Whole Foods Store Recognized for Lighting Reduction

LANDOVER, Md. — A Whole Foods Market outlet here has received an Environmental Stewardship Award from Orion Energy Systems, Manitowoc, Wis., for a recent lighting change that substantially reduces the amount of electricity used by the store. Contractor Hawkins Electric replaced 102 high-intensity-discharge fixtures with 114 of Orion’s fluorescent-platform units. The project is expected to decrease lighting power use by 45%, from 205,457 kilowatt-hours to 113,503 kwh a year. “Whole Foods Market is committed to a healthy environment, both indoors and outdoors,” said Jim Thornton, plant engineer at Whole Foods Market, in a statement. “We are proud to be honored by Orion in this way and want to thank them as well as Hawkins Electric for helping to make this happen.” The decrease in electricity usage will result in annual light-related energy cost savings of more than $4,000. In addition to the annual cost savings, the lighting project will prevent 90 tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere annually, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

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