There has long been a debate regarding the eco-friendliness of buying online.  A common conception is that having a single item shipping directly to you is environmentally worse than the traditional approach of going to retail store.  But a new study seems to confirm the opposite.

 

According to a study (link: PDF) by Carnegie Mellon University’s Green Design Institute, buying online consumes less energy and creates 35% less carbon emissions compared to shopping at traditional retail outlets. (The study was specific to Buy.com’s distribution system.  Read Buy.com’s summary of the study.)

 

The primary reason for the energy savings and carbon reduction is because the traditional model requires individuals to travel back and forth in their vehicles to aquire items, whereas the online model puts many items on a single truck and follows a more efficient delivery route.

(image from buy.com) 

The results of the study were also featured in the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

 

Also featured in Buy.com’s page on the study are ways to be even more “green”, such as knowing the EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) rating of what you are buying.  They also provide links to eCycling programs available for a responsible way to dispose of electronics.

 

After reading the articles, I began thinking of some other ways buying online could be made even more “green”.

 

One thought I had is to have online deliveries made to your workplace (if possible).  This allows there to be one stop for multiple deliveries on a route that is already established.

 

What do you think could be done to make further improvements?