Download our 2022 Recommerce Report highlights
SUSTAINABLE COMMERCE
SUSTAINABLE COMMERCE
We embrace sustainable practices to support a thriving environment.
Recommerce and environmental stewardship are core to our purpose. Every day, we help extend the life of items and seek operational efficiency to reduce our corporate footprint.
Sustainable Commerce
Environmental Footprint
Our Science-Based Target and annual Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) report show our momentum toward climate transparency and action — as do our continued participation in the CDP’s climate survey and inclusion in the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America Indices.
Learn more about our Science-Based Target and annual TCFD reports, and read our Environmental Policy for more.
Environmental Footprint
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
We report our GHG emissions in accordance with the World Resource Institute’s Greenhouse Gas Protocol. We set a Science-Based Target to reduce Scopes 1 and 2 emissions by 90% by 2030 from our 2019 baseline. Data coverage includes 100% of our operations. In 2022, we were carbon neutral for Scopes 1 and 2.
Emissions by Scope
When looking at our corporate footprint, data centers comprise 70% of our direct Scopes 1 and 2 emissions, while offices and direct business travel contribute to the remainder. As with most companies, our Scope 3 emissions far outweigh our Scopes 1 and 2. And as an online marketplace, the majority of our value chain emissions specifically come from the delivery of products.
About this chart
Pie chart showing the breakdown of our greenhouse gas emissions, with Scope 1 making up 0.3%, Scope 2 making up 1.9% and Scope 3 making up 97.8% of our total emissions.
Scopes 1 and 2
In 2022, we continued to implement energy-efficient practices, such as heating and cooling upgrades in Dublin and LED lighting in London. In our data centers, we continue to invest in more efficient cooling systems to reduce operational energy use. We’ve also purchased offsets to achieve carbon neutrality for the remainder of these emissions.
About this chart
Chart showing year-over-year changes in Scopes 1 and 2 emissions. In 2019, total Scopes 1 and 2 emissions equalled 63,887 mtons CO2e: 27,156 mtons CO2e came from Scope 1 emissions and 36,731 mtons CO2e came from Scope 2 emissions. In 2020, total Scopes 1 and 2 emissions decreased to 52,842 mtons CO2e: 16,395 mtons CO2e came from Scope 1 emissions and 36,447 mtons CO2e came from Scope 2 emissions. In 2021, total Scopes 1 and 2 emissions decreased to 46,673 mtons CO2e: 5,543 mtons CO2e came from Scope 1 emissions and 41,130 mtons CO2e came from Scope 2 emissions. In 2022, total Scopes 1 and 2 emissions decreased to 43,611 mtons CO2e: 5,133 mtons CO2e came from Scope 1 emissions and 38,478 mtons CO2e came from Scope 2 emissions.
Scope 3
In 2022, our Scope 3 emissions were primarily derived from the shipping and transportation of items purchased online. In addition, purchased goods and services and use of sold products comprised other significant sources of Scope 3 emissions. For eBay, use of sold products refers to the use of our online marketplace on electronic devices.
About this chart
Chart showing category breakdown of our Scope 3 emissions. Contributions include 126,200 mtons CO2e from purchased goods and services, 22,000 mtons CO2e from capital goods, 9,000 mtons CO2e from fuel-and-energy-related activities, 10,700 mtons CO2e from upstream transportation and distribution, 6,200 mtons CO2e from waste generated in operations, 10,198 mtons CO2e from business travel, 19,700 mtons CO2e from employee commuting, 1,477,000 mtons CO2e from downstream transportation and distribution and 276,000 mtons CO2e from the use of sold goods.
Environmental Footprint
USPS Carrier Engagement
We champion sustainable transportation practices on behalf of the millions of sellers and buyers on our marketplace.
Throughout 2022, we partnered with Etsy to encourage the U.S. Postal Service to adopt more innovative and sustainable shipping practices for small businesses who rely on USPS to reach their customers. Our efforts culminated in a letter, published in February 2023, congratulating USPS for their commitment to exclusively purchase electric delivery vehicles by 2026. This shift will help not just the environment, but also our customers by enabling lower costs and other benefits offered by an all-electric delivery fleet.
Our carrier partners are central to the success of our entrepreneurs, and we will continue to work closely with them to strengthen their ability to best serve small businesses with accessible and affordable package delivery while reducing our climate impact and promoting a cleaner future.
Environmental Footprint
Energy
Like other tech companies, our largest environmental impact comes from energy use in our offices and data centers — which is why we’re committed to investing in clean energy sources, with a goal to use exclusively renewable energy.
Energy Use
Our data centers comprised 86% of our total energy use in 2022. We started a multi-year retrofit of our data centers to reduce electrical redundancy and replace the existing Uninterruptible Power Supply system with high-efficiency models. To date, each of our primary data centers has earned the ENERGY STAR® for Data Centers Label.
