Staples 2006 Annual Report Download - page 11

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Environmentally Preferable Products
We currently sell more than 2,900 products with recycled content across business units, of which more than
2,200 are recycled paper products. We also offer customers other environmentally preferable products such as
refillable pens and pencils, nontoxic markers and ENERGY STAR compliant office technology products.
Overall, an average of 30% of the total weight of all paper products that Staples sold in 2006 contained post-
consumer recycled content. STAPLES® Business Depot™, our Canadian business, started offering Domtar’s
EarthChoice™ line of paper products in 2006, which is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council to come from
sustainably managed forests. We are working to increase our certified paper offerings given market demand and
cost considerations. In 2007, we will announce our preference for products adhering to one forestry certification
system. We believe this decision will help provide more focus for our paper suppliers related to sustainable
product development.
Energy and Climate
Doubling our purchase of renewable energy ranks as one of our proudest achievements of 2006. To date, we’ve
greened 20% of our electricity, or more than 121,000 megawatt hours of power, through certified renewable
energy certificates and direct green power purchases from wind, solar, landfill gas and biomass sources. That
equals the amount of electricity used annually by more than 10,700 U.S. households.
As part of our commitment to on-site solar energy development, Staples is hosting a total of four operational
rooftop solar plants. Five more solar plants were under construction as of the end of fiscal year 2006. The solar
plant at our Killingly, CT distribution center, recognized as New England’s largest solar installation, went live at
the end of fiscal year 2006. The Killingly project is expected to provide 14% of the facility’s electricity usage and
to help prevent the release of greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing more than 50 passenger cars
from the road each year.
We continue to seek new opportunities to save energy in our buildings and within our transportation fleet. In the
fall of 2006, Staples modified the engine electronic control modules on more than 800 delivery trucks in our fleet
to limit maximum driving speed, increasing our fleet’s fuel economy. Based on initial testing, we expect to realize
an improvement in fuel economy of 15% or more, which translates to an estimated fuel savings of more than
500,000 gallons of diesel annually.
Recycling
Staples serves as a convenient, reliable recycling resource for our customers and associates. We collected more
than 17.8 million ink and toner cartridges for remanufacturing or recycling in 2006 alone, more than tripling our
collections in 2005. To reduce the loss of reusable materials and generation of hazardous waste created by
discarded technology products, we sponsored a number of programs across the country to collect computers,
monitors, printers and other electronic waste. As a result of these programs, Staples recycled more than seven
million pounds of electronics in 2006.
Education
Staples sponsors www.earth911business.org, which houses a wealth of information for businesses on how and
where to recycle a variety of items based on zip code location. The Web site also offers guidance on how to
implement recycling programs and source more environmental products.
To increase the visibility of our green efforts, we improved our communications on environmental affairs to our
associates. We’ve also developed several educational brochures for our contract business customers related to
reducing paper use and greening their offices.