One of the major efforts of the sustainability movement has been to get people to buy locally. The carbon impact of ordering a product that's been shipped from its place of origin, to a warehouse, then shipped again to its finally destination is immeasurably higher than buying something at a local shop that was produced a few miles down the road.

Still, if you can only lay your hands on that impossible-to-find item via the Internet, shipping FedEx may help mitigate some of the damage. The ubiquitous carrier has announced plans to reduce carbon emissions by some 20 percent over the next 12 years. The company has already taken some small steps toward the goal, including the rollout of 170 hybrid vehicles into its North American fleet.

Still, with some 80,000 vehicles worldwide, including nearly 700 planes, there's still a ways to go. Upgraded airliners will save gas and increase capacity, reducing both the number of flights needed, and the impact of those flights once airborne. Sorting facilities may also find themselves powered by renewable energy, through the installation of solar panels and wind turbines.

However, the real benefit of FedEx's move will come as motivation to rest of the industry. UPS, DHL and other carriers may soon find themselves under intense consumer—and, if oil prices spike again, economic—pressure to provide similar upgrades to their own operations. UPS has shown themselves to be no slouch in the sustainability department, so this race for the green will yield benefits the world over.