Office Depot Unveils Green Store

Office Depot, headquartered in Delray Beach, Fla., has announced the grand opening of its first green store, located in Austin, Texas.

The event was held July 10 and attended by Office Depot executives, Texas officials, including Austin Mayor Will Wynn, local environmental organizations and representatives from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

The store has been pre-certified to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards. Office Depot is the only office supply retailer participating in the USGBC’s Retail Volume Certification Program, a pilot group formed to help retailers achieve LEED-certification at their locations.

Green building features at the Austin Office Depot include:

• Steel decking and joists made of more than 85 percent recycled steel and recycled concrete partitions composed of more than 95 percent recycled materials.
• T5 energy-efficient lighting.
• More than 50 active skylights that adjust with the path of the sun to provide natural light to more than 90 percent of the store.
• Solar panels on the roof, which generate about 10 percent of the store’s energy needs.
• An in-store recycling center offering ink and toner cartridge recycling, cell phone and rechargeable battery recycling.

More information is available at www.officedepot.com.