Target will retrofit a Vista, Calif. store with multiple innovations designed to reduce emissions and achieve net zero energy usage as part of the retailer’s efforts to achieve its sustainability goals. These features will inform Target’s future investments in new stores and remodel programs as the retailer seeks to develop greener operations.
One of the major elements of the Vista store is 3,420 solar panels across the location’s roof and new carport canopies, which will help the site produce up to a 10% energy surplus each year that can be transmitted back to the local power grid. Target also has applied for net zero energy certification from the International Living Future Institute.
Target already uses rooftop solar power at more than 25% of its facilities, producing a total of 255 megawatts of energy across 542 buildings, but this will be the first store that can produce all of its own power. The panels simultaneously help preserve the environment by reducing emissions and help the retailer save millions of dollars in annual energy costs.
The store will further reduce emissions by powering its HVAC heating through its rooftop solar panels rather than via natural gas and by switching to carbon dioxide refrigeration, a natural refrigerant. Target will scale the refrigerant switch chainwide by 2040 to reduce its operations’ direct emissions by 20%.
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“We’ve been working for years at Target to shift toward sourcing more renewable energy and further reducing our carbon footprint, and our Vista store’s retrofit is the next step in our sustainability journey and a glimpse of the future we’re working toward,” said John Conlin, SVP of Properties at Target in a statement. “Our new stores and remodel programs are designed to help achieve our sustainability goals as we test, learn and scale our innovations over time across our operations.”
Target is aiming to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions across the entire company by 2040. The Vista store will serve as a blueprint to help it achieve its interim goal of sourcing 100% of its electricity for its operations from renewable sources by 2030. The retailer also is signing offsite solar and wind energy contracts and has secured additional partnerships that will allow it to purchase nearly half of its electricity from renewable sources by in the end of 2022.
Additional sustainability efforts include conserving 10% of stores’ total energy use by using LED lighting and working toward diverting 90% of waste away from landfills by 2030. The company also provides more than 1,350 electric vehicle charging spaces at over 150 locations in more than 20 states and recently launched a curated tag to highlight eco-friendly products.
