If your mailbox is flooded with hundreds of unchecked promotional emails you may need to rethink your role in digital pollution.

A new study by the Cleanfox app reveals that emails sent by businesses to promote their products and services are responsible for nearly two million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year in the UK.

That is equal to the pollution generated by a city of 370,000 residents, like Cardiff, in one year.

The data suggests nearly 3.5 million emails were sent every second in 2020 with a carbon footprint of ten grams per email.

The research finds newsletters received by a UK resident in 2020 have a carbon footprint of 42 kilograms of carbon dioxide. That translates to 350 kilometres driven on a Mini, according to the study.

Researchers note that if the inbox is not cleaned up, it generates a carbon footprint of 2.36 tonnes, which is equivalent to more than a roundtrip flight between London and Istanbul.