Achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040

Amazon Carbon Footprint Measurement, Analysis and Carbon Reduction Methodology

Carbon dioxide levels in Earth's atmosphere have reached their highest level in 3 million years. Human activities such as burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and clearing agricultural land emit carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and other greenhouse gases (GHG), which build up heat in the atmosphere and contribute to climate change. From rising average temperatures to stronger and more frequent storms, droughts and wildfires, we are already seeing the effects.

Amazon views climate change as a major threat to our customers, the environment and our world. We endorse the scientific consensus of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that global temperature rise needs to be kept below 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid the worst impacts of climate change on people and the planet we all depend on. This requires reducing global net human-induced carbon dioxide emissions (from 2010 levels) by 40-60% by 2030, and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

What is Amazon's carbon footprint?

The carbon footprint measures the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions from the direct and indirect activities that support a company. These emissions are divided into three categories – 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Category 1 emissions come directly from the company's operations, such as the fuel burned by Amazon's delivery fleet. Category 32 emissions arise from activities that generate purchased energy, such as the electricity that powers Amazon facilities. 4 Category 3 emissions include all activities other than the company's direct operations, such as the production of Amazon's packaging and equipment.

To calculate Amazon's carbon footprint, we consider a range of direct and indirect emissions from our upstream and downstream operations. We set a comprehensive system boundary that includes the following emission sources:

• Amazon's last-mile delivery fleet
• Amazon-operated freight, including trucks and planes
• Purchased shipping services (such as postal services) and other contract shipments
• Electricity used by our fulfillment centers, data centers, brick-and-mortar stores and other facilities
• Amazon Packaging
• Manufactured by Amazon products such as Echo devices, Kindle e-book readers, AmazonBasics, Whole Foods Market brands, and other Amazon-owned
• Brand products
• Our customers' use of Amazon devices
• Capital goods, such as emissions from building construction, server and equipment manufacturing, and other Amazon infrastructure production
• Company operating expenses, such as travel, office supplies, company events, outside consulting services, and other expenses
• Customers shop at Amazon brick-and-mortar stores (such as Whole Foods Market)
• Coolants for cooling in our data centers, corporate offices, grocery stores, and fulfillment centers

By multiplying the amount of activity performed (such as miles driven or fuel capacity burned) by its appropriate lifecycle "emission factor" (such as grams of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity used), we Estimate the amount of GHG emissions from each of the above activities, which provides a proxy for the CO2 emissions associated with that activity.

Once the emissions from all activities are calculated, we add them up to arrive at Amazon's entire corporate carbon footprint, covering our brick-and-mortar and online retail operations, cloud computing, device manufacturing, and other business activities.

Our approach to quantifying our carbon footprint reflects the complexity of our business. Our team of researchers and scientists has combined advanced Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) science and Amazon Cloud Big Data technology to develop a robust software solution for processing billions of records from Amazon's global operations Operational and financial records to calculate our carbon footprint. The software estimates carbon emissions from all activities within our system boundaries using a dollar-based environmental assessment model, then improves the accuracy of carbon-intensive activities through a detailed, process-based life cycle assessment model.

This hybrid carbon footprint approach consists of the following 5 scientific models:

1. Financials: We combine Amazon spending data with industry-specific, dollar-based emission factors (such as the standard amount of CO2 pollution associated with each dollar spent on an activity). We use this model to capture carbon emissions from activities such as the construction of Amazon buildings, the production of Amazon Private Label products, the equipment used in our warehouses, office supplies, and other purchased goods and services.

2. Shipping: We track carbon emissions from shipping products to Amazon warehouses, warehouse-to-warehouse transportation, and to customers' homes, Amazon express lockers, and other pickup points. This includes estimated emissions from customers traveling to brick-and-mortar stores.

3. Electricity: We consider the impact of the energy consumed by our offices, data centers and warehouses, as well as the renewable energy benefits we generate globally.

4. Packaging: We carefully consider the materials and processing behind the various boxes, parcels, and other packaging items used to sell products on Amazon.

5. Amazon Devices: We have developed a dedicated carbon footprint model that addresses the complexities of manufacturing, use, and end-of-life for Amazon devices, including Echo devices, Kindle e-book readers, Fire Tablet, Fire TV, Ring, Blink, and others All equipment. This starts at the component level - including where the components are sourced and how the product is made - all the way to the customer's use of the product and ultimately the end of the product's life.

Our software implements these 5 models using Amazon cloud technology to translate physical and financial data into emissions measurements for specific Amazon business activities (eg, shipping, packaging). We then use these calculations to aggregate company-wide carbon footprints to identify the largest sources of emissions across our businesses. These results are designed to provide teams with actionable data and metrics to help them reduce carbon emissions. For example, the system will allow us to track activities such as the total emissions associated with shipments traveling through the Amazon fulfillment network on a given day, including from fulfillment centers (electricity model), shipping (shipping model), and packaging (packaging model) emissions.

Our carbon footprint complies with generally accepted international standards for greenhouse gas accounting and is independently audited and verified by Apex under the International Organization for Standardization ISO 14064-3 verification protocol.

