Targets
Targets
Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions
Sobeys participates in an industry-wide initiative that created, and is now working to enhance, a Canadian supermarket industry carbon footprint calculator. Using this calculator we measured the 2007 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of Sobeys’ corporately-owned and operated facilities and fleets. More importantly, we used this tool to help identify opportunities to reduce our carbon footprint and associated costs.
Although it proved challenging to measure our commodity consumption since it required collecting data we have never collected before, we gained important insights from the initiative. We identified significant differences in the size and composition of each operating region’s carbon footprint. These impacts are influenced by numerous factors:
- The source of energy used by the provincial power generators. This can be coal, natural gas, nuclear or hydro,
- Local climate conditions,
- The age and design of buildings,
- The type of energy efficiency features installed, and
- The energy conservation behaviours at the different locations.
There are also regional differences in our fleets’ carbon footprints, which are affected by the type of driving conditions, particularly whether it’s city or highway driving, local climate and travel conditions, vehicle fuel-efficiency features, driver training and idling times.
Also, Sobeys uses many different kinds of refrigerants in our stores, distribution centres and fleets, each with its own global warming characteristics. As a result, the carbon footprint of a region will depend on the type of refrigerant used in its facilities.
Considering these various factors influencing performance, it is clear that developing a single solution to reducing the company’s carbon footprint is not feasible. Also, it is apparent that significant reductions in carbon emissions will require time, behaviour changes and some capital investment.
