TD Bank Receives EPA Green Power Leadership Award

CHERRY HILL, N.J. and PORTLAND, Maine, Sept. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®, announced today that it has received a 2012 Green Power Leadership Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), at an event held in conjunction with the 2012 Renewable Energy Markets Conference in Washington, D.C. TD Bank was one of only 12 organizations in the United States to receive a Leadership Award for its green power purchase.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20081031/NEF005LOGO-a )

The annual Green Power Leadership Award recognizes the country's leading green power purchasers for their commitment and contribution to helping advance the development of the nation's voluntary green power market. The EPA looks for EPA Green Power Partners who distinguish themselves through purchases of green power from a utility green-pricing program, a competitive green marketer, or a renewable energy certificate (REC) supplier. TD Bank currently purchases nearly 262 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually, which is enough green power to offset 100 percent of the organization's purchased electricity use. TD Bank buys RECs from Renewable Choice Energy.

According to the EPA, TD Bank's current green power purchase is equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions of more than 35,000 passenger vehicles per year, or is the equivalent amount of electricity needed to power nearly 23,000 average American homes annually.

"We are proud to receive this prestigious award from the EPA," said Jacquelynn Henke, TD Bank's U.S. Green Real Estate Strategy Officer. "Purchasing green power helps our organization become more sustainable, while also sending a message to others across the U.S. that supporting clean sources of electricity is a sound business decision and an important choice to fight climate change."

TD Bank currently ranks number 19 on EPA's National Top 50 List. Each list highlights EPA Green Power Partners that have completed the largest annual voluntary purchases through July 5, 2012.  EPA updates its Top Partner Lists quarterly at http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/toplists/.

Green power is electricity that is generated from environmentally preferable renewable resources, such as wind, solar, geothermal, biogas, biomass and low-impact hydro. These resources generate electricity with a net-zero increase in carbon dioxide emissions, while offering a superior environmental profile compared to traditional power generation sources. Green power purchases also support the development of new renewable energy generation sources nationwide.

"EPA is pleased to recognize TD Bank with a Green Power Purchasing award for its distinguished commitment to buying green power and for taking a significant step to reduce the environmental impacts associated with its electricity use," said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation. "TD Bank is helping to grow our nation's renewable energy market and is a model for other organizations to follow."

TD Bank has made a commitment to be as green as its logo. In response to feedback from customers and employees, the communities TD serves and other environmental stakeholders, these areas are: energy efficiency, reduced paper use and employee engagement on environmental issues.

In 2011, TD Bank opened the first net-zero bank store in the U.S. in Cypress Creek, Fla. The bank's first green, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®)-designed prototype store opened April 2010 in Queens Village, N.Y., with a number of green features, including solar panels and solar drive-thru canopies that produce 15 to 20 percent of the store's energy onsite. LEED is an internationally-recognized mark of excellence by the U.S. Green Building Council. TD Bank has since opened more than 70 LEED-designed stores and corporate buildings, with 52 LEED-certified and 92% at a Gold or Platinum level of certification. TD is committed to building energy-efficient stores.

About TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®
TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., providing nearly 8 million customers with a full range of retail, small business and commercial banking products and services at nearly 1,300 convenient locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Metro D.C., the Carolinas and Florida. In addition, TD Bank and its subsidiaries offer customized private banking and wealth management services through TD Wealth^®, and vehicle financing and dealer commercial services through TD Auto Finance. TD Bank is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J., and Portland, Maine. To learn more, visit www.tdbank.com. Find TD Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TDMoneyLoungeUS and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TDBank_US.

TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is a member of TD Bank Group and a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Canada, a top 10 financial services company in North America. The Toronto-Dominion Bank is one of the few banks in the world rated Aaa by Moody's and trades on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges under the ticker symbol "TD." To learn more, visit www.td.com.

About EPA's Green Power Partnership
The Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that encourages organizations to buy green power as a way to reduce the environmental impacts associated with purchased electricity use. The Partnership currently has more than 1,300 Partner organizations collectively purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually. Partners include a wide variety of leading organizations such as Fortune 500® companies, small and medium sized businesses, local, state, and federal governments, and colleges and universities. For additional information, please visit http://www.epa.gov/greenpower.

About the Green Power Leadership Awards
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) co-sponsors the annual Green Power Leadership Awards in conjunction with the Center for Resource Solutions. EPA recognizes winners in the following awards categories: Green Power Partner of the Year; On-site Generation; Green Power Purchasing; Sustained Excellence in Green Power; Green Power Community of the Year; Green Power Supplier of the Year; and Innovative Green Power Program of the Year. EPA's Green Power Purchaser awards recognize the exceptional achievement among EPA Green Power Partners who distinguish themselves through green power procurement, market leadership, overall green power strategy, and overall impact on the green power market.  EPA's Green Power Supplier awards recognize green power suppliers for outstanding efforts, initiatives and programs that significantly advance the development of green power sources serving the voluntary market. The Awards are held in conjunction with the Renewable Energy Markets Conference. For additional information please visit http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/awards/.

SOURCE TD Bank