The following details the science and data used by each of the emissions models we have built to measure Amazon's carbon footprint.

financial emissions model

Using the Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Assessment (EIO LCA) methodology, our dollar-based model compares Amazon Ledger spending data with industry-specific, dollar-based emission factors (eg, 1,556 grams of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per dollar of trucking) are combined. The EIO LCA emissions factor takes into account the “cradle-to-gate” emissions required for any industry to produce $1 of a good or service, including emissions from raw material extraction, energy use, supply chain transportation, and manufacturing. This approach uses economic input-output data collected by the government to track the input "recipe" needed to produce any good or service. For example, producing a $10,000 computer in the United States requires $1,466 in computer storage manufacturing, $491 in printed circuit assembly, and so on.

7 The EIO LCA explains the carbon emissions from the production of these intermediate inputs, as well as the carbon emissions from the production of all inputs upstream in our supply chain.

We use the EIO LCA by mapping Amazon's spend to one or more industry sectors and multiplying the appropriate emissions factor by the dollar spent. For example, spending incurred by third-party carriers shipping packages maps to the courier and postman domains (ie, 224 grams of carbon dioxide equivalent per dollar), and shipping boxes maps to the field of cardboard box manufacturing (ie, 807 grams of carbon dioxide equivalent per dollar). This approach is the most effective way to ensure that each corporate activity corresponds to an approximate carbon footprint. Outside of Amazon, this method is often used by a variety of organizations to estimate carbon footprints, including large companies that disclose their carbon emissions, government agencies like the U.S. Department of Defense, and even individuals who want to understand the environmental impact of their personal activities.

transport emissions model

Shipping products for customers is an integral part of Amazon's business. Trips vary by mode, purpose, productivity, time, and other localized variables, resulting in various emission factors associated with transportation activities. To account for this complexity, we use a robust modeling framework that estimates carbon emissions at the trip level and accommodates varying levels of data availability. Our assessments include shipping activities managed by Amazon and our third-party shipping providers, as well as emissions from customers traveling to Amazon retail stores and Whole Foods Market stores.

Transport Emission Factor

Transportation activities generate carbon emissions through the burning of fossil fuels in vehicles, vehicle manufacturing, and the fuel supply chain. The emissions model for transportation includes emissions associated with the "well-to-wheel" impacts - extraction, refining, distribution and consumption of transportation fuels - and the "vehicle" impacts - the manufacture, maintenance and disposal of vehicles. These impacts are recorded as emission factors based on grams of carbon dioxide equivalent per kilometer travelled.

The transport emissions model quantifies these effects using two separate tools. For "well-to-wheel" impacts, the emissions model estimates the carbon intensity of "well" fuels (e.g. , grams of carbon dioxide per megajoule). GREET is an LCA tool for evaluating various transportation fuels including diesel, gasoline, hydrogen, natural gas, and biofuels. Vehicle fuel consumption rates are based on fleet averages across countries - including the US Environmental Protection Agency, the US Department of Energy, the European Union, the United Nations, and the International Council on Clean Transportation.

For vehicle impacts, emissions models use commercial LCA software - which maintains an up-to-date library of peer-reviewed LCA emission coefficients - to estimate emissions associated with vehicle manufacture (including batteries), maintenance and disposal. Estimates of miles traveled over a vehicle's life cycle are based on a report from the United Nations International Resource Council, which examines vehicle age around the world. In summary, our vehicle model aggregates emission factors for fleets operating around the world and generates emission factors for more than 100 "well-to-home pump" fuel pathways.

Customers go to the store

Using travel behavior information disclosed by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration in the National Household Travel Survey (NHTS), we constructed a calculation for total emissions from customer trips to Amazon's brick-and-mortar stores, such as Whole Foods Market. Future versions of the model may incorporate customer survey data. The model focuses on the following three variables that affect emissions from such activities:

Driving Distance - We use NHTS data to estimate the typical driving distance for a customer to "shop" based on the customer's environment (eg urban, suburban, or rural). We assume that customers travel to only one destination and that all trips are direct and round-trip.

Mode of Transportation Used - NHTS data shows the probability that a customer will use a certain mode of transportation in the following 5 modes of transportation: car, light truck (eg, truck, SUV, van), transportation (eg, bus, rail), non-motorized (eg walking, cycling) and others.

Total customer trips per year - We estimate customer trips based on the physical store's environment, such as urban, suburban, or rural.

After collecting this data and emission factors for all vehicles and modes of transport, we multiplied the miles driven by each mode by the appropriate emission factor, and then multiplied that result by the total number of customers in the year.

Packaging Emission Model

We built a detailed emissions model to quantify the carbon footprint of each type of Amazon packaging, such as corrugated boxes or mailers, from production to end-of-life. Carbon emissions occur throughout the extraction, processing, manufacturing and disposal of raw materials for packaging. Given key parameters such as material type, quality and size, our environmental packaging model quantifies the carbon footprint of each package from manufacture to end-of-life. Based on Amazon's detailed data on packaging materials, thicknesses, and recycling rates, the emissions model generates life-cycle carbon emission factors for hundreds of packaging types. On a per-package basis, we apply region-specific package emission factors to outbound shipments to calculate total package emissions. The calculation covers emissions from raw materials and intermediate products, through the manufacture of shipping boxes, all the way to the end of the package's life (i.e. recycling or disposal). The service uses industry standard LCA data from commercial LCA tools to model raw material and manufacturing process impacts.

