That is SO cool!!! I hope he can achieve such a great feat. I for one would like to see such a big company set an example for the rest of them.

While it is certainly a good sign that Wal-Mart exec(s) are finally at least thinking about changing toward a greener, more sustainable, organic future, it is sobering that Wal-Mart also recently won a court battle in Tarpon Springs, Florida against an environmental group called "Friends of the Anclote River" that was trying to stop them from building a supercenter in a very environmentally sensitive area, and one which is home to Manatees and other precious, rare, and beautiful wildlife.

What gets me is that Wal-Mart already has two stores within around 5 to 10 miles of Tarpon Springs, and that building on this particular site should not exactly be a priority.

Being 48 years old, I have many memories (ever since the environmental movement really took off in the early seventies) of corporations making public statements about "changing to a more sustainable" emphasis, while at the same time persisting -- or even ramping up -- their screw-the- environment credo.

Before you accept any greenwashing, give your support to local, grassroots organizations like Friends of the Anclote, or at least take some time to listen to their side of the story. Here is an article about them delaying Wal-Mart from building on this site I mentioned -- from the Tampa Tribute:

http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGB0X4QLOQE.html

By the way, I don't mean to sound totally negative about Wal-Mart, and I really appreciate ANY improvements that they may be making -- or even considering to make. But . . . I also feel like saying to them, "Hey -- wait a minute, give me a break!" as long as they persist in building on environmentally sensitive areas.

Furthermore, the Wal-Mart stores already in existence could use some real upgrades, not only in installation of solar panels, wind etc., but also in simple, obvious things that are obviously human friendly and environmentally sound, like providing more shady parking areas. They could easily build sturdy, geodesic-like structures that act as arbors or trellises and have beautiful vines growing on them. This would be both not only aesthetically pleasing and shade giving, it would avoid the liability problems of trees falling on people and/or cars.

As the author of FAST FOOD NATION pointed out about McDonalds, when giants like McDonalds change, the rest of the industry is almost compelled to change too, along the same lines. Thus, if Wal-Mart ever really institutes some drastic, fundamental changes -- even if its incremental -- it will probably have an enormous impact on the rest of the "big retail" outlets.

Remember, check out Friends of the Anclote:

www.friendsoftheancloteriver.com/index.htm

http://www.tbo.com/news/metro/MGB0X4QLOQE.html

Later!

Brad