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Last Updated: Jun 14th, 2007 - 11:45:36 |
Enterprise Rent-A-Car Launches Comprehensive Green Platform
By greenbiz.com
Jun 11, 2007
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ST. LOUIS, June 11, 2007 --
Enterprise Rent-A-Car last week announced a set of plans to make the
company an environmental leader in the car rental industry.
Enterprise's environmental stewardship platform includes several
long-term initiatives, among them a fleet of fuel-efficient and
alternative-fuel vehicles, as well as a commitment to fund research
into alternative fuels.
"We know that more and more consumers expect the companies that
serve them to share their concerns about the environment. For our
company and our industry to be successful, we must address those
concerns while also working to sustain our business over the long
term," said Andrew C. Taylor, Enterprise's chairman and CEO.
Enterprise said 47 percent of its rental fleet -- more than 334,000
vehicles - average at least 28 mpg, a number it said was nearly 10
times as many as offered by its nearest competitor. Furthermore, the
company estimated that 28 percent of its 199,000 vehicles in its
worldwide rental fleet average at least 32 miles per gallon.
Beyond that, a third of the vehicles in Enterprise's U.S. fleet qualify for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's SmartWay
certification mark, a distinction the EPA grants to vehicles that emit
relatively low levels of both regulated pollutants and greenhouse gases
such as carbon dioxide.
"Including EPA-certified SmartWay, Flex Fuel, and hybrid cars in a
fleet is a great way to lower greenhouse gas emissions," said Margo
Oge, director of EPA's Office of Transportation and Air Quality. "We
applaud companies that adopt these kinds of strategies, which are good
for both the environment and our energy security."
In 2006, Enterprise launched its FlexFuel initiative, which is
aimed at maximizing the use of more than 41,000 FlexFuel cars and light
trucks in its U.S. fleet that have the ability to burn high levels of
ethanol-based fuel. Enterprise also operates more than 3,000
gas/electric hybrid vehicles which are powered by a combination of gas
and battery-generated electricity.
Taylor said the company's efforts to reduce fuel consumption and
related emissions are as much about sustaining Enterprise's business as
they are about sustaining the environment.
"We have always managed our business for the long term, and we are
taking that same long-term approach here," he said. "Taking care of the
environment is the right thing to do, but for Enterprise it is more
than that; very simply, it is a business imperative if we are to
continue to run our business and serve consumers successfully into the
future."
In addition to making the most of currently available technologies
and looking for new ways to reduce the environmental impact of its
operations, Enterprise is actively funding the advancement of
alternative fuel research to reduce dependence on fossil fuels for the
long term.
In February, Enterprise's founding family, St. Louis's Jack Taylor
family, gave $25 million to create the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute
for Renewable Fuels at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St.
Louis, one of the world's foremost plant research centers. The
Institute will work to develop acceptable and affordable alternatives
to finite fossil fuels by finding new ways to create fuel from
renewable, reliable plant sources.
Enterprise has also begun to offer hourly vehicle rentals in
several major metropolitan areas, a solution many urban residents are
seeking in order to limit vehicle ownership, reduce congestion, and
other environmental concerns resulting from the use of vehicles in
densely populated areas.
Beginning with Chicago locations in 2005, the company has since
expanded the service to other cities, including New York, Portland,
Ore., Seattle and Washington, D.C.
Source: http://greenbiz.com/news/news_third.cfm?NewsID=35238
© Copyright 2007 by CivilizedNation.com
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