Starbucks Corp. tackled a wide range of global responsibility projects in 2014, including the ongoing minimization of its environment footprint. In its annual 2014 Global Responsibility Report, the coffee giant noted that it opened its 500th LEED-certified store in 2014, and that 98% of company-operated new stores opened in the United States in 2014 were built to LEED standards. Globally, the percentage stands at 64%.
Starbucks said is has experienced some technical challenges in international markets where the U.S.-based LEED certification program is still gaining traction. It is working with the U.S. Green Building Council to increase adoption of the LEED standards.
In other environmental highlights:
Energy management: In 2014, Starbucks installed energy management systems in 4,000 stores to optimize heating and cooling.
Renewable energy: The company is on track to purchase 100% renewable energy equal to 100% of the energy used in U.S. and Canadian stores by the end of 2015. In 2014, Starbucks purchased renewable energy equivalent to more than 59% of the electricity used in our global company-operated stores.
Water conservation: Starbucks continues to make strides in water conservation by implementing water-saving solutions in new stores and water filtration retrofits in existing ones. It has set a goal to reduce water use in company-operated stores 25% by 2015, and approached that goal in 2014 with a savings of more than 23% over baseline levels.
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