Costco 2008 Annual Report Download - page 15

the past two years we have increased our installation of large-scale solar (photovoltaic) power systems
from two to a total of seventeen locations at the end of 2008. We are continually evaluating ways to
improve energy usage and reduce wasted energy.
Recycling and Waste Stream Management Waste stream reduction is another major emphasis of
our corporate sustainability program. Since the 1980’s we have used an increasingly comprehensive
recycling program in our operations. Cardboard boxes, for example, used to ship and display
merchandise, are later used by members to carry home their purchases, eliminating the need for
plastic or paper bags. The tons of trash our warehouses generate each week in the form of cardboard,
plastic, unusable produce, and other materials, much of which was once discarded, is now being
renewed into usable products, recycled into biofuels or compost, or used as feed stock. For example,
our warehouses in the U.S. and Canada recycled a combined total of 240,000 tons of baled paper fiber
and plastic wrap last year. We have also begun a program where meat scraps and rotisserie chicken
grease are recycled to the animal feed market or biodiesel fuel market.
Refurbishing reusable electronic items is another program of recycling in use at Costco. During the
past two years, our Electronic Hardware Services (EHS) and Consumer Electronics (CE) Department
refurbished for resale nearly 175,000 returned computers, notebooks and PDA’s and over 400,000
other returned electronic items (cameras, IPODS, camcorders and televisions). By recycling,
refurbishing and keeping renewable materials out of landfills and incinerators, Costco has found a new
revenue stream.
Energy Efficient Products and Packaging We have been an active member of the EPA’s Energy
Star and Climate Protection Partnerships for the past six years, and we are also a major retailer of
Energy Star qualified compact florescent lamp (CFL) bulbs. Our sales of CFL bulbs in the U.S.
increased to more than 38 million bulbs during 2008, with over 89 million CFL bulbs sold during the
past three years.
Our merchandise packaging is also becoming more environmentally sustainable. For example, we
have replaced much of our plastic clamshell packaging with recyclable or bio-degradable paperboard-
blister hybrid packaging. This new “board and blister” packaging is comprised of printed paperboard
and RPET (recycled PET) plastic. Likewise, innovative packaging design changes, as in the case of
square one-gallon milk jugs, have allowed us to increase the amount of product on a pallet, ultimately
resulting in fewer delivery trucks on the road.
Commuting We continue to encourage our employees to carpool or vanpool whenever possible—to
reduce energy consumption, as well as reduce emissions going into the atmosphere. The Commute
Trip Reduction (CTR) program we began fourteen years ago at our corporate office with eighteen vans
now has seventy-four vans, up from sixty-five vans a year ago (vans, fuel, maintenance and insurance
provided by five transit agencies); and this past year we began seven vanpools in our California
regional offices. We offer employees subsidies to vanpool, and we also subsidize employees who
purchase monthly bus passes. In addition, we encourage employees to ride bikes to work when
practical. All of these programs and activities help to reduce our carbon footprint.
Available Information
We maintain an internet website at www.costco.com. We make available through the Investor
Relations section of our website, free of charge, our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports
on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, Proxy Statements and Forms 3, 4 and 5, and any
amendments to those reports, as soon as reasonably practicable after filing such material with, or
furnishing such documents to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The information found
on our website is not part of this or any other report filed with or furnished to the SEC.
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