Lowe's Takes Top Environmental Honors ... Times Three
This week's WaterSense and SmartWay awards follow ENERGY STAR honor
in March
MOORESVILLE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Lowe's has earned three top honors available to retailers in its
partnerships with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S.
Department of Energy. This week the EPA awarded Lowe's the 2009
WaterSense(R) Retail Partner of the Year Award and the 2009
SmartWaySM Transport Partnership Environmental Excellence
Award. Together with the 2009 ENERGY STAR(R) Retail Partner of
the Year Award Lowe's received in March, the awards honor the company
for its industry-leading strategies to reduce its environmental impact
and for educating consumers about how to reduce their own.
"To be the first retailer to simultaneously hold these three awards
honors our leadership role in empowering consumers to make choices that
are good for their homes, their wallets and the environment," said Nick
Canter, Lowe's Executive Vice President of Merchandising. "We are proud
to advance a model for conservation that benefits future generations."
Making smart choices helps preserve natural resources, and Lowe's work
to share that message with consumers earned it the 2009 WaterSense
Retail Partner of the Year Award. WaterSense, a program launched in 2006
by the EPA, honored Lowe's for making great strides in increasing water
efficiency and awareness of the WaterSense label. The award was
presented Wednesday at the WaterSmart Innovations and Conference Expo in
Las Vegas.
Lowe's is helping to protect the future of our nation's water supply by
educating consumers about water-efficient products and practices.
Explaining the benefits of water conservation in stores and online
through the "Build
Your Savings" program, Lowe's has helped families reduce utility
bills at a time when every dollar counts.
The number of WaterSense-labeled toilets and bathroom faucets Lowe's
sold in 2008 can save enough water in a year to fill more than 180
Olympic-sized swimming pools and save customers more than $750,000 each
year on water bills. The EPA estimates that a family of four can save
more than $90 per year and more than $2,000 in reduced water utility
bills over the toilet's lifetime when replacing older toilets with
WaterSense-labeled options.
Beyond saving money for its customers, Lowe's conservation leadership is
saving the nation's most precious resources. In 2008, Lowe's and more
than 1,000 other WaterSense partners helped contribute to more than 9.3
billion gallons of water savings.
The ENERGY STAR label offers similar savings. Lowe's success educating
consumers about those benefits led to its fourth ENERGY STAR Retail
Partner of the Year Award in March. The award winners were selected from
more than 12,000 organizations, and Lowe's was recognized for its
exceptional contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Lowe's, an ENERGY STAR award winner for seven consecutive years, also
was honored for continued leadership in marketing its comprehensive line
of appliances, lighting and home improvement products that have earned
the ENERGY STAR, as well as educating consumers about the cost-saving
and environmental benefits of energy efficiency. ENERGY STAR-qualified
products can save the typical household up to 30 percent on energy
bills, or about $700 a year.
"Our many years of dedication to environmental stewardship are reflected
in the awards we received this year," said Michael Chenard, Director of
Environmental Affairs. "We look forward to extending our commitment far
into the future."
Lowe's conservation strategies and continued contributions to the
transportation industry were honored Tuesday as the company won its
third consecutive SmartWayEnvironmental Excellence Award.
The company was recognized for its leadership in conserving energy and
lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Lowe's was one of 37 companies and
organizations, from among more than 2,100 partners, to receive this
distinction. The awards were announced at the American Trucking
Association'sManagement Conference and Exhibit in Las Vegas.
To earn the award, Lowe's implemented initiatives that resulted in
reduced carbon dioxide emissions and less overall highway congestion.
These included increasing shipping by rail, increasing efficiency of
truckload shipments, allowing more products to be shipped on fewer
trailers, and continuing to use a higher percentage of SmartWay carriers.
Since becoming a SmartWay partner in 2005, shortly after the EPA created
the program, Lowe's has doubled the percentage of intermodal (truck and
rail) loads it ships. In 2006, when about 75 percent of Lowe's truck
shipments were moved by SmartWay carriers, Lowe's announced its goal to
increase that number to 90 percent by 2010. Lowe's achieved that goal in
2008, and SmartWay participating carriers are now moving 98 percent of
Lowe's products shipped domestically.
The impact has been significant. Since 2005, the SmartWay program has
reduced Lowe's carriers' highway travel by 324 million miles and
resulted in diesel fuel savings of more than 61 million gallons and
carbon savings of more than 682,000 tons.
"I commend Lowe's for its leadership in promoting sustainable
transportation practices through the SmartWay Transport Partnership,"
said Margo T. Oge, Director of the Office of Transportation and Air
Quality, EPA. "These actions demonstrate a commitment to a cleaner
environment and more secure energy supply."
About Lowe's
With fiscal year 2008 sales of $48.2 billion, Lowe's Companies, Inc. is
a FORTUNE(R) 50 company that serves approximately 14 million customers a
week at more than 1,675 home improvement stores in the United States and
Canada. Founded in 1946 and based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe's is the
second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. For more
information, visit Lowes.com.
Source: Lowe's
