Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.'s (NYSE:WMT) march towards being a "green" corporate citizen is hitting the public relations marketplace like a storm recently. The world's largest retailer is showing up all over the place now due to its green strategies and environmentally-friendly stances and strategies.Wal-Mart said today that its technologies designed to reduce waste and become more environmentally-sustaining are already yielding results at two experimental stores after one year. This is heady news for a company the size of Wal-Mart, although I'd like to see proof that its strategies are indeed showing results after just one year beyond a corporate press release. However, Wal-Mart did say that these recent successes are prompting it to continue studying the further implementation of its methods so far.
Wal-Mart stores in Texas and Colorado feature technologies designed to reduce operational and construction waste and also use recycled and renewable materials. Wal-Mart also stated that the two stores were designed to conserve water and electricity using LED lights that use less electricity, generate less heat and last longer.
In addition to LED lights being used in these two newer stores, Wal-Mart said it will use the lights in freezer cases in new stores nationwide starting in January of next year. It took until 2007 for something as simple as light replacements in freezer cases, but it's a start.
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