About this chart
Chart showing the breakdown of energy use from 2019 to 2022 by energy type. In 2019, our offices and data centers used a total of 407,038 MWh of energy: 372,073 MWh of electric power, 25,709 MWh of natural gas and 9,256 MWh of other energy. In 2020, we used 367,099 MWh of total energy: 340,861 MWh of electric power, 23,940 MWh of natural gas and 2,298 MWh of other energy. In 2021, we used 402,674 MWh of total energy: 373,987 MWh of electric power, 25,538 MWh of natural gas and 3,149 MWh of other energy. In 2022, we used 410,202 MWh of total energy: 386,323 MWh of electric power, 19,761 MWh of natural gas and 4,118 MWh of other energy.
Renewable Energy
In our efforts to use 100% renewable energy by 2025, we consistently search for local, renewable energy solutions to power our offices and data centers. eBay has also invested in projects such as VPPAs in Texas and Louisiana when local solutions are not available, and we use 100% renewable energy at our San Jose headquarters along with eight other offices. In 2022, we completed an assessment of renewable energy options at international offices and will prioritize local green programs as feasible.
About this chart
Chart showing that from 2019 to 2022, our use of renewable energy has increased from 71% in 2019, to 81% in 2020, to 91% in 2021 and 2022.
EPA Green Power
Since 2020, we have been an official member of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Green Power Partnership, which encourages organizations to reduce the environmental impacts of conventional electricity by using green power. In 2022, we were once again included in the partnership’s Top 30 Tech & Telecom list, which highlights top Green Power Partners in tech.
Environmental Footprint
Water and Waste
We’re continuing to make strides in water conservation and waste reduction across our global offices.
Water Consumption
Water consumption continues to be of utmost importance. We work to ensure our water use data collection is precise, and we annually perform a global water risk assessment. In 2022, we converted to low-drip irrigation at our San Jose headquarters to reduce water usage. Our data centers use closed-loop water-based cooling systems to decrease water loss as well.
About this chart
Chart showing changes in water consumption, from 364,737 m³ in 2019, to 229,336 m³ in 2020, to 268,818 m³ in 2021, to 207,247 m³ in 2022.
Waste Diversion
We remain committed to reducing the amount of waste that leaves eBay owned sites and have maintained a high waste diversion rate at our San Jose headquarters. In addition, we continue to refine our waste data collection process and increase reporting sites across global operations.
About this chart
Chart showing our waste diversion rate, which went from 96.7% in 2019, to 97.5% in 2020, to 96.9% in 2021, to 96.7% in 2022.
Environmental Footprint
Biodiversity
We continue to seek opportunities to protect biodiversity and limit our impact on local ecosystems.
Biodiversity Risk Assessment
At the end of 2020, we conducted an analysis of our locations and examined their proximity to protected areas. This assessment evaluated potential risks throughout eBay’s portfolio of physical locations, including metro areas where eBay has a large presence. While none of our locations were deemed high risk, we continue to monitor each site closely for climate, biodiversity or nature risks and impacts. We plan on updating this assessment in 2023.
At eBay, we’re driving positive change. We are committed to minimizing our environmental footprint — embracing sustainable practices and promoting the circular economy to advance the future of our planet.
Sustainable Commerce
Key Sustainability Partnerships
We partner with several organizations to advocate for climate action and advance sustainable business practices.
Sustainable Commerce
Recommerce
We pioneered recommerce, or circular commerce, with the first sale on our marketplace in 1995: a pre-owned laser pointer, purchased by someone who wanted to fix it and give it a second life.
Recommerce
Promoting a Healthy Cycle
The resale of pre-loved and refurbished goods on our global platform conserves energy, resources and costs — bringing us one step closer to a more sustainable future.
Recommerce is and always has been central to eBay’s impact goals. Our environmental analysis now includes seven product categories in seven markets (U.S., U.K., Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Australia), and we’re continuing to expand our understanding of our environmental impacts. From 2021 to 2025, we aim to avoid 8 million metric tons of carbon emissions and 350,000 metric tons of waste. We also plan to enable the creation of $22 billion in positive economic impact from money saved by purchasing pre-loved and refurbished goods on our marketplace. These goals have been adjusted from the initial ambition to account for our expanded boundaries in product categories and markets.
Our sellers and buyers around the world recognize recommerce as an important source of income and savings, with the added benefit of contributing to a healthier planet. In our third annual Recommerce Report, we found that economic opportunity and sustainability remain key drivers behind the secondhand resale market.
eBay Refurbished
We’re investing further in the circular economy with our eBay Refurbished program. Refurbishing extends the lives of existing products and requires less energy compared to making new products, allowing shoppers to reduce their environmental impact.
Our customers can find fully functional items from premium brands like Apple, Samsung and Dyson, sourced directly from those brands and top-rated sellers. The program also offers one- and two-year warranties, making eBay a go-to destination for selling and buying refurbished goods. The program has grown significantly since its launch and marked its biggest sales week ever during Cyber Week 2022.
In February 2023, we completed a series of case studies examining the benefits of buying refurbished smartphones, laptops and vacuums in the U.S. — items that are representative of wider product categories on our marketplace, including mobile tech, computing and home goods. Our findings highlighted the avoided carbon emissions, avoided waste and financial benefits associated with shopping refurbished, such as the fact that in 2022, refurbished smartphone sales on eBay avoided 19,800 tons of CO2 emissions, equal to taking 3,900 cars off the road for a year.