Electricity Emissions Model

We calculated the carbon footprint of electricity purchased across Amazon's facilities, including data centers, fulfillment network facilities, retail stores, and corporate offices. Electricity emission factors account for direct emissions from power plants, transmission and distribution losses. The largest source of carbon emissions from our facilities is the electricity used to support our operations. We collect usage data from facilities around the world and process data from utility invoices to gain visibility into electricity and fuel usage. When actual consumption data was not available, we estimated electricity consumption by dividing the electricity bill amount (USD) by the regional average electricity price (USD/kWh). We then calculated carbon emissions by multiplying the electricity consumed by each facility (kWh) by an emission factor (CO2 equiv/kWh) associated with the regional grid mix.

When we buy solar and wind energy, we use a market-based approach in the Greenhouse Gas Accounting System to demonstrate how much purchasing renewable energy—such as from Amazon's Texas wind farm—can reduce our consumption of electricity from the grid. 1 Using this standard methodology, we are able to account for Amazon’s annual reductions in electricity emissions as we work towards making our global infrastructure 100% renewable.

Calculating carbon emissions from electricity relies on accurate data on various emission factors from local, national and regional sources. The electricity consumed by a site is multiplied by the emission factor for the site's location. The amount of carbon emissions from electricity generation varies widely among utility providers, states, countries, and regions, depending on the technology used to generate electricity. Some countries rely heavily on coal, while others use large amounts of low-carbon wind or hydropower.

To obtain these coefficients, we constructed a geospatial emissions model that uses the most refined electricity generation data available. In this way, all of Amazon's facilities can be placed on the map and associated with the most accurate emission factors. The authoritative source of emissions in the United States comes from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's eGrid data (electricity emissions for sub-regions of the U.S. grid).

The International Energy Agency (IEA) provides average electricity emissions per kWh for almost all countries and regions in the world. Some countries, such as Australia and Canada, report state or provincial emissions data, which further increases the granularity of the data.

Amazon Device Emissions Model

We quantify the carbon footprint of Amazon devices sold in a given year using detailed data on individual device components and annual sales. We build detailed parametric models for our major device types, including Fire TV, Echo, Fire Tablets, Kindle, Ring Doorbells, Blink, and more. We calculated the carbon footprint of each device type by examining the device's "bill of materials" - detailing the mass and composition of the components in the device - and modeled the life cycle emissions of each component using commercially and publicly available LCA databases. After modeling the stages of the life cycle, our research team established emission factors for each device by aggregating carbon emissions from manufacturing, transportation, and end-of-life stages of the device. We convert these emission factors by number of sales to estimate the carbon footprint associated with manufacturing, shipping, and end-of-life disposal of all Amazon devices sold in a given year. For use-phase emissions, we established a methodology that used telemetry data to determine the number of devices activated on site, and then multiplied the number of devices by the average annual energy use of each device. We then calculate the emissions associated with the usage of our equipment. For energy use matched through our Renewable Energy Matching Program, we calculate emissions associated with each type of renewable energy. For energy use that we have not yet matched, we calculate emissions associated with the electrical grid in the country in which the device is reported. In summary, the annual emissions of equipment are determined by the sum of the annual emissions of all life cycle stages.

Commences the goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2040

Achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 begins with a detailed understanding of our company's carbon footprint, a comprehensive understanding of our operations and how every part of our business can drive emissions reductions. Our work in quantifying our own carbon footprint allows us to identify the largest sources of carbon emissions in the Amazon and prioritize the carbon reduction activities that have the greatest impact on reducing our carbon footprint. We are committed to using our advanced technology and innovation culture to systematically track our progress in promoting carbon reduction in our operations.

As Amazon continues to grow, so too will our approach to driving carbon reductions. This will require continuous iteration, improvement and experimentation to contribute more to our customers in the process of reducing emissions. We will continue to work on improving our ability to obtain more granular data about our operations and develop new models to help us reduce carbon emissions faster and more efficiently. We aim to make this information easily accessible to our customers, investors and other stakeholders at all stages of carbon reduction.

At present, companies from all walks of life have set their own sustainable development goals. In order to help companies monitor and monitor their carbon emissions data by building applications, Amazon Cloud Technology has launched a cloud service carbon footprint tool "Customer Carbon Footprint Tool". , in addition to showing the carbon footprint of each service a user currently uses, the new tool will also show how the sustainability investment will reduce the carbon intensity of the user's workload as Amazon continues to move towards net zero carbon emissions. Enterprises provide carbon emission forecasts generated by services in the next few years to help enterprises achieve their own carbon reduction goals.

As long as you're an Amazon Cloud Technologies customer, you can use the tools for free to accelerate your sustainability goals.