Amazon makes major change to its delivery operations that could transform industry: 'Will have a very large impact'

With some sources estimating that Amazon is responsible for up to 15 billion packages traveling along its routes worldwide each year, the company has a significant carbon footprint.

Fortunately, the company seems committed to its sustainability goals, and its increasing reliance on electric delivery vehicles supports that mission. "Amazon uses electric vehicles to support several areas of its supply chain, and its delivery fleet has provided 1.5 billion packages to customers," reported Sustainability Magazine.

With a fleet of more than 30,000 electric vehicles, Amazon is becoming a major leader of the clean energy transition in the transportation sector. Widespread adoption of electric transportation is required across the ground, air, and maritime industries to prevent the planet from overheating to a dangerous and irreversible point.

Massive corporations like Amazon certainly are responsible for the lion's share of carbon output, but when they do take eco-friendly action, it sets an example. "[T]he echo effect of this, of causing other logistics players in this space to also look at how they drive up efficiency within their fleet, will have a very large impact," said R.J. Scaringe, CEO of Rivian.

Amazon still has a long way to go. It will need to make significant operational changes to reduce its substantial carbon footprint. Andy Jassy, CEO of Amazon, said: "Our transportation network is one of the most challenging areas of our business to decarbonize, and to achieve net-zero carbon will require a substantial and sustained investment."

While transportation is a good place to start the clean-energy transition, Amazon will also need to address the pollution issue of its data centers, which power its online operations. However, it has begun to address other pressure points in its supply chain, such as reducing the amount of plastic used in its packaging.

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By teaming up with EV manufacturer Rivian, Amazon might meet its goal to have at least 100,000 electric delivery vans in service by 2030. "To support its EV network, Amazon installed 11,770 chargers at 50 delivery stations, creating the largest private charging network in the US," reported Sustainability Magazine.

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