User:Accordian-Orangejuice/REI

Approach to Environmental Issues
In 2006, REI purchased 11 million kWh of green power, enough to offset 20% of its overall power consumption. That placed REI on the US Environmental Protection Agency's top ten list of retailers in purchases of cleanly-generated electricity. By 2007, REI promises to make its trips through REI Adventures carbon neutral by the purchasing of green power credits "Green Tags". REI Adventures states that it is the first US travel company to introduce that type of program. REI has pledged to be a climate neutral and zero waste to landfill company in 2020 by focusing on the five areas of its business: green buildings, product stewardship, proper paper usage, reducing waste and energy efficiency. As of 2020, REI has also pledged to halve its carbon footprint by 2030.

They have also begun to offset its emissions by cutting emissions throughout its business processes, especially in the supply chain. Changeclimate.org states that REI has further expanded their short and long term emissions goals as of October 2023, as they are committed to reducing GHG emissions 90% by 2050. Furthermore, REI is aiming to reach net-zero GHG emissions across its entire operations chain by 2050, with both of these ventures being approved by the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi). REI's 2022 ESG scorecard shows a marginal improvement of 423 to 371 in the Emissions Intensity category (metric tons CO2eq/$MM revenue) from 2020 to 2022. While this means that they are more energy efficient with their operations, their value-chain scope 3 emissions have continued to rise, reaching an all-time high of 1,443,570 metric tons of CO2 in 2022. Scope 3 emissions make up the majority of emissions, as they account for indirect emissions from business activities from assets not owned by REI.

Use of Recycled Materials
REI has also increased the amount of waste diverted from landfills, even reaching 84% in 2022. One way this is done is by making products using recycled materials, specifically nylons. Many of their recycled products feature 400-denier nylon, all of which have been bluesign® approved, meaning they meet consumer and environmental safety standards. Recycling nylons goes a long way for the environment when considering that the main byproduct of nylon manufacturing is nitrous oxide, which is "310 times more potent than carbon dioxide". With less need to extract raw materials to manufacture new nylon, this greatly reduces the amount of environmental impact within REI's production line.

Another recycled material that REI uses is polyester plastic, which is widely considered to be one of the most polluting textiles in the world. Their Recycled Polyester blanket uses recycled 30-denier ripstop polyester and is one of the most popular products on their website. Products like this can go a long way in reducing the amount of plastic pollution in the world. When disposed of improperly, plastics can break apart into micro plastics and pollute every aspect of life. Over 51 trillion micro plastic particles inhabit the ocean today, with over 350 million metric tons of plastic pollutants being generated each year.