Riccardo Liguori The president of the USA has ordered over a million federal employees to return to the office. A decision which, in addition to changing the lives of many families, could have a significant environmental impact, canceling out the ecological benefits of remote working
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Donald Trump has put a return to “normality” at the center of his new presidency. One of the first things he did was to sign an executive order requiring federal employees to be back in the office, basically shutting down working from home schemes. But how will this act affect the environment?
A million workers on the move
The US federal government is the largest employer in America, with 2.3 million employees. Around 1.1 million were eligible to work from home, and 228,000 of them reported full-time from home, Reuters has said. All of them will now have to return to their offices.
It is not merely organizational but also logistic: hundreds of thousands of workers will be on their daily drives, and thus there will be a massive increase in traffic and carbon output. According to data from Cornell University, teleworking saves as much as 54% of emissions, while hybrid working can save 11% to 29%. Trump’s action therefore works against these advances.
The environmental impact of driving
Commuting is America’s biggest source of CO2 emissions. A typical car emits approximately 0.77 pounds (350 grams) of CO2 per mile, with a third extra during rush hour. A forced return to the office will mean more cars on the road, more traffic, and more energy consumption for lighting, heating, and cooling office space.
In addition, the federal government had ambitious climate targets: public buildings were to reach net-zero emissions by 2045, and 50% by 2023. But the new policy launched by the Trump administration has rendered these targets more flexible and less binding.
A social and economic cost
The impact is not just on the environment. The majority of workers had readjusted their lives to remote work: they moved to further-out houses from towns, altered children’s schools, and rescheduled their spouses’ workdays to fit the new reality. Office return will now involve extra logistical inconvenience and unexpected expenses for many tens of thousands of families.
The Trump administration takes this step on the argument that the country must raise productivity and provide quality service to its citizens. Science, however, does not agree: different studies indicate that telecommuting not only saves carbon but also boosts worker productivity and satisfaction.
Will returning to the office benefit the nation overall? Or will it turn into a boomerang with negative impacts on the environment, economy, and lifestyle?
