|
|
||||
 H-E-B
Press Release
|
|
|
 |
 |
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Recognizes H-E-B As a Top Green Power Purchaser Among Retailers Austin Operations Appear on EPA’s Top 10 List of “Green Power” Retailers SAN ANTONIO – H-E-B has again qualified as one of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Top 10 retail green power purchasers in the Green Power Partnership. The company’s Austin-region operations are being recognized for a voluntary purchase of 27,600 megawatt-hours (MWh) of green power from Austin Energy’s GreenChoice Program. EPA released the list of the nation’s Top 10 retail green power purchasers on July 10. The current list, which is released quarterly, is available at http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/. This Top 10 list highlights retailers within the Green Power Partnership that have completed the largest annual voluntary green power purchases through June 26, 2006. “Green power” is defined by the Partnership as electricity products that are partially or entirely generated from environmentally preferable resources, such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, and low-impact biomass and hydro resources. These renewable energy sources are cleaner than conventional sources of electricity that produce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, a greenhouse gas linked to global climate change. Green power purchases support the development of new renewable energy capacity. “Environmental sustainability is one of our key operational goals, and we are pleased that our efforts have been significant enough to warrant recognition by EPA,“ said H-E-B Environmental Affairs Manager Susan Ghertner. “Green power is good for the earth – and, increasingly, good for business as well.” H-E-B obtains this green power, which represents about 25 percent of the electricity used by facilities in the Austin region, in the form of biogas and wind-generated electricity. The biogas electricity is generated at the Tessman Landfill Biogas Project, east of San Antonio, which uses methane gas produced by decaying garbage at old sanitary landfills. The wind power comes from 120 wind turbines located in McCamey and Sweetwater, Texas. H-E-B is the top purchaser in the retail industry of green power produced in Texas. H-E-B constantly explores energy-saving opportunities through new technologies and innovations. For example, the company requires energy-efficient lighting in stores and parking lots, saving more than $3 million a year and reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 78 million pounds. Currently, the company is sponsoring a total-store Energy Challenge through October 1. Each store is assigned to one of six defined groups, with the goal of achieving the greatest percentage of energy reduction within that group. Each Partner in the winning stores will receive $100. Simple steps such as closing dock doors, fixing water leaks and turning off lights when not in use can help save significant amounts of energy. H-E-B expects the measures taken as part of the contest to result in an energy reduction of 5 percent for the three months of the competition, leading to savings of approximately $1.2 million. The amount of energy saved would be enough to power 1,000 homes for one year, and the pollution averted will roughly equal that created by 1,750 cars during a one-year period. EPA has previously recognized H-E-B for achieving significant energy savings and being among the first in its field to respond to the agency's ENERGY STAR Commercial Building Challenge. “Purchasing green power is one of the easiest ways for an organization to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions and improve the environment,” said Blaine Collison, program director for the EPA’s Green Power Partnership. “H-E-B’s use of green power contributes to reducing the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use and helps promote our nation’s energy independence.” The U.S. EPA, using data on national average avoided CO2 emissions, estimates that H-E-B’s purchase is equivalent to avoiding more than 46 million pounds of CO2. Buying 27,600 MWh of green power is comparable to removing the emissions of over 4,000 cars annually or planting more than 5,000 acres of trees. “We have a responsibility to help the communities that we serve,” said Ghertner. “Our environmental efforts are an important part of that, and we hope to keep working with EPA to accomplish even more in the future.” About H-E-B H-E-B was founded in Kerrville, Texas in 1905 with a single grocery store. For more than a century, it has been an innovative retailer known for fresh food, quality products and convenient services. The company has grown to more than 300 stores in Texas and Northern Mexico with more than 60,000 employees. H-E-B is one of the largest food chains in the United States, with sales of $11 billion, and is the largest privately held company in Texas. About the U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership EPA’s Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program helping to increase the use of green power among leading U.S. organizations. The program encourages organizations to purchase green power as a way to reduce the risk of climate change and the environmental impacts associated with conventional electricity use. Currently, the Green Power Partnership has over 600 Partners voluntarily purchasing more than 5.3 billion kWh of green power. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, local, state, and federal governments, trade associations, as well as colleges and universities. For more information on EPA’s Top 10 retail Partners list, visit: http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/partners/top10retail.htm. For a full listing of the more than 600 EPA Green Power Partners and information about buying green power, see the Partnership’s Web site at http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/. |
|
|