Is telecommuting really the greener option?
SEP 10, 2010
DOI: 10.1063/PT.5.024662
Washington Post : In the Green Lantern, a weekly environmental column from Slate, Brian Palmer discusses whether telecommuting is greener than traveling to work. As Palmer points out, it’s complicated. Telecommuting rather than driving a car to work conserves fossil fuels and lessens carbon dioxide emissions. However, in staying home, one expends energy heating or cooling the house; running one’s own printer, fax machine, and other office equipment; and taking on extra tasks, such as going to the grocery store or running the dishwasher. Palmer tackles the question in an entertaining fashion and cites the statistics to back up his concluding statement: “Abandon your car first, then worry about whether you’d rather take the bus or stay home.”
© 2010 American Institute of Physics
