Home Depot
Posted by apstaats on Apr 17, 2007 · Member since Mar 2006 · 661 posts
Home Depot is going to start labeling their eco-friendly products, and they are giving away free compact flourescent lightbulbs on Earth Day, April 22. I thought you all might like to know :)
Ooooh!!!!!!!!! Thanks!!!!!!! That's great! We need more eco-friendly companies out there! Plus its free!!! Can't get any better than that!!!! :D
It would be nice to know the criteria Home Depot uses to determine if something is eco-friendly. Their track record is hit and miss.
Here is a quote from a NY Times article about it:
"Merchandise can qualify for the new line in two ways. It either meets widely accepted federal and industry standards, like the Energy Star or the Forest Stewardship Council certification process, or its environmental claims are tested and validated by an outside company, Scientific Certification Systems. Ultimately, Home Depot, rather than a third party, determines what products will receive an Eco Options label.
"There is, for example, a silicone window and door sealant from General Electric that improves the energy efficiency of heating and cooling systems and reduces greenhouse-gas emissions from coal-burning electricity plants. Another product is a glass cleaner from OdoBan that has low levels of volatile organic compounds, vapors linked to health problems. And organic plant food from Miracle-Gro uses no harsh chemicals that imperil water supplies."
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/17/business/17depot.html?em&ex=1176955200&en=fb85404f124e9eed&ei=5087%0A
Thanks for posting this! I love earth day, and I love free things especially those that are good for the earth... What could be better! :D
I am very wary of any claims by Home Depot as to their sustainability. It is a marketing ploy. They've made promises in the past and stopped exploiting one group for another.
http://homedepotsucks.com/flooring.htm
i think we can expect to see this kind of stuff more and more. it is becoming a hot topic of conversation, and poof! a trend is born. i think we will be astonished at the amounts of these kinds of products that we will see in the near future. i believe they are even going to become status symbols.
it is a change in the market, and companies are STUPID if they are not doing something to get on board. even if it is about marketing and profits for them, we are benefiting from getting a product that we want to see on the market.
half of conservationism is the FEELING that you are doing something, even if you really aren't doing much. that it makes YOU feel good. so, when consumers see 2 light bulbs on the shelf (or 2 tires, or 2 cars, etc) next to each other, and one is eco-friendly and one isn't, maybe they will be more likely to choose the eco-friendly version and get a little feel-good sensation because of it.
fiona
i think we can expect to see this kind of stuff more and more. it is becoming a hot topic of conversation, and poof! a trend is born. i think we will be astonished at the amounts of these kinds of products that we will see in the near future. i believe they are even going to become status symbols.
half of conservationism is the FEELING that you are doing something, even if you really aren't doing much. that it makes YOU feel good. so, when consumers see 2 light bulbs on the shelf (or 2 tires, or 2 cars, etc) next to each other, and one is eco-friendly and one isn't, maybe they will be more likely to choose the eco-friendly version and get a little feel-good sensation because of it.
fiona
The trouble, at least here in Spain, is that the claims may or may not be true. Suddenly the shelves of the more expensive supermarkets are crowded with supposedly "organic" products--which may or may not meet the criteria, but ARE 50% more expensive, minimum. There was a scandal just a few weeks ago in the UK about "organic" egg producers selling factory-farmed eggs they bought on the open market as organic. More research for the consumer to do, before you believe all the labels.
I have found a bona fide organic store here, it's tiny and the prices are lower than the HFS for products like oats, bulgur, etc. I can't afford their produce on my budget but they have a lot of products that are unavailable elswhere.
I was looking for a shower head. One of the places I looked was at Home Depot. There were 30-40 showerhead options of which 90% were high flow and overtly adverised on the packaging that you could remove the "low flow" device to get an even higher water flow. So now Home Depot is going to mark all of those shower heads as eco friendly, even though they're explicity marketed as water wasters.
There have been numerous studies looking at ethics in business. What has been found is that business people have a very fluid view of ethics. If Home Depot can contract with a supplier for lumber and then have the provider just sign some paper certifying the sustainable forest eco conditions have been met without really making them prove it, then that's what I suspect they'll call due diligence. I first said Home Depot has a hit and miss track record, I'd like to amend that to mostly miss.
I'm really happy there is a market for eco friendly products and that the larger businesses recognize that people want more eco friendly products, but I don't believe Home Depot will be selling what consumers think they're buying.