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Corporate Social Responsibility
News
6.08.2005 ET
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Highlights of Toyota's Environmental Progress
Toyota Environmental Update, June 2005
(CSRwire) Our goal is to keep you informed about our worldwide progress on
environmental matters. Thank you for your interest in Toyota's efforts to
become a greener automaker.--Irv Miller, Group Vice President,
Corporate
Communications Department, Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. More about
Toyota's environmental efforts can be found at www.toyota.com/environment
Toyota To Produce Camry Hybrid Sedans In The U.S.
On May 17, Toyota announced that it will produce a hybrid version of the
Camry midsize sedan at its Georgetown, Kentucky plant. Camry is America's
most popular car, with sales topping 425,000 units in 2004. By offering a
Camry hybrid option, Toyota will give a large number of car buyers the
opportunity to choose a hybrid drivetrain, an important step in the
mainstreaming of hybrid vehicles.
The Camry hybrid will be the first Toyota hybrid vehicle built in the U.S.
Production will begin in the second half of 2006, with an annual capacity
of up to 48,000 units. Its gasoline engine will be manufactured on site,
and the hybrid electrical components will come from Japan.
Toyota has sold more than 360,000 hybrid vehicles worldwide, and is on
target to meet its goal of producing 300,000 hybrids annually by 2005. The
Camry hybrid will be the fourth hybrid to be produced by Toyota for the
U.S. market, following Prius, Highlander Hybrid, and the Lexus division's
RX 400h luxury SUV.
Toyota receives environmental awards
Toyota has received Portland, Oregon's 2005 BEST Award for BEST
Practices for Sustainability. Standing for Businesses for an
Environmentally Sustainable Tomorrow, the BEST award honors the extensive
sustainable features in Toyota's 98,000-square-foot Port of Portland
Vehicle Distribution Center.
New United Motor Manufacturing (NUMMI) has received the Susanne Wilson
Award for Pollution Prevention/Resource Conservation (Large Company). An
assembly plant jointly owned by Toyota and General Motors in Fremont,
California, NUMMI has significantly reduced the production of solid waste
and consumption of energy and water using Toyota's Enhanced Environmental
Management System. The award was given at Acterra's 14th Business
Environmental Awards reception in Palo Alto. Acterra is an organization
whose mission is to protect the area's natural environment through
stewardship, education, and leadership. The Business Environmental Awards
honor innovative programs and achievements that contribute toward a
sustainable Bay Area.
Toyota has earned a 2005 ENERGY STAR designation from the U.S. EPA for
Toyota Plaza in Gardena, California. The label distinguishes the building
as one of the top 25 percent of similar buildings in energy performance,
thermal comfort, indoor air quality, and illumination levels.
Toyota environmental sponsorships and support
Toyota was a sponsor of the 15th annual Tour de Sol, a sustainable
energy transportation festival, road rally, and competition held in
Saratoga Springs and Albany, New York. Tour de Sol is produced by the
Northeast Sustainable Energy Association, an organization dedicated to
promoting the understanding, development, and adoption of energy
conservation and nonpolluting, renewable energy technologies.
Toyota has provided a major gift to sponsor a fuel cell exhibit by the
University of California, Irvine's National Fuel Cell Research Center in
the U.S. Pavilion at the 2005 World's Fair in Japan. The exhibit
demonstrates the fuel cell's promise as a dependable, efficient, and
environmentally friendly power supply. Nearly 2 million visitors are
expected at EXPO 2005, which is themed "Nature's Wisdom."
Toyota was a sponsor of "Drive Clean and Green Across Missouri," an
event organized by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources' Energy
Center and the St. Louis Regional Clean Cities and Kansas City Clean
Cities coalitions. A Prius was among the vehicles in a caravan of hybrid
and alternative fuel vehicles that made its way through the state of
Missouri.
In Newport, Kentucky, Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America has
donated $25,000 to Newport Aquarium's nonprofit arm, the WAVE Foundation.
The gift supports the NavOps portion of the National Submarine Science
Discovery Center (NSSDC). The funds will be used to subsidize a life
science program designed to provide fifth-grade students with an
understanding of all living organisms' dependence on water.
Produced by Robert Oberhand & Assoc., Chatsworth, CA, in conjunction with
Toyota Corporate Communications Department.
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