By Trish Taylor, GreenPepper
When the topic of our Nov. 19 post about the big three U.S. auto manufacturers came up, I immediately thought of Subaru. Not because of their lack of environmental awareness, but quite the opposite.
Back when I went to Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., I always knew of the Subaru plant which set way back on I-65 in the middle of cornfields. But I never knew the hidden secrets held inside – the wonderful, "green" secrets.
Voluntarily, Subaru has a zero landfill status. According to the environmental page on their Web site, an average consumer throws more away in a day than the entire Lafayette, Ind. Subaru plant. Everything is re-used or recycled. How incredible.
They don't stop there. Also, Subaru has a "Leave No Trace" training program to teach outdoor enthusiasts how to minimize their impact on the Earth. They have reached eight million people to date. Additionally, the 800+ acres around the plant is designated as a Backyard Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Federation. The list of good deeds goes on and on.
Although this company is called Subaru of America, its origin belongs to Japan. It’s amazing that an auto manufacturer from another country made a conscious decision to try to leave the smallest footprint for us. This is a lesson U.S.-born auto manufacturers should take note of and make practice of - immediately. We all know we have only one Earth.
