A cleaner, greener CES

Producing a show as all-encompassing as CES, the largest trade show in North America, is a little like building a small city in a matter of weeks. As with any city large or small, CES requires resources — energy, transportation and human capital. It takes a tremendous amount of work not only to build a successful show, but also to do so with an eye toward sustainability.

The 2015 CES broke records with more than 176,000 attendees, in addition to a record amount of exhibitors, floor space, media and social media mentions. With so many decisionmakers congregating in one city, CES saves technology executives from having to travel more than 3.5 million miles in annual business trips. On average, each attendee participates in roughly 33 business meetings on-site, confirming that CES truly is the world's greatest meeting place for the tech community.

This year, we're capping attendance at 176,000 so we don't overburden Las Vegas' resources. We support the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority's plan to expand the footprint of the Las Vegas Convention Center to accommodate trade shows such as ours. But until then, we need to make sure we put on a show that is safe, manageable and worthwhile for attendees, many of whom travel great distances to be here.

We're also taking deliberate, innovative steps to make sure that the show itself, which begins Wednesday, is more efficient and eco-friendly than ever. Because the energy and production materials that go into building and tearing down CES every year contribute to our carbon footprint, we champion numerous green initiatives that reduce waste and give back to the Las Vegas community. We also work with our general contractor and vendors to make the CES production process more sustainable.

Nearly half a million square feet of CES show floor carpet was recycled in 2015 — up 70 percent from the 2014 — and the remaining 1.1 million square feet of carpet was reused. More than 20,000 square feet of magnetic banners from 2015 CES was recycled to produce new magnetic materials. And more than 27,000 square feet of vinyl banner material from last year's show was repurposed for all kinds of secondary uses — tarps, hockey rink liners, even outdoor movie screens.

While we can't recycle everything, the Consumer Technology Association, which owns and produces CES, makes meaningful social contributions in other ways. Following the 2015 CES, CTA's formal donation program supplied 15 trailers' worth of exhibitor-donated items to Habitat for Humanity, Opportunity Village and Teacher Exchange — more than 22 tons of reusable goods that did not end up in landfills.

Our exhibitors also understand that the future of tech is cleaner and greener. Driverless cars could cut gas use and transport emissions 80 percent by 2050. Drones can improve crop health and boost fertilizer and water efficiency. And smart home technologies such as smart thermostats can reduce heating and cooling expenses while conserving energy.

Our industry also drives sustainability through innovation, constantly delivering lighter, less material-intensive and more energy-efficient products. We have more tech devices than ever, but consumer electronics now account for a lower percentage of electricity use per household than they did just a few years ago — the total annual electricity consumption of TVs alone dropped 23 percent from 2010 to 2013.

And a new report from the Environmental Protection Agency says consumer electronics are now the fastest-declining portion of the U.S. municipal solid waste stream — proof the environmental footprint of the industry is shrinking. The same report shows consumer electronics recycling reached an all-time high in 2013 — up 10 percent in just a single year.

As the largest tech gathering in the world proves, our industry has innovative ideas to make the world a cleaner place through technology. This week in Las Vegas at CES 2016, we're proud to support programs to create a cleaner, greener future, so that we can continue to host the greatest trade show on earth right here in Las Vegas for decades to come.

— Best-selling author Gary Shapiro is president and chief executive officer of the Consumer Technology Association (formerly the Consumer Electronics Association), which represents more than 2,000 consumer electronics companies. Follow him on Twitter: @GaryShapiro