Kohl`s Department Stores (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) holds the top spot in retail on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) quarterly rankings of top green power purchasers in EPA’s Green Power Partnership for the second time. The moderately priced department store was also recently named one of the greenest retailers in America according to Newsweek magazine’s Green Rankings.
Since July, Kohl`s has increased its green power purchase (electricity that is generated from environmentally preferable renewable resources like wind and solar) by more than 42 percent, purchasing more than 851 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) in renewable energy credits for the year.
The retailer also ranks ninth on the agency’s list of companies that generate and consume the most green power on-site. Kohl`s operates 79 active solar locations in six states, including California, Wisconsin, Oregon, Maryland, Connecticut and New Jersey. The solar panels generate 20 to 50 percent of the store’s electricity, depending on geographic location.
The EPA states Kohl`s green power purchase is equivalent to eliminating carbon dioxide emissions from nearly 112,000 passenger vehicles or the electricity needed to power nearly 85,000 average American homes annually.
“Green power purchases are one of the easiest and more important ways we can implement renewable energy sources as we work to reduce our carbon footprint,”
says Ken Bonning, Kohl`s executive vp, store planning and logistics. “We hope to reach 100 percent green power in the coming year.”