Storage for the Environmentally Conscious: How Self-Storage Can Help You to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

Storage for the Environmentally Conscious: How Self-Storage Can Help You to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

In 2021, global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels and the industry were 37.12 billion metric tonnes (GtCO2). This is significant because 2021 spelled the end of all UK lockdowns and local restrictions. The country opened up. People began consuming carbon dioxide in greater quantities.

But this doesn’t tell the whole story. According to the Global Carbon Project (GCP), pre-pandemic fossil fuel emissions hit record levels. As people returned to life after COVID-19 in 2022, greenhouse gases in the UK fell.

But why is this? Rising energy prices have played a part. Then there’s the fact that 2022 was generally warmer than 2021. The result? People aren’t using as much energy to heat their homes and places of work.

So, why are we placing an emphasis on scientific data about carbon emissions? Well, environmental data informs people’s opinions. And businesses made decisions to meet the demands of their prospects, customers, and advocates.

Nowadays, a lot of people form their opinions of businesses, large and small, based on a few key factors. The quality of the product or service, whether it meets their needs, the perceived inherent value of that product or service, and more. However, what has become clear is that more and more consumers spend their money with businesses that have strong values. Who demonstrate their positive social impact.

Business services that can offer you ways to, for example, reduce your carbon footprint and positively influence the world around you are often favoured by consumers. Self-storage is one of these services.

Interested in learning how self-storage can help you reduce your carbon footprint in addition to providing you with a range of services to better organise your life? Keep reading below.

Storing vs. Buying: Which One is More Sustainable?

Ever heard the term waste not, want not? It’s a philosophy that has resonated with people since the dawn of civilization. It goes against our own consumerist culture and, perhaps unsurprisingly, was very popular with previous generations. But not so much this generation.

Our lifestyles can be quite wasteful. Just think about all the items you bought recently but didn’t use to their full potential. Everything from the weekly supermarket shop to buying four pints of milk when you only really need two to bottled water when you have a tap. That gym membership you signed up for only to forget about three months later. Leasing or buying that BMW, Bentley, or Range Rover when you could quite as easily drive around in a Toyota, VW, or the UK’s most reliable car, the Lexus NX. That aesthetic coffee table Bookcase. Peloton bike. At the point of purchase, these it seemed essential. But can you say that a month, a year, or a decade later?

A great deal of what we accumulate becomes expendable sooner rather than later. Storing items just makes sense. It can also save you from buying something new when you don’t really need to. Everyone knows that storing items prolongs their lifespan. But your storage environment makes all the difference. Storing perishables for self-storage isn’t the best decision. Just as storing your vehicle outside during monsoon season isn’t either.

Now, sure, storing what you own but cannot find a place for in the home is helpful. But it also makes sense from a financial and environmental perspective. Sure, self-storage facilities are not immune from their carbon footprint. However, they also help people save on resources rather than consume them.

Storing is much more sustainable than buying.

Doing your part for the environment.

Many people, especially families, buy larger houses than they need simply because they have too much stuff to store. A home where every room is packed floor to ceiling with what you own, large and small, one with bulging wardrobes and storage intruding into the living areas, is not a comfortable place to live.

But there’s the problem that bigger houses have bigger carbon footprints. They cost more to heat in the winter and keep cool in the summer. Using self-storage gives people the opportunity to downsize if they want, saving money on rental and mortgage costs.

Living in a home with enough organised space to be comfortable will not only benefit the environment but also clear your mind and make it easier to relax, something that’s imperative, especially after a trying day!

Are we saying that you have to immediately hand in the notice on your rental lease or sell up and downsize your home? Of course not. What we are saying is that not owning or renting a home with a square footage in the thousands, one with a substantial carbon footprint, can be quite liberating for you and the environment.

How to minimise your carbon footprint when using a self-storage unit.

When using a self-storage unit, paying attention to the details can have a positive environmental impact. For instance, liberal use of plastic, which, as we all know, takes a long time—decades to centuries—to degrade, will reduce your carbon footprint.

Then there’s any travel to and from your self-storage unit. Petrol and diesel cars that spew out noxious, harmful gases are not good for the environment. The carbon dioxide they emit creates an invisible layer in the atmosphere, which stops heat from escaping and warms our planet.

So, if you decide to lease a self-storage unit, be sure to find one that’s located close enough to your home that you’re not travelling for hours when transporting your belongings to and from it. Now, of course, we’re not saying that everyone should choose a self-storage facility that’s a stone’s throw from their home. However, if you’re interested in ways to minimise your self-storage carbon output, unit location is important, unless you own an electric vehicle.

Next come the packaging materials. You’ll want to protect the belongings that you’re storing but wrapping them in plastic is not the best solution for the environment. Instead, try using newspaper or other biodegradable packing materials. Avoid using Styrofoam and polystyrene beads.

You could also talk to the self-storage facility to see if they use LEDs instead of regular lightbulbs to illuminate the facility. LEDs consume a lot less electricity, making them more efficient than regular lightbulbs.

The role of self-storage in the circular economy.

You may have heard a lot about the circular economy. For anyone who doesn’t know, the circular economy is a system of practices that focus on reusing and regenerating materials so that there is less production and, therefore, better for the environment.

Businesses play an important role in the circular economy. This is arguably best exemplified by the fact that self-storage can prove to be essential for many businesses, especially smaller businesses, like, for example, retailers who have an abundance of winter and summer stock they need storage for. By storing excess stock, businesses reduce waste and conserve resources. In essence, resources are conserved until they’re needed.

Let’s not forget, too, that self-storage contributes to the circular economy by providing a space for individuals and businesses to store items to be repaired or refurbished. For example, a furniture seller or repair shop may not have the square footage to keep an abundance of furniture on site. But renting a self-storage unit means that they can repair or store more furniture, giving people the opportunity to repair and reuse furniture rather than just discard it. Again, this contributes to the circular economy.

Self-storage is a must for the environmentally conscious.

Whether you’re someone who has made a commitment to living sustainably at home or promoting a sustainable working environment, self-storage can help you live with this ethos.

Take some time to assess your workplace. Could you place more emphasis on sustainability? Might it be better to, for example, lease a self-storage unit to reduce the square footage of your business and therefore its carbon output?

What about your home? Are you someone with an abundance of personal belongings filling every room? How much of this stuff do you use on a daily basis? Could you be happier and have less stress by reducing your square footage?

What about the environment? Do you want your home to be rich in clean air with a comfortable temperature? Welcome environment? Even more, are you concerned about what the planet will be like for future generations?

If this sounds familiar—and you’ve not already—it could be time to make some changes that will benefit you, your life, and the world.

Resources:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/276629/global-co2-emissions/#:~:text=Global%20carbon%20dioxide%20emissions%20from,by%20more%20than%2060%20percent.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1147372/2022_Provisional_emissions_statistics_report.pdf