March 20, 2008 - Pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline has its work cut out to meet its stated goal of reducing greenhouse emissions 20% below 2006 levels by 2010. A full 66% of its emissions come from inhalers - the use of which continues to climb, according to the company's just-released 2007 corporate responsibility report.

GlaxoSmithKline says it is working to develop lower-emissions alternatives to current inhaler technologies. For example, just 2% of the its inhalers now contain chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), compounds which are known to deplete the ozone layer. The company has committed to phasing out CFCs completely by 2010. In addition:

About 60% of our inhalers contain hydrofluoroalkanes (HFAs), which have a lower climate change impact, and we are still exploring ways to reduce the amount of HFAs released from these inhalers. Over one-third of our inhalers are now dry powder inhalers with no propellant and therefore no climate change impact during use.

When the use of inhalers is excluded from calculations, GlaxoSmithKline's climate emissions in fact dropped slightly in 2007. The company is targeting a 45% emissions cut (again, from 2006 levels) by 2015.

To download GlaxoSmithKline's 2007 corporate responsibility report, click here (PDF).