by Brianna Crandall — April 20, 2011—Outdoor footwear and apparel supplier The Timberland Company recently announced that it has achieved an “industry-leading” 38 percent absolute reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, as of the end of 2010. In 2006, Timberland established a five-year, 50 percent reduction goal for absolute emissions associated with its owned and operated facilities and employee air travel. Since then, the company has been significantly cutting its emissions.
Over the past five years, Timberland says it has honed its emissions reduction strategy to achieve the greatest benefit for investments made. The company takes a three-pronged approach for its owned and operated facilities:
- Energy efficiency upgrades—such as retrofitting facilities with LED lighting and employing LEED standards for store design;
- Purchasing renewable energy—in 2010, 13 percent of Timberland’s energy came from renewable sources; and
- Reductions in employee travel—the company encourages employees to seek practical alternatives when considering their travel needs.
- Purchasing renewable energy—in 2010, 13 percent of Timberland’s energy came from renewable sources; and
“Timberland’s achievement of a 38 percent reduction in absolution emissions and its future goal to reduce 50 percent of emissions by 2015 surpasses the expectation Ceres set forth in our Roadmap for Sustainability—further demonstrating the company’s commitment to lead the way towards a sustainable economy,” stated Mindy Lubber, President of Ceres, a national coalition of investors, environmental and public interest groups working with companies to address climate change. Timberland’s Climate Counts score also improved in 2010, moving up to 86 from 82 in 2009. This score keeps Timberland at the second-highest rated of all 150 companies scored by Ceres.
