Online casinos are growing in number year on year. Many believe it was the pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns that spurred on this demand for digital versions of casino games, but their rise began long before Covid-19 even existed.
It’s simply a matter of preferring to play live Blackjack or the many innovative slot games from the comfort of your own home, over going out, dressing up, and spending lots of money on drinks and taxis at a traditional casino. Of course, the latter still has a place, but it’s worth pointing out that this transition has also been beneficial to the world in other ways, such as the climate. As we can see at VIPArabClub, everything casino-related is within clicking distance, not driving distance.
Below are some of the ways in which online casinos are more eco-friendly than traditional, brick-and-mortar casinos.
No Travel, No Carbon Dioxide
The major difference between online casinos and traditional ones is where they serve their customers. The former is via the internet, and the latter is at a physical location. A major difference is then that customers do not have to travel in order to play at an online casino, whilst physical casinos are the source of a lot of travel emissions.
Generally, casinos are not plentiful and are not dotted around suburban areas – they’re usually far away from home, and many people travel via car to get there. One of the worst culprits of air pollution is the gasoline from traffic, and this is something that is totally avoided with online casinos. Furthermore, the workers of online casinos are far more likely to work from home, too, meaning that carbon emission as a result of commuting is significantly lower for online casinos.
Less Energy to Operate
If you have ever stepped foot in a physical casino, they’re incredibly impressive. High roofs, stunning chandelier lights, and a freshly air-conditioned environment. Of course, this all takes a lot of energy (mostly in the form of electricity) to run, which is damaging to the environment given that we are still reliant on non-renewable energy to generate our global electricity.
Whilst this could change in the future with developments in solar and such, the reality is that in today’s situation, online casinos use significantly less energy to operate. Of course, there are still servers to run and office buildings (though many people do work from home), but there is less room to light and heat/cool down, and fewer physical electronic machines (i.e. slots), meaning online casinos certainly have the advantage here.
No Waste
Brick-and-mortar casinos are more than just roulette tables in a room, they’re places of decadence in which people come to eat, drink, and enjoy themselves. We’re not trying to abolish the idea of going outside to eat and drink, but it’s still worth pointing out that this generates a lot of waste (i.e. throwing out food and bottles of alcohol). There’s also the plastic element of using chips and the building of tables/machines, which expire and get thrown out whilst not being able to biodegrade. It’s obvious but online casinos have no such waste, meaning they’re better for the environment.
Less Construction
It takes significantly less space to build an office for an online casino than it does to build a casino. Casinos are typically grand buildings taking up lots of space. This can cause many issues for the environment. Firstly, the space itself may be stolen from green areas, removing trees and local habitats to make room for such a large building. Secondly, the construction process takes a lot of energy and materials, many of which aren’t sustainable. Finally, the construction itself can be dangerous in many countries, leading to an exploited workforce and dangerous working conditions.
Online casinos are often rented office spaces in big office blocks that were purpose-built to be efficient with space. Furthermore, many smaller online casinos start as businesses from home (letterbox companies), meaning even less space and construction are required.
Better Working Conditions
Okay, this one is less about the climate and more about people but it’s worth highlighting that many people prefer working for online casinos than in traditional ones. In a brick-and-mortar casino, there are no windows, artificial lights, and a culture of working very late into the night – often expecting overtime. Plus in many counties, the wages are extremely low as they expect tips to cover the rest, which can be unpredictable.
However, online casinos are increasingly developing more flexible working cultures, in which online jobs are spread across the world. Flexibility generally leads to better work-life balance, as most of the work (i.e. customer service, game development, website maintenance) can be done in the daytime, whilst the infrastructure that supports the games at night is automated.
Often, the digitisation of industries and the decline of high street retail gets a bad wrap. And, certainly, online deliveries regarding e-commerce are potentially more damaging to the environment. But, it’s worth pointing out the instances where the opposite is true, and the casino industry is a prime example of this.