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Walmart said it likely will not meet its set goal of reducing global warming emissions by the end of the decade, citing obstacles in energy policy, infrastructure and the availability of low-carbon technologies.
The US-based retailer, which is the world’s largest company by revenue and has become an influential corporate leader, joined the range of companies as it acknowledged it would not be able to meet its pledges.
Walmart has committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions from its operations by 35 percent in 2025 and 65 percent in 2030 compared to 2015 levels. But in an update released this week, Walmart said it was unlikely to meet either goal, slowing progress.
“We expect to meet our near- and medium-term emissions reduction goals later than our 2025 and 2030 target dates,” Walmart said, adding that it would consider revising its goals next year.
Walmart announced late last year that it would not meet its 2025 emissions goal, but at the time it supported a 2030 goal.
The company on Thursday maintained its goal of achieving zero emissions across its global operations by 2040.
In order to limit global warming to within 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, global emissions will need to be reduced by 43% by the end of the 2010s, a goal set out in the Paris Agreement signed by around 200 countries in 2015. It is a set goal.
As a retailer involved in warehousing, distributing and selling merchandise and food products, Walmart’s operations have a lower carbon footprint per unit of sales than many polluting manufacturers and food processors.
The company is addressing the direct risks to its business from climate change, including launching emergency relief efforts in store parking lots after Hurricanes Helen and Milton devastated communities in the southeastern United States this year. I have recognized it and dealt with it. Scientists say global warming is making the atmosphere hotter and containing more water vapor, making storms more destructive.
As Walmart’s business expands, new stores open and more products are shipped, reducing emissions becomes more difficult.
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Global revenue rose 6% to $648 billion in the year to January 2024. In 2023, operational emissions decreased by 3.9% to 15.1 million tons.
Walmart also cited three factors contributing to the increase in emissions. Pollution from refrigerants used for food cooling and air conditioning rose 5.3% year-on-year, mainly due to leaks from aging equipment in the United States and Mexico.
Transportation fuel emissions rose 10% in 2023 as Walmart’s U.S. trucking fleet expanded and business from third-party carriers increased.
Walmart said it is on track to meet its goal of supplying 48% of global electricity demand with renewable energy in 2023 and cutting that in half by 2025. But renewable power purchases outpaced Walmart’s overall business growth.
“We are the first retailer to set science-based emissions reduction targets, and our ambitious goal of zero by 2040 is It hasn’t changed.” “We have made meaningful progress on all sources of emissions, and as we have said, progress is not linear.”
Walmart does not have a firm goal to reduce its “Scope 3” emissions, which includes emissions from its supply chain and customer use of the products it sells. The company estimates its Scope 3 carbon dioxide emissions in 2023 to be 618.9 million tonnes, an increase of 5.3% from 2022.
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