Amazon’s Electric Future? Delivery’s Hidden Costs
In the past year, Amazon has begun its public push towards electric vehicles, as more and more Rivian-powered electric vans crisscross the nation, supplying the public with essentials(?). This shakeup has been in store since 2019, when CEO Jeff Bezos announced Amazon’s climate pledge, which promised to put over 100,000 electric delivery vans on the road by 2030 (Wired). For all intents and purposes, this pledge is moving at pace, with over 15,000 vans already deployed. This statistic conceals a darker truth, as although these vans have indeed reduced the company’s carbon footprint, a report from Stand.earth found that the company’s emissions have only increased since Bezos announced the pledge in 2019 (Prime Polluter). The brunt of the increase is evident in air travel, with the company’s air freight pollution increasing by 67 percent and emitting over 2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in 2023 alone (Prime Polluter). Similar increases can be found in the company’s marine shipping and long-haul semitruck shipping categories and – most ironically – in the company’s last-mile delivery fleet, which the new Rivian trucks are a part of (Prime Polluter). As the study notes, the addition of over 100,000 electric vans is dwarfed by the existing fleet’s carbon dioxide output, which was almost 1.5 million metric tons in 2023 (Prime Polluter). These statistics provide insight into the philosophy behind Amazon’s current system. As long as the most public-facing sectors of the business appear to be moving towards sustainability, the company does not have to consider the damage caused by its current delivery infrastructure. These physical and bureaucratic decisions lead not to a greener future, but a mirage propped up on dishonest statistics and anticlimactic goals.
The system seems almost set up for destruction, similar to the northeast power grid of Bennett’s Vibrant Matter. Amazon’s actions do not individually destroy the environment, but instead slowly erode its state, with its destruction only becoming noticeable in hindsight. The addition of electric trucks is not a panacea for a looming climate problem, but rather a smokescreen designed to reframe public opinion on the company’s current environmental impact. To curb this, a policy-based solution must be considered, as a simple condemnation by the public offers little salvation. Whether it is through harsher emissions regulations or more substantial taxes on the company’s delivered goods, these damaging practices will only continue. To borrow from Bennett, Amazon’s existence as an assemblage extends beyond being just a private company or popular service. Its climate choices affect Earth’s community as much as any physical package, especially when it means producing several metric tons of carbon dioxide just in transport alone, ignoring any other ventures, such as its web hosting business. As a member of the assemblage, Amazon represents an actant with a significantly greater impact on the global community than many other organizations. Since the company’s operations are global, the consequences of their rising emissions will also be international. Thus, without international condemnation, Amazon faces little pressure to slow its delivery business. Without this, Amazon's continued environmental degradation will persist, leaving the rest of the world to contend with the devastation it causes.
Works Cited
“Prime Polluter.” Stand.Earth, https://stand.earth/resources/prime-polluter/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.
Bennett, Jane. Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things. With Project Muse, Duke University Press, 2010. K10plus ISBN.
Taft, Molly. “Amazon’s Shipping and Delivery Emissions Just Keep Going Up.” Wired. www.wired.com, https://www.wired.com/story/amazons-shipping-and-delivery-emissions-just-keep-going-up/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.