Whether you see it as greenwashing or genuine environmental stewardship, many companies these days are making ambitious commitments relating to sustainability and emissions.
The latest is 3M, who has announced its goal to run on 100% renewable energy in every facility globally. But the maker of industrial adhesives is taking it one step further than most: it made its renewable energy goal effective at its headquarters immediately following the announcement.
CEO Mike Roman called it “flipping a switch” and, effective March 1, the company is taking its 400+ acre St. Paul campus renewable, with the majority of the power coming from wind farms located a few hundred miles down the road in Pipestone, Minnesota.
The transition at the headquarters complex, which serves as home base for 12,000 3M employees, brings the company’s global use of renewables to 30% and hopes to reach a near-term goal of 50% global renewable use by 2025.
Its other 2025 goals include “reducing water usage, and impacting climate and energy targets.” 3M says it is pursuing a “strategic focus on science for climate with the aspiration to innovate to decarbonize industry, accelerate global climate solutions, and improve the company’s environmental footprint.”
According to 3M, the company has been an environmental leader since the mid-seventies, when it implemented the “Pollution Prevention Pays” program, an initiative the company says has offset more than five billion pounds of air, water, and waste pollution.
According to Helen Clarkson, CEO of The Climate Group, a non-profit that works with businesses to address climate change, “Seeing such a large manufacturer commit to ‘go all in’ on renewables … is an encouraging step forward,” and “big brands like this can influence positive action from other companies and customers and accelerate the clean energy transition around the world.”