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Scope for change? The channel’s role in reducing Scope 3 emissions
This article is part of the MicroScope issue of November-December 2025
When Westcon-Comstor’s recent Responsible business report noted declines in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions but an increase in Scope 3 (supply chain) emissions, it highlighted a major difficulty for channel companies because the supply chain accounts for a vast proportion of their emissions. In the case of Westcon-Comstor, over 99% of its overall emissions are Scope 3, originating from activities upstream and downstream of its business, with upstream manufacturing and transportation of purchased goods and services (48%) and downstream energy consumption for hardware (45%) accounting for most of them. Despite all the work and effort Westcon-Comstor puts into reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, any attempt to reduce Scope 3 emissions is incredibly daunting. To put it into perspective, reducing Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 100% would still leave more than 99% of Westcon-Comstor’s overall emissions untouched. This is a massive problem for many businesses. According to the recent Carbon action report 2025, produced by EcoVadis ...
Features in this issue
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Scope for change? The channel’s role in reducing Scope 3 emissions
To reduce carbon emissions across the supply chain, there needs to be widespread involvement, as Billy MacInnes finds out
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Channel urged to keep the green flag flying
Sustainability has taken a bashing, but those still committed to reducing emissions are doing the right thing