Giant Eagle Nets EPA Honors

Giant Eagle Inc. received four awards from the United States Environmental Protection Agency for its green practices and sustainability efforts, as well as special recognition for its environmentally friendly transportation initiatives.

“Our multiple partnerships with the EPA are a significant piece of our overall sustainability strategy, which also includes our energy management efforts and recycling initiatives,” said Giant Eagle Senior Vice President of Real Estate and Development Shelly Sponholz. “We truly believe that our environmental commitment is a vital part to the success of both our communities and our business, as so many of the sustainable projects we undertake produce tangible benefits to each.”

The U.S. EPA Montreal Protocol Awards honor achievements in ozone layer protection, climate protection and human health protection. Giant Eagle is one of only two food retailers receiving the prestigious award this year.

“Giant Eagle continues to achieve what was thought to be impossible just a few short years ago,” said Keilly Witman, manager of EPA’s GreenChill Partnership. “They were the first supermarket partner to reduce their corporate-wide refrigerant emissions rate to below 10 percent, a feat that most in the industry said couldn't be done.”

Giant Eagle received GreenChill’s 2009 Best Leak Rate Award for its efforts to reduce refrigerant leaks; GreenChill’s 2009 Exceptional Goal Achievement Award for meeting GreenChill standards for stretch refrigerant emissions; and GreenChill's 2009 Superior Goal Achievement Award for achieving GreenChill's target rate for refrigerant emissions.

The GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership is an EPA program in which participating supermarkets, refrigeration equipment manufacturers and other stakeholders work together to help reduce refrigerant leaks and potentially damaging emissions. Giant Eagle has been a GreenChill partner since 2007.

Giant Eagle’s flagship Market District store, located in Robinson Township, Pa., received an EPA GreenChill Gold Level Building Certification for its use of environmentally-friendly commercial refrigeration.

The Robinson Market District was noted for its numerous sustainable features, including refrigerant leak rates well below the industry average, the use of secondary loop refrigeration system eliminated sales floor piping and significantly reduced the number of leak points, and the use of CO2 and glycol refrigerants in the secondary loop refrigeration system to protect the ozone layer.

Giant Eagle received a score of 1.25 from the EPA’s Smartway Transport Partnership program, tied for highest among all other participating retailers. The score indicates the relative fuel efficiency and general environmental performance of transport fleets. The program was created to help companies utilize the newest trucking and transport technologies in order to reduce fuel usage as well as emissions. The perfect score by Giant Eagle is an indication of the company’s deep commitment to clean, efficient transport.

Founded in 1931, Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle Inc. operates 170 corporate and 58 independently owned supermarkets and 158 fuel and convenience stores throughout western Pennsylvania, Ohio, north central West Virginia and Maryland.