This week, Green America congratulated T-Mobile on being the first telecom company in the U.S. to adopt the RE100 pledge, the company’s commitment to move to 100 percent renewable energy by 2021.
T-Mobile is the first of the big four telecom companies in the United States to make such a pledge.
Green America’s “Hang Up on Fossil Fuels” campaign, which started in 2017, focuses attention on the enormous amount energy used by the telecom sector and the fact that the biggest companies get the vast majority of their energy from fossil fuels. The telecom sector in the U.S. uses as much energy as 3 million households.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere released a video directing people to support Green America’s campaign and challenging AT&T and Verizon to match its commitment to 100 percent renewable energy. Check it out here.
“This is a game-changer within the telecom industry, which has lagged behind other sectors in making commitments to clean energy,” said Todd Larsen, executive co-director of consumer and corporate engagement at Green America. “T-Mobile is making it clear that it is entirely possible for telecom companies, with their massive energy use, to make a 100 percent clean energy commitment. AT&T, Verizon and Sprint should all make similar commitments.”
“Consumers who care about the climate now have an environmentally conscious option when choosing a cell phone provider. They can support a company that is making an unprecedented 100 percent clean energy commitment,” said Beth Porter, program director for Green America. “People should not have to choose between using their phones to text and tweet, and protecting the planet. If T-Mobile’s announcement helps move the entire industry to 100% renewable energy, we won’t have to make that choice.”
Green America is calling on AT&T and Verizon, the two largest telecom companies in the U.S., to increase their renewable energy use to 100% by 2025, and will be issuing a report on the industry titled “Clean Energy is Calling” in February that will track the progress of the four largest companies in the sector – AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile – in adopting clean energy and energy efficiency measures, and reducing their greenhouse gasses overall.
