Earth and Industry » supply chain

Target Opens Recycling Centers in All 1,740 Stores

Timothy B. Hurst — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 12:02:55 +0000

Minneapolis based Target (NYSE: TGT) announced Tuesday that it is rolling out a massive nationwide recycling initiative with centers at the front of each of its 1,740 U.S. stores. The recycling stations will accept aluminum, glass and plastic beverage containers, plastic bags, MP3 players, cell phones and ink cartridges.

"The launch of store recycling stations allows us to continue to partner with [our guests] to curb unnecessary waste in our stores and our communities," said Shawn Gensch, vice president of brand marketing, Target.

Over the course of the last several months, retail chain Target has ramped up its sustainability programs and image, partially in response to retail giant Walmart's big push to become more sustainable, which includes programs to green its supply chain, use less energy and produce less waste.

But Target isn't just copying the sustainability programs their friends down in Bentonville, Arkansas are rolling out (though they should probably copy some of them), they're forging their own path with some unique programs of their own, recently announcing they would no longer sell farmed salmon.

And whether they would admit to it or not, the Target recycling move puts a bit of pressure back on Walmart to up the ante, thereby contributing to a kind of 'race to the top' -- at least until the term was commandeered by the Obama administration.

It's also worth mentioning that Target is giving away 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid, as part of its month-long Earth Day celebration. You can enter to win online or by texting the word "green" to 827438 (Target).

[In the spirit of full disclosure, Earth & Industry received no compensation for any component of this article. We just thought it'd be cool if you won a car, unless we win it first. -Ed.]

Photo credit: sciondriver via flickr/Creative Commons

How to Make Sure Your White Office Paper is Actually Green

Becky Striepe — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 22:17:44 +0000

So, you've made the switch to recycled toilet paper, and maybe you're even using cloth hankies now. Why not take things a step further and stick to recycled paper for your home or office printer? Paper for home and office makes up a huge chunk of the wood that's harvested annually. The U.S. alone uses over 26,000 tons of the stuff every single year!

Ideally, we'd never have to print anything out, right? You can pay bills online, file taxes online...so many things that once required a home or office printer have electronic alternatives. Unfortunately, some things just have to be printed out. In the spirit of helping you determine the more sustainable choice for your home and office needs, check out greenUPGRADER's handy resource for 100% recycled office paper options that won't break the bank.

Photo: whatleydude via flickr/Creative Commons

Walmart Announces Massive Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan

Timothy B. Hurst — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:33:25 +0000

Walmart announces plan to to cut 20 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions in their supply chain over the next five years.

In another large-scale sustainability effort aimed at greening their supply chain, Walmart today announced the lofty goal of cutting 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from its global supply chain by the end of 2015. The reductions would equal 3.8 million cars-worth of greenhouse gas emissions, or, 1.5 times the company's projected CO2 growth over the next 5 years.

“Energy efficiency and carbon reduction are central issues in the world today,” said Mike Duke, Walmart president and CEO, in a live televised announcement on Thursday. Duke said that Walmart has been "working to make a difference in these areas, both in our own footprint and our supply chain. We know that we have an opportunity to do more and the capacity to do more.”

Duke said that working with suppliers, the plan would be measurable and attributable, calling it "a plan that will make a difference."

“Reducing carbon in the life cycle of our products will often mean reducing energy use," added Duke. "That will mean greater efficiency and, with the rising cost of energy, lower costs, making our business stronger and more competitive. And, as we help our suppliers reduce their energy use, costs and carbon footprint, we’ll be helping our customers do the same thing.”

Duke said that reductions can come from any phase of a products lifecycle, including sourcing raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, customer use and end of life disposal.

Fred Krupp of Environmental Defense talks with Walmart's Leslie Dach about Walmart's new greenhouse gas emissions strategy.

“Today the world’s largest company begins a global race for carbon pollution cuts,” said Fred Krupp, president of Environmental Defense Fund. “Walmart’s bold move will help companies identify steps to slash pollution and costs."

"What's sensational is that you're going to launch a race, a treasurehunt," said Krupp, referring to Walmart suppliers finding ways to reduce GHG emissions.

Working with Environmental Defense Fund, Price Waterhouse Coopers, Clear Carbon Consulting and the University of Arkansas, Walmart created a plan of action to find and measure the greatest opportunities for reduction, and a plan to verify those GHG reductions.

