Wal*Mart Heirs Hate the Environment Too!

Last week I wrote about Wal*Mart’s often horrific labor relations policies, most recently undermining their part-time workers by taking away promised healthcare coverage. But one of the worst corporations in the world was back in the news a day later, this time for pushing to block solar energy expansion (ILSR). Despite claims they are sustainability champions, Wal*Mart actually contributes to pollution at the levels of Oil & Gas companies and rank 33rd on the Greenhouse Polluters Index (Daily Kos). And they apparently are not big fans of solar energy either – contributing $4.5 million to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and Americans for Prosperity, two groups trying to weaken clean energy policies at the state level, and owning a solar company, First Solar, that ironically worked to undermine household rooftop solar by advocating (along with the utilities) for a tax on those homes; cutting residential installations by 40 percent. Shopping at Wal*Mart is becoming almost as bad as buying a Justin Bieber album. Well, almost …