Anyone picking up a prescription from their pharmacy is used to the reams of paper that typically accompany it: information on safety, storing, and how to use the drug. What if that information also included your medicine’s carbon footprint?
Some scientists are trying to calculate those footprints, as part of a growing effort to understand biotech and pharmaceutical companies’ contributions to climate change. While overall estimates suggest this industry emits millions of tons of carbon dioxide each year, it’s often tough to pinpoint the exact sources of those emissions, presenting a challenge as companies seek to reduce their footprints and outside organizations seek to evaluate their efforts.
A recent STAT report found that the majority of large pharmaceutical and biotech companies aren’t publicly disclosing their emissions to a global organization that sets standards for climate transparency. One key reason, experts say, is that pharma and biotech emissions can be difficult to estimate, especially for mid-size and smaller companies unable to devote teams of analysts to these calculations.
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