Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the pharmaceutical industry

This paper is focused on the greenhouse gas emissions in the pharmaceutical sector. The case study reported is that of Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A., a pharmaceutical company based in Parma. Sustainability has always been a primary concern in the way Chiesi operates. Fully aware of the climate emergency that the planet Earth is tackling, Chiesi has set itself a challenge and announces its commitment to becoming carbon neutral by the end 2035, reducing its greenhouse gas emissions and offsetting emissions that are no further reducible to achieve a net zero carbon footprint. There are several existing initiatives to achieve the Carbon Neutrality. The most important initiatives are the transition to a new propellant, that has a much smaller GWP than that of the actual propellant, and the installation of an abatement system to lower the emissions during the manufacturing phase of spray products. These initiatives are used to present reduction targets to the Science Based Target initiative. Science-based targets provide a clearly defined pathway for companies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, helping prevent the worst impacts of climate change and future-proof business growth. Targets are considered ‘science-based’ if they are in line with what the latest climate science deems necessary to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, limiting global warming to well-below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C. Chiesi is investing a lot of time and money to set its reduction targets in line with the Paris Agreement, but the present study demonstrates that the there are several important benefits. This is a clear evidence that suggests that financial and environmental performances are far from being exclusive and this is the road to follow both for the public and the private sectors.