Energy & Climate

Staples continues to reduce energy consumption through conservation and the use of energy efficient technologies. We are committed to supporting the development of renewable energy technologies and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy Conservation and Renewable Energy

We actively work to conserve energy across our business and to encourage the expansion of renewable energy through the purchase of renewable energy certificates and the installation of on–site renewable energy technologies. These initiatives have clear environmental benefits, reduce our overall energy costs, and diversify our energy sources to mitigate the impacts of increases in fuel prices.

• We purchased more than 124 million kilowatt–hours of electricity in 2008 in the form of renewable energy certificates from certified sources including wind, biomass, and landfill gas. These purchases account for 20% of our total U.S. electricity requirements, up from 3% in 2003, and represent enough electricity to power more than 11,000 homes annually.
• We work closely with the World Resources Institute (WRI) on renewable energy development issues as a member of their Green Power Market Development Group, both in the U.S. and Europe. Both groups are composed of large corporations committed to fostering the development of cost–competitive renewable energy for the commercial and industrial sectors.
• Through our relationship with the solar developer SunEdison, Staples is currently hosting 25 active rooftop solar systems and has numerous more systems under construction in the U.S. We expect our active solar systems to generate enough clean electricity to power more than 400 average homes each year.
• As of October 2009, Staples was ranked 5th out of the top 20 retail purchasers of “green power” by U.S. EPA’s Green Power Partnership.

Climate Change

Staples is committed to reducing the effects of our energy use on climate through continued conservation, the adoption of renewable energy technologies where financially viable, and the purchase of renewable energy certificates to promote the development of clean renewable energy.

• As part of our U.S. EPA Climate Leaders membership, Staples has voluntarily committed to a 7% reduction in our U.S. carbon emissions by 2010 on an absolute basis, starting from a base year of 2001. As of the end of 2008, we had reduced our net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 9% versus 2001.
• We work with the World Resources Institute as part of the Climate Northeast Partnership, a group of companies in the Northeastern U.S. that share strategies and tactics for succeeding in a carbon–constrained economy.
• We voluntarily participated for the fourth straight year in the annual Carbon Disclosure Project, a large institutional investor coalition seeking information on what steps large companies globally are taking to address climate change.

• Environmentally Preferable Products
• Recycling
• Energy & Climate
• Environmental Education
• Staples Soul Main

• Environmental Paper Procurement Policy (PDF)
• 2007 Staples Soul Report (PDF)

• World Resources Institute
• U.S. EPA Green Power Partnership
• U.S. EPA Climate Leaders Program