Now let’s break it down, what are the practices that add to CO2 emissions the most. The first on the list are items produced with depleting raw materials while acting as pollutants once their life cycle is over.

 

Paper is one such item. An estimated 18 million acres of forest are cut down each year to produce paper. Pulp and paper mills are one of the heaviest energy and water consumers, and deforestation amounts to 12-17% Greenhouse emissions. Paper-based products including cardboard amount to 35% of landfill waste.

 

Every ton of recycled paper amounts to 1,438L of oil saved.

 

The digitization of the office has provided us with an opportunity to cut down on usage. Going paperless is a simple step. Not only is the waste reduced but so is the purchasing, a significant cost can be averted by adopting green production practices in the office and on the set. (Link to toolkit)

 

 

Plastic is an aggressive pollutant. A plastic water bottle will take 700 years to biodegrade.     Recycling a ton of plastic saves the equivalent of 1,000- 2000 gallons of gasoline. Plastic water bottles are heavily used in offices and on set, especially in the hotter months. The worldwide production of plastic is currently at 35 kilograms per year per person. Production of plastic bottles amounts to 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide while being a carcinogenic pollutant, seeping into our soil and water supply. (Link to toolkit)          

            

                

Electricity consumption is linked to fossil fuels as most electricity is currently derived from Coal.  950 grams of CO2 for every kilowatt-hour of electricity they generate. Electricity generation is responsible for 42.5% of global CO2(Link to toolkit)

 

Fuel, as we know, is derived from non-renewable fossil fuels the production and combustion of which is the main cause of global warming.

 

Food waste derived from unconsumed food products contributes to CO2 emissions as food production such as farming and the meat industry are major emitters. Importing food instead of consuming locally sourced cranks up the CO2 emissions even further due to transportation and distribution.

 

Travel by plane, train or car is all Greenhouse contributors due to their heavy reliance on fossil-derived fuels.

 

All of the above are utilized in Production. There are smart and easy ways to make you production more efficient while cutting down on emissions. Check out the Production Toolkit to find out how!