Climate change has been on the minds of many, lately. The National Climate Assessment, compiled by numerous federal agencies, indicates that adverse weather events have spiked across the United States in the last decade – increased hurricanes in the Southeast, a higher frequency of droughts in the Midwest, and near-annual fires in West – due, in large part, to rising global temperatures.
The urgency of implementing green and/or sustainable policies has never been clearer, and on that front, some progress is being made. Renewable energy is fast becoming both widely available and affordable, and the federal government is investing in infrastructure projects designed to weather-proof vulnerable areas of the country and transition away from fossil fuels.
Many of Hollywood’s largest stars – from Leonardo DiCaprio to Matt Damon – have been very vocal about the importance of everyday sustainability, carbon neutral living, and implementing green policies on a state and federal level. However, despite the outward commitment and vocal support of environmental policies from many Hollywood stars, such support does not always translate into the nuts and bolts of film and television production.
In fact, Hollywood is a relatively wasteful industry. In March of 2021, the Sustainable Production Alliance released a Emissions report outlining the environmental costs of productions – from tentpole features, to indies, to television shows. The report measured the average carbon footprint of these productions, and the results reveal that most productions leave a carbon footprint somewhere between 1,081 metric tons and 760 metric tons. Large tentpole projects exceed 3,000 metric tons per project.
The small screen fares better. One-hour scripted dramas tend to be the most wasteful, clocking in with a carbon footprint of 77 metric tons, while unscripted shows end up at a mere 13 metric tons.
