Australia Post sets new 2030 targets to reduce carbon emissions, enhance circularity
- Australia Post
- 7 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Australia Post announced March 4 that it has launched its 2030 sustainability framework, setting new targets to reduce carbon emissions and keep resources in use across its fleet, properties and operations over the next five years.
Having already achieved a 20 percent emissions reduction and a 39 percent reduction in waste to landfill from fiscal-year 2019, Australia Post’s new 2030 framework sharpens its focus on reducing the more challenging carbon emissions in its transport network while accelerating its approach to circularity as it strives toward targeting net-zero emissions by 2050.
Sharper carbon emissions targets for 2030
Under the 2030 plan, Australia Post has committed to four key targets:
Additional 8 percent reduction in scope 1 emissions by 2030 (from a 2025 baseline), driven by further electrification of its fleet, expanded rollout of electric delivery vehicles, electric trucks and increased use of low-carbon liquid fuels.
Increasing installed on-site solar capacity from 14 megawatts (MW) to 30 MW by 2030.
Maintaining 100 percent renewable-matched electricity, while reducing the proportion of grid-energy consumption at operational sites.
Maintain scope 3 emissions at 2025 levels through to 2030. While parcel volumes are expected to increase during this period, this will be achieved by working with air-freight partners, contractors and suppliers to reduce their transport-carbon emissions.
Recognizing that transport is the largest contributor to its carbon footprint, Australia Post will prioritize lower-emissions vehicles, renewable energy integration and route optimization across its national network.
The framework also marks a shift toward a more circular approach to materials, moving beyond a traditional “take-make-waste” model.
Australia Post’s 2030 circularity targets include:
A further 30 percent reduction in waste sent to landfill (from a 2025 baseline).
An 80 percent waste diversion from landfill.
Beyond reducing its own impact, Australia Post is also exploring how its national infrastructure can help play a role in supporting a more circular economy for all Australians.
Richard Pittard, Australia Post’s chief sustainability officer, said the framework ensures Australia Post is well-positioned to meet its long-term sustainability commitments.
“This is about upgrading Australia Post for the future,” Pittard said. “We’re moving beyond incremental improvements to focus on the structural changes that will have the greatest impact, particularly across transport, energy and resource use.”
Reducing emissions in a network as large and complex as Australia Post’s is not simple, he added.
“It requires electrification, low-carbon fuels, renewable energy and smarter logistics but just as importantly, it requires partnership across our supply chain,” Pittard said. “We’re also rethinking how we use materials. By embedding circular principles into how we operate, using less, using longer and using again we can reduce waste within our business and explore how our national network can help Australians do the same.”
Australia Post said it will report transparently on its progress through annual reporting, tracking key metrics including carbon emissions, renewable energy use, installed solar capacity, landfill waste and recycling rates.
