Target and Amazon on Thursday (March 17) both announced environmentally friendly store models, according to company press releases.
Target tested its first net-zero energy store in Vista, California, while the Amazon Fresh store in Seattle is pursuing the world’s first Zero Carbon certification from the International Living Future Institute.
The net-zero Target store “will generate more renewable energy than it needs annually to operate and will test multiple innovations to reduce the building’s emissions,” the company press release says. It will generate renewable energy through 3,420 solar panels across its roof and new carport canopies.
The site is expected to produce up to a 10% energy surplus each year that it can transmit back to the local power grid, and Target has applied for net zero energy certification from the International Living Future Institute, according to the press release.
The building also features elements to reduce emissions, such as powering its HVAC heating through rooftop solar panels instead of natural gas. The store also switched to carbon dioxide refrigeration, a natural refrigerant, that Target will scale chain-wide by 2040 to reduce its direct operations’ emissions by 20%.
Amazon expects the Seattle Amazon Fresh store will save almost 185 tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year, equivalent to driving around the Earth 18 times. Updates to the store include transitioning to a CO2-based refrigeration system, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 38 metric tons per year compared to a conventional system.
The store will also feature a fully electric kitchen space that reduces the need for fossil fuel combustion in the store. Amazon is also electrifying the store using 100% renewable electricity sourced from Amazon’s renewable energy projects. The company wants to power its operations with 100% renewable energy by 2025.
Related: Retailers Aim to Define Sustainability While They’re Rushing to Embrace It
In January, the National Retail Federation (NRF) launched, “Retailers Reaching for Net-Zero,” that it said will help retailers clarify and prioritize their responses to climate change, a problem it said was already affecting its members and their customers and investors.
“Given growing interest from investors, regulators, supply chain partners, employees and consumers seeking to understand how retailers are responding to climate change, contributors to the guide see value in providing clarity around terms and approaches,” the organization said in the announcement.
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
Learn More