Added on April 22, 2018  The News Wheel   , , , , , , ,
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Earth Day: What is Toyota Up To?

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Flowers at Toyota NA Headquarters

Toyota’s North American headquarters in Plano, Texas, achieved LEED Platinum in the fall of 2017 from the U.S. Green Building Council
Photo: ©Toyota

As one of the best-selling car brands in the world, Toyota has a greater responsibility than most to build green cars in an eco-conscious way. Fortunately, the Japanese automaker has always been one of the companies most committed to environmentally-friendly practices, starting with the launch of the Prius more than two decades ago.

Today, there are more than twice as many Toyota and Lexus hybrid vehicles on the road than there are hybrids of any other brand, and the automaker continues to be ranked not just as the greenest automaker in the world but as one of the greenest companies bar none.

Though achieving this requires year-round work, Earth Day represents a good opportunity to look at just how far Toyota has gotten in its pursuit to meets the 2050 environmental goals it set for itself, which “go beyond minimizing negative impacts to creating a net positive impact on the environment.”

Related: Toyota CEO to head new electric car division

The following are just five ways Toyota is making that impact in North America alone.

  1. In 2016, only 1% of the waste from Toyota’s facilities was disposed in landfills. The other 99% was reused, recycled, composted, or sent to waste-to-energy facilities.
  2. Toyota switched to LED lighting at eight of its manufacturing plants, which is estimated to save 20,000 megawatts per year and avoid around 17,000 metric tons of CO2.
  3. When building its new research and development campus in York, Michigan, Toyota recycled 92% of the waste, or 461 tons of material, generated during construction.
  4. Toyota is building the world’s first megawatt-scale fuel cell hydrogen plant, a clean source of energy that will make enough electricity to power 2,350 average-sized homes.
  5. Toyota and Lexus have 58 LEED-certified dealership facilities in North America, more than any other in the industry. Its new headquarters in Plano, Texas, also received LEED Platinum certification.

By 2025, every Toyota and Lexus model will be available with an electrified variant, and by 2030 the company aims to have global sales of more than 5.5 million electrified vehicles, including more than a million zero-emissions vehicles.

Given our urgent need for slowing down global warming, we’re glad Toyota is doing its part to lead the industry into a greener, more sustainable future.

Related: Explore Toyota’s green car lineup