The Home Depot has announced additional renewable energy goals in its 2020 responsibility report, including the elimination of expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) film from its private brand packaging by 2023.
The report introduced several other new goals and provided an update on the company's recent response to Covid-19 and social equality issues.
In addition to eliminating EPS foam and PVC film, The Home Depot has also committed to producing and procuring energy from 335 megawatts of renewable and alternative energy projects by 2025, which is the equivalent to the amount of energy needed to power more than 90,000 homes.
As part of its existing pledge to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 50% by 2035, the company reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 10% in 2019, driven mainly by energy reductions and supply chain efficiencies. In fact, the firm reduced its electricity consumption in its US stores by 383 million kWh, tripling its 2018 reduction while at the same time adding three new US stores to its footprint.
"We believe our commitment to continuing progress on environmental, social and governance issues has made our company stronger, had a lasting impact on the environment, deepened our relationships with associates and customers, and created long-term shareholder value," said Craig Menear, Chairman, CEO and President of The Home Depot. "I want to thanks our associates and suppliers for the significant progress we made last year and look forward to making meaningful progress in the future."
The DIY chain's corporate responsibility strategy is centered on three key pillars; focusing on people, operating sustainably, and strengthening communities. Under its focus on people branch, more than 33% of new hires were female and more than 50% were ethnically diverse, The Home Depot said. The firm has also supported its associates throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, providing more than $1 billion in expanded benefits, such as paid time off and weekly bonuses, to-date.
On a wider scale, The Home Depot contributed more than $50 million to support communities during the crisis, including donations of PPE to first responders, hospitals and healthcare workers, with more than 955 of its stores contributing PPE and other supplies in their local communities.
Regarding sustainability, the report revealed The Home Depot's US stores used 35% less electricity than they did in 2010, with overall US store energy consumption dropping 12% last year. This is in part down to the company's rolling installation of LED lighting across its US stores, with 60% of stores having this LED lighting installed by the end of 2019.
The company also plans to nearly double to number of stores with on-site solar panels and continue to leverage on-site fuel cells and offsite wind and solar energy. By partnering with suppliers to improve products and packaging, 1.44 million pounds of plastic were eliminated, and another 7.73 million pounds of virgin plastic were replaced with recycled plastic in 2019.
In May, The Home Depot reported sales of $28.3 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2020, a 7.1% increase on the same period last year. Despite the seemingly strong sales trends at the end of the first quarter, the company is suspending its previously communicated fiscal 2020 guidance.
