One of our favorite topics about going green is how it can also SAVE you green in the process. We have a whole section on the site devoted to this topic and will continue to write about ways to save money on your journey to being more green.
Since “Going green while saving green” is a notion that many are just now starting to realize, it is great to see high ranking business folks like Staples CFO John Mahoney stressing the point.
CFO.com has a great write up of Mahoney speaking at the CFO Green Conference in New York where he pointed to some very specific and staggering savings:
In 2008, the company switched from using three-amp lightbulbs to two-amp bulbs. That single change was the key factor in a $6.2 million reduction in energy costs, $4.2 million of which fell to the bottom line after subtracting the costs of running the program.
Staples also is saving 540,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year after modifying its trucks so that they can’t go more than 60 miles per hour. That saves $1.5 million. “When diesel prices spiked we were able to offset about 80% of the increase just through this program,” Mahoney said.
What I found especially interesting about his comments was that he attributed Staple’s ability to maintain the going green programs directly to the savings they incurred from the programs. Maybe if more companies would push going green initiatives, then they would have more money to focus on going green initiatives (the classic chicken or egg dilemma?).
However, it was interesting to note that Staples has found that customers will not buy products “solely for their green impact”. They have found that the market for folks that are willing to pay more just because a product is green is very small. We hope that this number increases over time, or that we can find other ways to incentivize folks to purchase green products.
Would you purchase a more expensive product just because it was green? How do you think we can convice folks to purchase green products?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
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May 24, 2010 at 1:16 am
A single kilowatt-hour of electricity will generate 1.34 pounds (610 g) of CO2 emissions. Assuming the average light bulb is on for 10 hours a day, a single 40-watt incandescent bulb will generate 196 pounds (89 kg) of CO2 every year. The 13-watt LED equivalent will only be responsible for 63 pounds (29 kg) of CO2 over the same time span. A building’s carbon footprint from lighting can be reduced by 68% by exchanging all incandescent bulbs for new LEDs in warm climates. In cold climates, the energy saving may be lower, since more heating would be needed to compensate for the lower temperature.