The measuring and verification document created by the partner groups was not yet publicly available, "but the plan is to make it available shortly," said a Walmart representative in an email on Thursday afternoon.

Elizabeth Sturcken, managing director for corporate partnerships at EDF said that that Walmart and their partnering organizations were "trying to find a goal that was aggressive yet achievable," adding that, "what's real important is a change in perspective."

Calling it a move into "uncharted waters," Sturcken noted that the plan doesn't require waiting for the world or the US to act on greenhouse gas emissions and that that the plan is a "good opportunity to get action now."

This is not the first major sustainability announcement in the last year or so for the world's largest retailer. In addition to the goal of being completely powered by renewable energy, Walmart also created a sustainability index that they say will "measure the sustainability of every product it sells."

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Major US Retailers Drop Products Sourced from Canadian Oil Sands

William Sarni — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 12:04:22 +0000

Tailings pond at oil sands development along Canada's Athabasca River. (Photo Courtesy of David Dodge/Pembina Institute)

In an effort to slash CO2 output, Whole Foods, Bed Bath & Beyond announce they will no longer buy products sourced using Canadian oil sands.

Sure there is little to no progress from the COP15 summit in Copenhagen; the US Congress is gridlocked in beltway madness with regards to climate legislation; and the media can’t seem to understand that climate science is not a sound bite.

However, I remain hopeful because of voluntary actions by companies that recognize that we need to move to a low carbon economy -- and they have the power to make it happen. Why the hope? Many companies are voluntarily moving ahead with carbon cutting programs on their own.

Tucked away in the Financial Times last week, Sheila McNulty reported that Whole Foods Market and Bed Bath & Beyond have decided not to source fuel from Canada's oil sands (formerly tar sands).

Oil sands have a much higher carbon content than crude oil and many of the development processes have oil sands' negative impact on human health, water and wildlife.

Michael Besancon, Whole Foods’ senior global vice-president of purchasing, distribution and marketing, said: “We’re looking at our carbon footprint, and tar sands fuels are higher carbon,” Mr Besancon said. “We’re trying to be a leader – out in front on this issue.'

These latest actions are being encouraged by ForestEthics an NGO that is pushing to move US businesses away from the high carbon footprint oil sands. ForsetEthics is negotiating with 30 companies to follow the lead by Whole Foods and Bed Bath & Beyond.

Whole Foods looked at their supply chain carbon footprint and replaced Marathon Oil with CountryMark which sources from US oil sources. A simple and relatively small action but with significant implications for energy companies that source from oil sands. If industries decide to move to a low carbon source for energy to better manage risk (high carbon sources will at some point be regulated) and demonstrate leadership in sustainability, then it will have an impact on the energy sector.

Building a low carbon economy: the power of voluntary actions

Although the impact may be smaller, the move is like the Walmart sustainability initiative in that the greatest impact a company can have on their environmental footprint is typically within their supply chain.

Walmart is now positively influencing tens of thousands of their suppliers to pay attention to their resource use (energy, carbon, water and materials). Walmart, Whole Foods and Bed Bath & Beyond are not alone in quantifying their entire environmental footprint and looking a ways to reduce the supply chain portion of their footprint.

Based upon my experience with our clients influencing your supply chain is is where the real power resides in embedding sustainability thinking into a cross section of industry sectors. The approach: tell your suppliers that you are committed to a sustainability strategy and they are part of the solution. If they are not interested companies now have the option of sourcing from those companies that can provide “low footprint” products.

Walmart Expands Green Reach to Small Businesses

Timothy B. Hurst — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:46:01 +0000

Solar at Sam's. Photo: Re-Nest.

Moving beyond their own supply chains, Walmart and Sam's Club are trying to help small businesses think about sustainability

An estimated 600,000 small-business owners or their employees walk through the doors of Sam’s Club every day. As part of parent company Walmart's relatively recent "conversion" to more sustainable business practices, officials at the company saw an opportunity to help green businesses besides their own—and in particular those very small businesses that frequent Sam's club—in a series of articles designed to help small-business owners succeed.

Contributing the first article (pdf) in the series, was Catherine Corley, Vice President of Small Business Insights at Sam’s Club. In the article, "How to Be Green and Stay Lean", Corley discusses how small businesses can implement sustainable practices that also benefit a company's bottom line. Specifically, Corley explores the definition of green, how to develop sustainability strategies and action plans as well as the dangers of greenwashing.

