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Hbc's Head Office First Office Tower in Canada to go 'Zero Waste' (From: CNW Group)
 TORONTO, July 25 - Hudson's Bay Company (Hbc) today announced that
its corporate head office located in downtown Toronto is the first office
tower in Canada to achieve the 'zero waste' designation. This achievement was
realized in conjunction with Ivanhoe Cambridge (the property's building
management company) and Turtle Island Recycling.
Hbc's head office achieved 96.5% diversion rate, which includes organics
from landfill. This diversion rate was quantified by a third party audit
performed by C. D. Sonter Environmental Consultants. Based on the standards
set out by the Zero Waste International Alliance, this makes the tower a
zero-waste facility. Previously the 401 Bay Street office tower had been
operating at 81% diversion rate from landfill.
In addition to implementing a zero waste policy at its corporate head
office, Hbc and Turtle Island have piloted zero waste products at two Hbc
stores in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Plans are also underway to
introduce the program at an additional five stores and two other corporate
offices by the end of August.
Every office tenant located in the Simpson Tower converted garbage bins
into recycling bins marked for paper; multi-material; or organics. Each day,
the recyclables were collected and analyzed by Turtle Island over a four week
period.
"Achieving zero waste at Hbc's head office tower highlights our ongoing
efforts to innovate in the area of environmental sustainability," said Mike
Rousseau, President, Hbc. "Each and every Hbc associate and tenant located at
Simpson Tower will play a role in this initiative. It's one more innovative
environmental program in which Hbc is pleased to play a leadership role."
"We applaud the efforts of Hbc and the property management team in
attempting to reduce their environmental footprint by taking the Simpson's
Tower to zero waste," said Ted Manziaris, President of Turtle Island
Recycling. "We would like to see more companies and facilities in the City of
Toronto, and across Canada, work toward such a goal. The program is
challenging but the rewards in terms of the impact on the local environment
are significant."
"Creating new habits can take time but this Zero Waste Challenge was
embraced by all tenants," said Arlena Hebert, General Manager of Simpson Tower
with Ivanhoe Cambridge. "The City of Toronto's waste diversion efforts have
created a culture that definitely helped to make the Zero Waste Challenge a
huge success. The program is straight forward and we would certainly encourage
other office buildings to take on the Zero Waste Challenge".
The Zero Waste program is the first sustainability initiative to be
rolled out under Hbc's new Global Mind brand. Hbc is a recognized retail
leader in sustainability practices in the areas of ethical sourcing,
environment and energy, associate wellness and community investment. For the
last five years, the Company has been one of the few Canadian retailers to
issue a formal report on its progress in these areas. Going forward, all
aspects of this program, as well as new policies and customer products will be
part of the Global Mind brand.
"Every day we make choices," said Mike Rousseau, President, Hbc. "Some of
the choices have an impact on our families and communities; some may reach
around the world. At Hbc, we intend to act with a Global Mind when it comes to
ensuring sustainability in our operations, as well as in the communities where
we work, live and source our merchandise."
In addition to moving forward with sustainability programs in the areas
of ethical sourcing, associate wellness and community investment, Hbc has also
established the following goals in the areas of environmental sustainability:
- We will offer our customers environmentally friendly products under
the Global Mind brand. Reusable shopping bags; Cold water detergent
by Truly and Energy Star products will be available at stores across
Canada.
- We are currently exploring opportunities to reduce the amount of
packaging used in our private and captive brand assortment with the
goal of reducing waste and having little to no impact on the
environment. Our goal is to have policy and standards in place by
2010.
- We will continue to:
- reduce waste in our stores,
- reduce energy consumption at our Company and
- increase our use of green power.
For more information about Hbc's innovative environmental sustainability
programs and awards, please visit our 2006 corporate social responsibility
report at www.hbc.com.
About Hbc:
Hbc is Canada's largest diversified general merchandise retailer,
operating in department store (the Bay), mass merchandise (Zellers), specialty
(Home Outfitters and Designer Depot) and discount (Fields) formats. With more
than 580 retail outlets and nearly 70,000 associates located in every province
in Canada, Hbc provides Canadians with stylish, quality merchandise at great
value, through retail banners focused on exceptional customer service. Hbc is
a Canadian retail leader in corporate social responsibility (CSR), branding
its sustainability practices, policies and products under the Global Mind
label. Each year, Hbc reports on its sustainability practices through its CSR
report.
For further information: Katherine Raso, Hbc Public Relations, (416)
861-6691, katherine.raso@hbc.com
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