Those who regularly work from home may have a bigger carbon footprint than those who travel to the office every day, according to an academic.
Frequent home workers tend to live further away from their offices, save more time when they are not commuting and may then spend it on polluting activities, Corinne Le Quéré told Cop26 yesterday.
Speaking at the science pavilion Le Quéré, the Royal Society professor of climate change at the University of East Anglia, said that on a day working from home there might be no emissions from commuting. However, citing research done before the pandemic, she added: “People who work from home typically moved away further from their work so that when they did commute, they actually made up for all the gains [in reduced carbon footprint].”
During the height of the pandemic office workers were asked to work from home to avoid transmitting Covid-19 on buses and trains and in offices. It is expected that many employers will allow staff to continue this several days a week after the pandemic recedes, allowing for greater flexibility and changes in the way that office space is used.
Speaking to The Times after the event, Le Quéré said that no research had yet been done on whether the increase in home working would benefit the environment overall. Previous research had shown that it might have a positive impact in summer, but a negative effect in winter when workers heated their homes.
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Le Quéré said: “Before the pandemic, people who worked from home had a higher carbon footprint from transport than the people who didn’t work from home, as they live further from their work so have a bigger carbon footprint [on the days they do commute].” She added that they might gain two hours a day but use that time instead to “drive their kids to the swimming pool or do something that involves the car”.
