Allan Gerlat, News Editor

April 17, 2012

1 Min Read
Wal-Mart Diverts 80 Percent of its U.S. Waste from Landfills

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. prevented 80.9 percent of the waste its operations generated in the United States from going to landfills, the retailer said in its latest sustainability report.

The Bentonville, Ark.-based Wal-Mart said in a news release it achieved the reduction by implementing its Zero Waste Program, composed of recycling, donating and repurposing waste. The company said the figure is the equivalent of taking more than two million cars off the road annually.

The company is making similar efforts globally. Wal-Mart's United Kingdom operator sends zero food waste to landfills, and Wal-Mart stores in China and Brazil diverted 52 percent of operational waste from disposal.

Zero waste is one of Wal-Mart’s three primary sustainability goals. The other two are to use 100-percent renewable energy, and to sell products that sustain people and the environment.

 

About the Author(s)

Allan Gerlat

News Editor, Waste360

Allan Gerlat joined the Waste360 staff in September 2011 as news editor. He was the editor of Waste & Recycling News for the first 16 years of its history, and under his guidance the publication won 27 national and regional awards.

Before Waste & Recycling News, Allan worked at another Crain Communications publication, Rubber & Plastics News, which covers rubber product manufacturing. He began with the publication as associate editor and eventually became managing editor, a position he held for nine years.

Allan is a graduate of Ohio University, where he earned a BS in journalism. He is based in Sagamore Hills, in northeast Ohio.

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