Corley starts out by defining green businesses and gives steps that owners should take to ensure that consumers know a company is sincere. She writes that businesses can increase their bottom line by creating interest in their sustainable initiatives and developing loyalty as a result of that interest and credibility as a result of that loyalty. But she also admits that this can be much easier for large companies with marketing budgets and generally more resources.

“Small-business owners are navigating through the complications of trying to run a socially responsible business on limited budgets,” said Corley, who recently spoke on the topic of greening business at a conference in California. Corley writes that small-business owners can combat this problem by setting goals, starting small and acting authentically.

Ultimately, protecting and growing the bottom line of the small businesses that shop at your store is just good business practices, because you hope that customer will come back for more. But charges of greenwashing can be incredibly damaging to a brand and to the long-term success of any business, large or small. Walmart Stores, Inc. seems to get that on some level — and they seem to think that helping other companies get it is also just good business practice.

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Image via Re-Nest

Why Sustainability Strategy Alignment Is "The Right Thing to Do"

William Sarni — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:44:21 +0000

We often talk about the greening of companies in terms of “the right thing to do.” The “triple bottom line” and “people, planet, profit” are catchy, but most companies look to leverage sustainability to create value for their stakeholders. Certainly, the successful companies take this approach.

From a business perspective, “the right thing to do” is adopting a genuine sustainability strategy that is completely aligned with your overall company strategy. If executed well, this can create long-term value.

What are the best examples of a company aligning sustainability and its corporate strategy? In my opinion, GE ecomagination, Wal-Mart (of course) and ExxonMobil can illustrate my point.

GE: ecomagination

First, the GE ecomagination strategy, which is built on creating a portfolio of products that perform better than “comparable” products, especially in the midst of an economic downturn. GE’s approach identified a portfolio of “clean” products that were more energy-efficient or were at the center of Cleantech industry growth. GE invested in energy-efficient aircraft engines, water-treatment technologies and wind turbines, energy-efficient appliances and more mundane technologies such as home technologies “inspired by ecomagination.”

Why does this strategy work? It was very simply a manufacturing (and R&D) powerhouse that spotted the global trends of “going green” and a need to invest in infrastructure (energy, water, smart grid and green homes, to mention a few).

So how is GE doing with ecomagination? Quite well, in spite of the downturn. The ecomagination unit has been growing at nearly 20 percent a year since its inception in 2005 and currently generates close to $17 billion annually in revenue. Although ecomagination may not make its $25 billion revenue target next year, it is still doing relatively well in areas such as wastewater-treatment technologies.

Wal-Mart

Next is the Wal-Mart story. Wal-Mart recently announced that it was moving toward requiring “eco-labels” on products over the next five years to include carbon, water and waste generated. This move is just the next evolutionary step in the overall Wal-Mart strategy.

The essential element of the strategy is to leverage its impact through the Wal-Mart supply chain – not merely reducing its own environmental footprint, but influencing the footprint of its extensive supply chain. To quote Michael T. Duke, Wal-Mart president and chief executive, “We have to make consumption itself smarter and sustainable.”

The goal here, of course, is to move Wal-Mart’s supply chain to manufacture more sustainable products. Wal-Mart is taking waste out of its supply chain with a resultant cost reduction. Remember “everyday low prices”?

ExxonMobil

Finally my current favorite, ExxonMobil, and its investment in algae biofuels.

Exxon has not spent time developing renewables such as wind or solar PV. Instead, it is investing in a potential game-changing transportation fuel.

Exxon announced a few weeks ago that it was investing $600 million in algae biofuels research with a leading biotech company, Synthetic Genomics Inc. The goal is to research and develop next-generation biofuels produced from sunlight, water and waste carbon dioxide by algae. Exxon’s collaboration with Synthetic Genomics is projected to extend five to six years with plans for the construction of a test facility in San Diego to study algae-growing methods and techniques to extract oil from algae.

Exxon recognizes there will be a need for increased fuel supplies to drive economic development. Will it come from oil and gas or from alternative fuels? Exxon seems to have the answer.

Why is this a great strategy? According to Exxon, the goal is to “make hydrocarbons that look a lot like today's transportation fuels” and “produce hydrocarbons that look like today's refinery products, that can go into a refinery to be processed along with other petroleum streams and then used in the transportation fleet or even jet fuel.”

If you want to gain the most value from sustainability, it is essential that you do not view sustainability as an add-on and recognize that any successful long-term sustainability initiative needs to position your company for success in a changing business world.