The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency have bestowed a GreenChill gold-level award for innovative green refrigeration technology on Raley’s newest supermarket, which opened yesterday in Tracy, Calif.

The GreenChill Partnership works with supermarket industries through a cooperative alliance to reduce emissions of ozone-depleting and greenhouse gases.

“This Raley’s store shows that we can use advanced technologies to reduce emissions that deplete the ozone layer and contribute to climate change,” said Deborah Jordan, director of the Air Division in the EPA’s Pacific Southwest office. “The public values sustainable businesses such as our GreenChill partners that are helping protect our health and the environment.”

West Sacramento, Calif.-based Raley’s now has five GreenChill-certified sites in California that have earned either gold or silver certification. The Gold-level certified stores are in Tracy, Petaluma and San Jose, while the silver-level certified stores are in San Pablo and Mountain View.

According to EPA, Raley’s new refrigeration system uses a significantly smaller charge of refrigerant gases than traditional systems, and significantly reduces refrigerant emissions.

GreenChill partners pledge to go above and beyond regulatory requirements by measuring and tracking refrigerant emissions that affect climate change and Earth’s ozone layer, and then setting reduction targets for these emissions. Partners also agree to use only ozone-friendly alternatives in all new and remodeled stores, which emit about 50 percent fewer emissions than the industry average.

Currently, GreenChill has a total of 46 partners, including 37 food retail partners with over 6,500 stores in 47 states.

For more information on the GreenChill Partnership, visit www.epa.gov/greenchill.