Sunbury, PA, 2016-Oct-14 — /EPR Retail News/ — Weis Markets (NYSE:WMK) today (October 12, 2016) announced it is the recipient of three Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) GreenChill Awards. The company was recognized in the categories of Most Improved Emissions Rate, Superior Goal Achievement and Store Re-Certification Excellence, as a result of its refrigerant management programs, reduced emissions rate, and overall efforts to protect the environment from harmful pollutants.
“Weis Markets is leading the way in training their refrigeration service technicians,” said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin. “Over the past year they have launched new programs and implemented best service practices that are reducing their refrigerant emissions.”
Refrigerants used by supermarkets, if not managed properly, contribute to climate change and can harm the ozone layer. In fact, the EPA estimates that if supermarkets nationwide reduced their emissions to the GreenChill average emissions rate, the industry would eliminate the equivalent of 27 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, equal to eliminating the emissions from 63 million barrels of oil. In addition, reducing leaks of some types of refrigerants could also help restore the earth’s ozone layer, which protects the earth from the sun’s damaging ultraviolet radiation, a leading cause of skin cancer.
“It’s an honor to be recognized by the EPA’s GreenChill Advanced Refrigeration Partnership for our efforts to reduce our carbon footprint. We share these three awards with all our associates who continually help us improve our refrigeration management programs,” said R. Kevin Small, Weis Markets Vice President of Development. “In recent years, we’ve utilized the GreenChill model of goal-setting and careful monitoring to broaden our ongoing sustainability to the areas of energy consumption and food recovery. Continuous improvement in sustainability is a crucial area for us and represents an ongoing commitment to the communities we serve.”
GreenChill is an EPA partnership that helps supermarkets transition to environmentally-friendlier refrigerants, reduce the amount of refrigerants used, and eliminate harmful refrigerant leaks. GreenChill has 54 partners with more than 8,000 stores, representing more than 20 percent of the supermarket industry.
Weis Markets received top honors in the following categories:
- 2015 Achievement Award – Most Improved Emissions Rate (since baseline year)
The most improved emissions rate award goes to the Partner with the most improved emissions rate for commercial systems from the previous year, and the Partner with the most improved emissions rate since their baseline year.
- 2015 Achievement Award – Superior Goal Achievement
This award goes to each Partner that achieves its annual GreenChill refrigerant emissions reduction goal.
- 2015-2016 Achievement Award – Store Re-Certification Excellence [Bellefonte, PA]
This award goes to each supermarket that has renewed its GreenChill Store Certification for five consecutive years.
For more information about Weis Markets and its sustainability efforts, visit WeisMarkets.com.
About Weis Markets
Founded in 1912, Weis Markets, Inc. is a Mid Atlantic food retailer operating 190 stores in Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and West Virginia. For more information, please visit: WeisMarkets.com or Facebook.com/WeisMarkets.
Contact:
1000 South Second Street
PO Box 471
Sunbury, Pennsylvania 17801
1-866-999-9347
Source: Weis Markets, Inc.