The Environmental Investigation Agency is a small campaigning organisation that was established to prevent trade in endangered species and, naturally for an organisation that seeks to prevent the loss of species it has turned its mind to climate change and in particular the role of supermarkets in climate change.
Most people from developed countries spend most on their food and household shopping in Supermarkets. In the United Kingdom and in the United States these businesses have become Leviathans; there are few of them, and as such they wield significant influence over businesses from which they buy goods, like farmers, and people to whom they sell goods.
They fiercely compete with each other for our money on price; they understand that we will always buy the cheapest goods, if the quality of the choice of goods is equal, and with that knowledge everything is about how cheap they can buy their stock, regardless of the consequences. They will act within the law, and will be unconcerned with principles of environmental protection, sustainability and greenhouse gas emissions except to the extent that these principles are enshrined within the law.
They respond to environmental matters as a business expedient, rather than as a moral imperative and in that sense they are exactly the same as all other businesses.
The Environmental Investigation Agency has pointed out that Supermarkets are responsible for emissions that are needlessly created. They have huge amounts of refrigerators’ and freezer cabinets which they use to preserve and to display their wares, which use hydrofluorocarbon gas in sealed circuits to extract heat out of these cabinets, in order to cool them. If carbon dioxide has a factor of 1, in terms of climate change effect, hydroflourocarbon gas is at 7,000.
If gas escapes it has a very severe effect on hastening climate change, and frequently gas escapes. Also the energy used to power the cold cabinets is mainly fossil fuel electricity; the cabinets are usually left open, without doors or lids, so save the consumer the trouble of opening the doors and in order to make it easier for the consumer to see and then pick an item out of the cabinet, enhancing the prospects of impulse buys.
One of these fiercely competing supermarkets will not of its own volition put itself at a disadvantage but fitting doors and lids to fridges and freezer, because that will reduce its sales. None of these supermarkets will add to their own costs by specifying new fridges and freezers with environmentally friendly gas alternatives nor will they wish to invest substantial sums in fitting thermal solar panels to their roofs which can be deployed to assist chillers in using less electricity, drawing from the free heat energy contained in light to make the coolant gas work in extracting heat.
It seems to me, as in the case of single use plastic shopping bags, there is a need for legislation. Legislation will level the playing field and significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by supermarkets. We have legislation which now obliges householders to fit condensing gas boilers when their boiler needs replacing and the rationale for this is to prevent householders from unnecessarily creating greenhouse gas emissions.
It is hard to see why should supermarkets be immune from legislation which protects all of us? Householders have to pay for new condensing boilers which cost more to buy and more to fit than old fashion non condensing boilers. Householders have to go to the time and trouble of separating their waste, often for no good reason. It is difficult to see why supermarkets should not be obliged to do everything they can to protect our environment.
Next time you are in a supermarket look at the rows of open fridges and freezers chugging away with hydroflourocarbons and powered by fossil fuel; in money terms the supermarkets with their record profits can afford to change, a change will not make our country uncompetitive internationally, as the effect in economic terms will only be confined to the business within our country, and you will be able to shop at supermarkets comforted by the fact that they are causing less environmental damage. Governments like to make many regulations but shy away from making regulations which affect big business. We need these kind of regulations to protect us, and that is the business of government.
Posted in carbon dioxide, carbon emissions, climate change, electricity, energy, global warming, pollution, rubbish, solar, solar energy, solar panels Tagged: ammonia, carbon footprint of supermarkets, condensing boilers, hydroflourocarbons, supermarket fridges and freezers, supermarkets
