Over the weekend Oregon officials held a public hearing on a bill aimed to decrease Oregon’s carbon emissions. The public hearing on the bill had a turnout of more than 100 people, but the crowd was anything but united.
The “cap and trade” bill can control pollution by having very clear limits on carbon emissions. However, the sharing and buying of emissions from others is part of that bill as well. This means that if a business reaches their carbon emissions limit, they can purchased unused emissions levels from another business who has not used their emissions allowance.
Sounds good right? This may be just on the surface. John Philo, former county GOP chairman noted that the new bill can lead to, “Harming the neighborhoods it’s designed to protect.” His comment is based on California cap and trade data, letting businesses pollute if they have big pockets to buy more carbon emissions.
All About House Bill 2020 and the Soon to be Created Carbon Policy Office
The carbon emissions cap and trade is part of House Bill 2020 and the creation of the Carbon Policy Office. It essentially provides a market-based way to control compliance. But if Oregonians are not on board, this could all be for not.
Last Saturday’s public hearing was the last held by the Joint Committee on Carbon Reduction at Central Oregon Community College. There have been five held for public questions and debate since the bill was put up in the House. And the criticism has been pretty tough.
Many Oregonians in opposition of the bill believe it would raise gas prices in the state. This means that Oregon could have the third highest gas prices in the US. But despite gas prices, there are many Oregonians in favor, simply happy to do their part for the planet.
What Does this Mean for Central Oregon Business?
There are certainly pros and cons to the bill, depending on what side of the room you were on last Saturday evening at Central Oregon Community College. The fact of the matter is that many Central Oregon businesses can cut carbon emissions without a cap and trade bill in place. It is called environmental responsibility by businesses, both large and small.
Technology has ushered in a lot of innovative ways to cut carbon emissions by simply making business workflows far more efficient. This is good for business bottom line and the environment.
For instance, logistics and shipping traditionally eats up a lot of energy and emits a lot of carbon emissions. However, there are ways to change these processes. First, businesses need to account for consumer behavior shifts and the “want it now” mantra.
“These shifting consumer preferences have strained the capabilities of regional customized logistics and delivery companies,” Shipping intelligence company Reveel explained. “In order to keep up, it’s now necessary for them to maximize delivery density, boost driver production, and invest in more sophisticated technology solutions.”
By using shipping intelligence, businesses get real-time analytics on shipping, whether it is coming or going, thus allowing them to tweak business processes that are efficient, as well as environmentally sustainable. It’s a win-win.
Global Retailers in Central Oregon Need to Show Good Faith
One of the biggest issues Oregonians have with the new cap and trade bill is the potential for large businesses to simply buy as much emissions credit as needed to do business. This could lead to serious issues.
But there is a way around this issue. Global retailers can be a bit more transparent with how they are putting a greener footprint forward. For example, several large retailers are taking a bigger green step forward by focusing on reverse logistics and consumer returns.
Did you know that there were $369 billion in returns made in 2018? That adds up to a lot of products being returned to stores, which end up being transported via millions of CO2 emitting 18-wheelers. However, retailers are partnering with companies like goTRG to make the least environmental impact possible when it comes to retail returns.
Using goTRG business solution and SaaS technology, global retailers can make better disposition decisions on returned products, like restocking insteading of shipping to a returns center hundreds of miles away via freight. Another win-win.
In Conclusion . . .
It is clear that Central Oregon wants to control the carbon emissions in some way. But how it is done is still unclear. The cap and trade bill and the establishment of the Carbon Policy Office could have benefits and advantages. There just seems like there is a bit more convincing to do. What is your take on House Bill 2020? We want to hear from you.
