The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership continues to garner more members with the addition of Raley’s stores.

Members volunteer to get involved in the reduction of refrigerant emissions. There are currently close to 30 supermarket chains, four refrigeration system manufacturers, four refrigerant manufacturers, and one company involved in the manufacturer of secondary coolants.

“EPA is very excited to have Raley’s join the GreenChill Partnership,” according to Cindy Newberg, branch chief in the Stratospheric Protection Division. “Raley’s brings a lot of technical expertise to the partnership, and we look forward to a very productive and constructive relationship with them.”

For Raley’s, this pledge is the newest in a series of commitments to environmental responsibility. The company is printing exclusively on recycled paper, purchasing paper from pulp mills that are certified by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, installing advanced exhaust filtration systems in its diesel truck fleet to reduce air pollutant emissions, and recycling nearly 100,000 tons of waste per year. In addition, the company has installed solar photovoltaic panels on one of its supermarkets that will generate enough electricity to meet 20 percent of the facility’s demand, and is currently retrofitting each of its stores with energy-efficient “cool roofs” that reduce the stores’ air conditioning loads.

“For a number of years, Raley’s has shared the EPA’s commitment to decreasing refrigerant emissions through efficient HVAC systems and proprietary store design,” said Ed Estberg, Raley’s Sr. Director of Facilities. “This new partnership demonstrates our commitment to being an environmentally conscious retailer and supports our mission to be good stewards of the earth.”

Under the agreement with the EPA, Raley’s has committed to the following:

• Require all new and remodeled stores to be free of ozone-depleting substances, in advance of the Clean Air Act phaseout requirements;

• Establish an emissions inventory and meet annual emissions reduction targets; and

• Develop a refrigeration management plan that lists technologies, strategies, and practices used to achieve emissions reductions goals.

Raley’s is a privately-owned supermarket chain based in West Sacramento, Calif., and was founded by Tom Raley, who opened his first store in 1935. The company has since incorporated three other chains including Bel Air Markets, Nob Hill Foods, and Food Source.

According to the EPA, GreenChill partners in the food retail business have refrigerant emissions rates nearly 50 percent lower than the EPA-estimated industry average. EPA estimates that GreenChill’s founding partners saved almost $13 million in operating costs by reducing refrigerant emissions.

More information about the EPA’s GreenChill Partnership is available at www.epa.gov/greenchill.

Publication date: 05/11/2009