Decarbonizing Logistics: Distributing Goods in a Low Carbon World

Logistics accounts for around 9-10% of global CO2 emissions and will be one of the hardest economic sectors to decarbonize. This is partly because the demand for freight transport is expected to rise sharply over the next few decades, but also because it relies very heavily on fossil fuel. This book outlines the nature and extent of the challenge we face in trying to achieve deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from logistical activities. It makes a detailed assessment of the available options, including restructuring supply chains, shifting freight to lower carbon transport modes and transforming energy use in the logistics sector. The options are examined from technological and managerial standpoints for all the main freight transport modes.

Based on an up-to-date review of almost 600 publications and containing new analytical frameworks and research results, this book is the first to provide a global, multi-disciplinary perspective on the subject. It is written by one of the foremost specialists in the field who has spent many years researching the links between logistics and climate change and been an adviser to governments, international organizations and companies on the topic.

About the Author

Alan McKinnon is Professor of Logistics at Kühne Logistics University, Hamburg. He has been researching and teaching freight transport and logistics for almost forty years and has published extensively in journals and books. He was a member of the European Commission's High Level Group on Logistics, Chairman of the World Economic Forum's Logistics and Supply Chain Industry Council and a lead author of the transport chapter of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's fifth assessment report. He has spent many years researching the links between logistics and climate change and been an adviser to governments, international organizations and companies on this topic.