Santa Rosa, Calif. (October 6, 2015) – A typical supermarket leaks about 1,000 pounds of damaging refrigerant gas into the atmosphere every year. These gases can harm the ozone layer and are anywhere from 1,800-4,000 times worse for climate change than carbon dioxide.*
In Santa Rosa, shoppers can rest easy knowing one grocer is committed to being part of the solution. Whole Foods Market Santa Rosa was recently honored with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) GreenChill Partnership 2014-2015 Achievement Award – Store Re-Certification Excellence. This award goes to grocery stores that have renewed their GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years.
In 2010 the store earned its initial GreenChill Gold certification. Whole Foods Market’s commitment to management, maintenance, and leak detection kept up the rating.
“With its long-term and active involvement in the EPA GreenChill program, Whole Foods Market Santa Rosa is being recognized for meeting stringent GreenChill criteria for five consecutive years,” said Tom Land, GreenChill’s manager.
Tristam Coffin, sustainable facilities coordinator for Whole Foods Market Northern California, has overseen the store’s work with the GreenChill program.
“It has been our team’s devotion to equipment preservation, upkeep, and environmental stewardship that helped us maintain this prestigious distinction for five years, and it’s an honor to be recognized for that commitment,” said Coffin.
*source: Environmental Protection Agency
###
About EPA’s GreenChill Partnership
EPA’s GreenChill Partnership works with supermarkets to reduce refrigerant emissions and decrease their impact on the ozone layer and climate change. The Partnership helps supermarkets transition to environmentally friendlier refrigerants; reduce harmful refrigerant emissions; and adopt greener refrigeration technologies and environmental best practices. There are approximately 11,000 GreenChill Partner stores throughout the nation. For more information on EPA’s GreenChill Partnership, please visit www2.epa.gov/greenchill.
