The Co-operative Group has pioneered renewable energy solutions alongside innovative consumer offsetting schemes to become one of the world’s leading businesses tackling climate change.
What and How:
The Co-operative Group is an Industrial and Provident Society, owned and democratically controlled by its members, that operates significant retail, financial services, pharmacy, funeral, travel, legal services, property and farming businesses. Across this range of businesses, it has made climate change a top priority, from how it operates, to the products and services it offers its wide-ranging customers.
Since 2005, 98% of The Co-operative Group’s electricity supply has come from renewable sources, making it one of the largest purchasers of green electricity in Europe. In 2006, through a joint venture with ScottishPower, The Co-operative Group opened a 16 megawatt wind farm. In the same year, the company commissioned the UK’s largest solar power installation - a £5.5million project that transformed its 25-storey Co-operative Insurance Tower with the installation of over 7,000 photovoltaic panels.
The Co-operative Group is firmly committed to high-quality voluntary offsetting. Offsetting is a standard feature of all Co-operative Bank mortgages. Co-operative Insurance launched the UK’s first motor insurance policy to include offsetting as standard, and Co-operative Travel sells offsets at all of its branches. Reductions are realised through projects that include fuel-efficient stoves in Cambodia, reforestation in Uganda and biogas digesters in India. In 2007, Co-operative Financial Services announced its intention to go beyond carbon neutral by offsetting all unavoidable operational and business travel emissions in addition to an extra 10% to begin to address legacy emissions.
* Pre-tax profits have increased by 120% since 2004 while overall greenhouse gas emissions decreased by 30%
Greenhouse gas emissions associated with premises, transport and refrigerants have reduced by 47% since 2003
Over 300,000 tonnes of CO2 have been offset since 2000 through renewable energy, energy efficiency and rainforest reforestation projects in the developing world
Positive media coverage for the company’s environmental initiatives in 2006 was calculated to be worth over £3million
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