White Rose Shopping Centre has been awarded a trophy for its eco credentials at the Green Apple Environment Awards this week (25 November 2019).
The centre’s achievement follows the introduction of a Smoke and Vape Free Zone in its outdoor leisure area, The Village, in 2018. Launched alongside White Rose’s new children’s play area, the zone was created in partnership with Leeds City Council and Child Friendly Leeds as part of the city’s Clean Air Leeds ambition.
The Bronze title was awarded to White Rose due to the centre’s impressive record for sustainability. In 2017, a total of 3,000 solar photovoltaic panels were installed on the centre’s roof – the largest solar installation on a retail property in the UK – which generate enough electricity to power more than 200 UK homes for 12 months.
In recent years White Rose has also introduced free electric car charging points and also boasts food digesters, which break down solid food waste from retailers into liquid, a rainwater harvesting system, LED lighting which uses up to 90% less energy than traditional bulbs, and encourages site-wide biodiversity including hives of more than 500,000 bees on its roof.
This month, the centre has planted 187 trees on its site to mark Baby Week Leeds – one tree for every baby born in Leeds during the week.
Steven Foster, General Manager of White Rose Shopping Centre, said:
“We’re delighted that our sustainability work has been recognised at the Green Apple Environmental Awards. That said, we certainly won’t be resting on our laurels – we’re constantly seeking out ways to improve our environmental impact and we understand that this is a work in progress.
“It’s important to us that in addition to offering a full day out in terms of retail, dining, and leisure, we ensure that our impact on our community is a positive one.”
This post is based on a press release issued on behalf of White Rose Shopping Centre
Photo: Dean Stratton (Centre Operations Manager), Nikki Appleton (Marketing Manager), and Henry Powell (Environment Manager – Corporate Affairs & Sustainability)
