From bans on plastic-foam cups to monthly “green team” meetings, Virginia’s large public companies are incorporating sustainability into their business practices. To learn more about the impact of green initiatives, Virginia Business polled 31 companies with annual revenue of more than $1 billion. Eleven companies, or 35 percent, responded to the survey. The results are tabulated below.
| Company
|
Recyling |
Energy |
Green building |
GHG (1)
emissions reduction |
Employee outreach and education |
Other |
| AMERIGROUP
|
Issues reusable cups; paperless meetings | 5 percent reduction goal in 2010 | Plans to pursue LEED (2) for national support center | 5 percent reduction goal for emissions associated with travel | Telework and ridesharing | Sustainability task force meets monthly |
| ALPHA NATURAL RESOURCES | DNR (Did not respond) | Performs energy audits; goal is to reduce power consumption by 5 percent | Is building a LEED-designed corporate headquarters | Pre-mining capture of methane gas | Locations in remote, rural areas make some initiatives difficult | Added chief sustainability officer |
| CAPITAL ONE FINANCIAL | Electronic assets, glass, paper, plastic, aluminum | Adjusted temperature set points; reduced HVAC operating hours | Green renovations at existing buildings; green design for some new buildings | Reduction target of 10 percent over next 5 years | Flexible work schedules, telecommuting, ridesharing | Ranked as 71 out of 500 companies on Newsweek’s first Greenest Big Companies in America list |
| DOMINION RESOURCES | Paper, wooden pallets, scrap electrical wiring, computers, electric transformers | Spending $800 million to improve efficiency at generating units. Purchase of hybrid and plug-in vehicles for business use. | New administration building at Cove Point natural-gas facility is silver LEED certified | Ranks in top third of all U. S. electric utilities in minimizing carbon intensity | Provides workers with free CFL (3) bulbs, energy conservation blog, bicycle racks | Formed Alternative Energy Solutions unit to study new energy technologies |
| GENERAL DYNAMICS | Recycling of paint cleaning solvents reduces hazardous waste disposal by 18,000 pounds per year | Lighting retrofit programs in many facilities | A major office in Scottsdale is silver LEED certified | Started initiative in 2008 to measure emissions | Provides commuter vans at some sites | Has won several state awards for environmental performance |
| NORFOLK SOUTHERN | Office paper, rail crossties, batteries. Banned plastic foam cups from company headquarters | Runs trains on diesel fuel; developing a battery-powered locomotive | Incorporates LEED standards into building and planning designs | Expanding intermodal freight corridors, relying more on solar and wind to operate track signals and other facilities | Provides incentives for employees to use mass transit | First rail company to appoint a corporate sustainability officer in 2007 |
| OWENS & MINOR | Aluminum cans, batteries, paper. Use of china and silver in café to reduce paper waste | Installed fluorescent lighting in warehouse to reduce power consumption | Green design elements included in new headquarters office | Received federal certification for fleet-management practices that reduce greenhouse gases | Distributes free coffee cups to discourage use of plastic | Outside firm recycles kitchen grease into bio-diesel fuel |
| SMITHFIELD FOODS | Cardboard, paper, water conservation | Collects bio-gas generated by wastewater treatment and uses it to offset natural-gas consumption at some locations | Exploring LEED certification for some office buildings | U.S. meat processing facilities cut greenhouse emissions per unit by 25 percent in 2008. | Carpooling employees get preferred parking spaces | Annual cash awards to employees for innovative waste-reduction suggestions |
| SRA
INTERNATIONAL |
Paper, bottles, printer toner, electronic devices, carpet. Uses only printers that allow double-sided copying | Reduced
energy use by 5 percent over last two years at three largest facilities
|
Requires build-outs in leased space to incorporate green design. Looks for locations close to public transit | Invested in video-conference and other technologies to minimize travel impacts | Telework program; provides financial incentives for employees to use mass transit | 2009 paperless annual report; available on corporate Web site |
| UNIVERSAL
LEAF TOBACCO
|
Attempts to use 100 percent of tobacco leaf | Has patented equipment to reduce energy usage. Installed fluorescent lights and motion sensors in some facilities. | Company is located in a leased space | Initial efforts under way to quantify global greenhouse emissions | New corporate office located on local bus route. Recycling bins provided for employees | Employs 800 agronomists worldwide who assist tobacco farmers with agricultural practices, including environmental protection measures |
Notes:
(1) greenhouse gases
(2) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(3)
compact fluorescent lightbulbs