Adairsville, Georgia - Beaulieu Commercial today announced its purchase of green power and its partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Partnership. Beaulieu Commercial is purchasing more than 9 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, which is enough green power to meet 100 percent of the organization's purchased electricity use nationwide. Beaulieu Commercial is buying renewable energy certificates (REC) from Sterling Planet, a leading national supplier of green power products.
Partner Quote
"This is a huge honor and we are proud to be recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency," said James Lesslie, President. "Purchasing green power helps our organization become more sustainable, while also sending a message to others across the U.S. that supporting clean sources of electricity is a sound business decision and an important choice in reducing climate risk."
This purchase also qualifies Beaulieu Commercial for EPA's Green Power Leadership Club, a distinction given to organizations that have significantly exceeded EPA's minimum purchase requirements. Green Power Leadership Club members must purchase ten times the partnership's minimum requirement organization-wide. Beaulieu Commercial is currently buying enough green power to meet 100 percent of its total purchased electricity use across its entire U.S. operations.
Green power is electricity that is generated from environmentally preferable renewable resources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, biogas, biomass and low-impact hydro. These resources generate electricity with a net zero increase in carbon dioxide emissions, while offering a superior environmental profile compared to traditional power generation sources. Green power purchases also support the development of new renewable energy generation sources nationwide.
"EPA applauds our corporate partners for protecting our environment by purchasing green power," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "By voluntarily shifting to renewable energy, Beaulieu Commercial is proving you don't need to wait for a signal in order to go green."
According to the U.S. EPA, Beaulieu Commercial's green power purchase of more than 9 million (kWh) is equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of nearly 1300 passenger vehicles per year, or is the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power nearly 1000 average American homes annually.
Additional Partner information:
In recent years, Beaulieu Commercial has established itself on the leading edge of corporate environmental stewardship. In addition to energy conservation and waste management best practices, Beaulieu Commercial is the first carpet manufacturer to include post consumer recycled content in 100% of their products and has an award winning carpet tile backing system that leads the industry with 85% post consumer recycled content.
About Beaulieu Commercial
Beaulieu Commercial manufactures and markets stylish, technically superior carpet for all segments of the commercial market under three registered brands, BOLYU Contract, Cambridge Commercial Carpets and Aqua Hospitality Carpets. For more information, visit the company's website at www.beaulieucommercial.com.
About Sterling Planet
Winner of the US Department of Energy 2007 Renewable Energy Marketer of the Year award, Sterling Planet is a sustainability pioneer and innovative supplier of renewable energy, energy efficiency and low-carbon solutions. Sterling Planet offers comprehensive carbon neutral solutions for businesses, universities and organizations of all types, bringing together supply-and demand-side solutions in a rapidly emerging environmental market. The company currently is developing next-generation solar and bioenergy projects to produce green power and verified carbon offosets and is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Climate Leaders partner. Since 2001, sales of renewable energy to 928 business clients, 43 colleges and universities, 136 government agencies, 52 utilities and thousands of residential customers have avoided 25 billion pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, which compares to taking 2 million cars off the road for a year.
About EPA's Green Power Partnership
The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use. The Partnership currently has hundreds of Partner organizations voluntarily purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500 companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, and colleges and universities. For additional information, please visit http://www.epa.gov/greenpower.
