Something good about Wal-Mart

This morning, one of my clients told me that Al Gore was working with Wal-Mart to encourage environmentally responsible practices. She mentioned that he was trying to get them to use recycled paper. Just think of the trees that would be saved if every Wal-Mart across the globe switched to recycled paper! Well, I found a brief article about it on the CNN website. It's called "Gore takes green talk to Wal-Mart". Here's part of what it says:

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Wal-Mart Stores hosted former Vice President Al Gore at a conference Wednesday evening that the company said is the next step in its efforts to improve the environment.

The company said the conference at its Bentonville, Ark., headquarters, dubbed the quarterly sustainability network meeting, included Gore's presentation on the dangers of global warming, as well as one from officials of the Rocky Mountain Institute and the Evangelical Environmental Network.
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"We are all passionate about making real progress regarding the environment," said a statement from Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott. "By working together, we can help each other save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and pass the savings on to our customers. Sustainability is good for the environment, and it's also good for business."
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Earlier this year Wal-Mart announced that it would seek to eliminate 30 percent of the energy used by stores, with the corporate goal of eventually being fueled 100 percent by renewable energy .The retailer also plans to eliminate 25 percent of the solid waste from U.S. stores in the next three years, with the corporate goal of producing zero waste.

Wal-Mart also is targeting increased efficiency of its truck fleet by 25 percent over the next three years, with efficiency doubled within 10 years except in the North, where Wal-Mart utilizes white reflective roof membranes, resulting in a 10 percent lower cooling load.

Of course, as the article pointed out, there are people who are skeptical of Wal-Mart's intentions - as am I. But whatever their motives, if they really implement these plans it will make a huge impact.