bringing total landfill avoidance to 2.2 billion pounds since 1991. The company achieved an internal recycle rate of 92 percent in 2008. To support a “zero waste to landfill” goal for its company-wide operations, it is developing a waste-free goal in 2009.

Xerox is on track to reduce the solid waste sent to landfills from its largest warehouses by 25 percent by 2012. Of the 41,000 metric tons of e-waste collected in 2008, Xerox was able to reuse or recycle 98 percent. In 2008, 85 percent of non-hazardous solid waste was reused or recycled, compared with 81 percent in 2007.

In May 2009, Xerox launched its ColorQube multifunction printer, which uses the company’s proprietary solid ink technology. Its cartridge-free design generates 90 percent less office supplies waste than comparable laser devices and reduces the impact of manufacturing and transportation on the environment.

In 2008, 80 percent of Xerox’s eligible new products met or exceeded the international Energy Star standard. The company’s goal is to deliver Energy Star qualified equipment for 90 percent or more of eligible new products launched by 2010.

The company launched the Xerox Sustainability Calculator in 2008, aimed at helping customers identify opportunities to reduce lifecycle energy use, solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions of office printing activities.

Xerox also works with customers, suppliers and other stakeholders to support the development of a sustainable paper cycle. To date, more than 90 percent of Xerox paper by volume met the company’s requirements; the goal is 100 percent by volume. Xerox also reduces the environmental impact of its papers by offering paper with 20 percent to 100 percent post-consumer recycled content.

In 2008, Xerox maintained chain of custody certification as planned, expanding the portfolio of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) certified papers it offers to customers.

Xerox also continued its 3-year $1 million partnership with The Nature Conservancy that supports conservation work aimed at the development of a sustainable paper cycle.

Xerox is working to eliminate the use of toxic materials throughout the supply chain with strict internal standards that govern the use of chemicals in its operations and products. The company has re-engineered or substituted processes to significantly reduce the use of toxics and heavy metals. In 2008, worldwide hazardous waste volume decreased 10 percent from 2007 and 96 percent was beneficially managed, according to the report.

Since 1991, Xerox’s manufacturing operations have reduced emissions of particulate and toxics into the air by 94 percent. The company’s goal is to achieve a zero toxic footprint.

The report cites that Xerox facilities released 43 metric tons of regulated chemicals and particulates into the air in 2008, a 2 percent increase from 2007. The company attributes the increase to production and process inefficiencies in a single plant that have since been corrected.

In 2008, water consumption was down by 15 percent from 2007 due to building consolidations, production decreases, and equipment decommissioning. In 2008, energy consumption increased by 2 percent from 2007 but was down 16 percent from 2002, according to the report.

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Reader Comments

Why doesn’t Xerox focus more on cutting emissions from thousands of employee’s that could be working from home? They aren’t following through with committments by focusing on all areas to improve and instead they only focus on the ones that make them look good regardless of how much more they could be helping the environment.

Me | November 4th, 2009

I couldn’t agree with you more, though the same could be said for most corporations out there.

Jason | November 4th, 2009

Yeah I suppose you’re right Jason, it would be unfair to only call out Xerox. It just makes me mad when companies claim to be doing the “right thing” but only if it benefits them. Either way I guess they are helping the environment through whatever process makes them look good, so kudos for that.

Me | November 4th, 2009

I think these comments are really shortsighted. Xeroz should be applauded for a significant achievement, whether or not it represents the pinnacle or not. Joel Makower wrote a very interesting blog on this a while back – bashing companies for failing to be perfect is not going to encourage better behavior in the future. From an overall impact standpoint, 20% of their energy footprint probably far exceeds the impact of employee commuting – companies should be going after the most bang for the buck (and time and energy). My two cents.

Bruce | November 4th, 2009

I have no idea where you’re getting your numbers from Bruce, but you better check the validity of your sources because your numbers are so far off it’s not funny. And if you’re unsure, then don’t quote numbers! When you’re talking about thousands of employees for a single processing plant, the amount of pollutants released by motor vehicles can far outnumber that of the one plant. You’re talking about a company of 50,000+ employees here so pollutants released by motor vehicles can NOT be ignored. I’m not going to get into the debate of telecommuting, but “Me” and “Jason” have very valid points that should not be swept under the rug and chastising them for being responsible and bringing up important issues is NOT the way to handle things either. Shame on you!

Derek | November 5th, 2009

What an interesting conversation. I work for Xerox and working from home is something that directly impacts me and that we’ve recently been dealing with on our team. While it may help out even more with environmental issues to allow employees to work from home, I still have to say that Xerox does an excellent job of being a leader in terms of corporate responsibility in many areas. Like Bruce said, no company is perfect and we can’t expect them to be. But I will also agree with Derek’s comments that we shouldn’t ignore some issues just because other issues are being handled well. In other words, we should always be looking for ways to improve and if working from home makes the environment even healthier then it should be seriously looked at (pro’s vs con’s) to determine if it’s something that makes sense to pursue. So I believe Me’s comments are valid but I think they could have been phrased in a more constructive/positive way.

Engineer | November 5th, 2009

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