Environmental news you missed on Earth Day

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a widely used green rating system for buildings and is adding programs.

Prologis, a global logistics company, said it was the first logistics real estate developer to participate in the LEED Volume Program. Thursday, the company launched the first LEED v4 for Core and Shell Volume Program for its U.S. sector. 

The new LEED program focuses on site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality, according to the release.

“Our decades-long focus on sustainability gives us a first-mover advantage that enables us to deepen strategic relationships with customers and partners and attract and retain the industry’s most talented professionals,” Edward Nekritz, chief legal officer and environmental, social and governance head at Prologis, said in a statement.

Ports make progress

As major seaports implement ecological preservation initiatives, they reported Thursday that progress is being made.

San Pedro Bay is bursting with a diversity of invertebrates, 11 special-status bird species, 104 species of fish and growing kelp forests, according to an ecological study released Thursday. Water quality, aquatic habitat and biological resources were among the factors surveyed near the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.

The Port of Seattle used Earth Day to stress the importance of reducing emissions and pollution, sharing its scope 1, 2 and 3 emission-reduction goals and efforts.

“We must do more and more quickly. The port is making major investments to improve air and water quality, and we’re committed to fully decarbonizing the waterfront through shore power at all major cruise and container berths by 2030,” Peter Steinbrueck, Port of Seattle commissioner and co-chair of the port’s energy and sustainability committee, said in the release.

Surveys say sustainability is here to stay

Surveys asking about sustainability showed that consumers and companies alike are seeking more sustainable solutions.

About 38% of more than 2,000 consumers in a Pitney Bowes BOXpoll survey said they are more likely to buy a sustainably packaged product with sustainable features. Nearly 59% of survey respondents said they do not consider sustainability in purchasing decisions, which makes sense since 67% said they believe a box with the same contents but more sustainable packaging costs more.

In a Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals survey, more than 82% of respondents said their company’s commitment to sustainable supply chains has either stayed the same or increased since before the COVID-19 pandemic. It said small and medium firms were nearly twice as likely to scale back sustainability efforts in supply chains as larger companies.

Last but certainly not least, FreightWaves launched its carbon estimation tool, FreightWaves Carbon Intelligence (FCI), Thursday. FCI allows SONAR users to see lane-level carbon emissions, and more in-depth emissions information is expected to follow this summer.

“Imagine a world where companies have full visibility into scope 3 emissions,” Craig Fuller, CEO and founder of FreightWaves, said during the Net-Zero Carbon Summit on Earth Day.

Click here for more FreightWaves articles by Alyssa Sporrer.

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