Harris Teeter, Giant Eagle Win EPA Award
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has named Giant Eagle and Harris Teeter the first winners of its GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership Environmental Achievement Award. The agency recognized the two grocers for emitting the lowest rates of ozone-depleting refrigerant among partners in GreenChill's first year.
"EPA congratulates Giant Eagle and Harris Teeter for leading the field with exemplary emissions prevention and maintenance systems," said Robert J. Meyers, EPA's principal deputy assistant administrator for air and radiation. "GreenChill has grown from 10 to 30 partners in less than a year, showing that what's good for the environment is good for business."
The organization also welcomed new supermarket partners this week, including Price Chopper Supermarkets; Supervalu, Inc.; and Weis Markets,
The organization's partners in the food retail business have refrigerant emissions rates almost 50 percent lower than the EPA industry average, which leads to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from refrigerants totaling 2.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. This is roughly the same as the annual emissions of 500,000 cars.
These partners also saved almost $13 million in 2007 with this effort. GreenChill said that if supermarkets nationwide reduced emission to the current group average, they could save an additional savings of $67 million while preventing annual emission of 13 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and 157 ozone-depleting potential tons.
"EPA congratulates Giant Eagle and Harris Teeter for leading the field with exemplary emissions prevention and maintenance systems," said Robert J. Meyers, EPA's principal deputy assistant administrator for air and radiation. "GreenChill has grown from 10 to 30 partners in less than a year, showing that what's good for the environment is good for business."
The organization also welcomed new supermarket partners this week, including Price Chopper Supermarkets; Supervalu, Inc.; and Weis Markets,
The organization's partners in the food retail business have refrigerant emissions rates almost 50 percent lower than the EPA industry average, which leads to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from refrigerants totaling 2.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. This is roughly the same as the annual emissions of 500,000 cars.
These partners also saved almost $13 million in 2007 with this effort. GreenChill said that if supermarkets nationwide reduced emission to the current group average, they could save an additional savings of $67 million while preventing annual emission of 13 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and 157 ozone-depleting potential tons.