Leader in Green Real Estate, Verdigris Group Expands Carbon Neutral Operations to Include Watershed Restoration and Reforestation as Well as Solar and Wind Investments

Denver, CO, March 30, 2011 --(PR.com)-- Verdigris Group, the highly-progressive Real Estate Development and Services Company, expands their Corporate Sustainability Program to include watershed restoration and reforestation efforts in addition to their ongoing investments in solar and wind project development.

Verdigris Group has operated as a certified carbon neutral organization since 2007, and has developed their “Operational Strategic Sustainability Framework” which sets their corporate policies and guides each operating divisions’ direction enabling Verdigris Group to achieve their goals of carbon-neutrality and triple bottom-line business practice.

As an integral part of their innovative Sustainability Framework, Verdigris Group works with corporate partner Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF) in order to verify and maintain their carbon neutral status. Through the purchase of Carbon Offsets, Verdigris Group balances their carbon emissions from business activities such as air travel, employee commuting and product shipping. These Carbon Offsets support the development of wind farms, solar arrays, and landfill gas and biogas projects throughout the United States. Each Carbon Offset represents one metric ton of carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere. All of Verdigris Group’s offset investments are established and regulated by the globally-recognized Green-e® Climate Protocol for Renewable Energy.

Additionally, Verdigris Group utilizes Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) to offset the carbon emissions from their business’ electricity use. And now, as part of their effort to account for and manage all of Verdigris Group’s operational impact on the environment, Verdigris Group is utilizing Water Restoration Certificates (WRCs) in order to balance direct and indirect water consumption, including water used in office space, operations or embedded in the supply chain.

Verdigris Group’s Watershed Restoration investments represent 100,000 gallons of water restored to the most critically dewatered rivers and streams throughout the United States. The Carbon Offsets and Renewable Energy Certificates represent Verdigris Group’s investments in new renewable energy projects and other emission reduction developments that would not otherwise happen.

“Key to our triple bottom-line operational strategy, Verdigris group supports the development of renewable energy facilities which harness the power of the blowing wind and shining sun,” says Garratt Hasenstab, Principal and Director of Sustainability for Verdigris Group. Hasenstab continues, “Our mission is to persistently reach beyond the status quo, to live up to our leadership role in our industry, and to set an example for other organizations by means of our dedication to the three pillars of sustainable business - the principles of social well-being, environmental stewardship, and economic prosperity, where profits go side-by-side with environmental and social performance, where our corporate and societal interests intersect.”

Mr. Hasenstab also revealed a brand-new program that Verdigris Group has recently established - a Reforestation and Forest Preservation Carbon Offset Project which the broader public can be a part of. “For each and every person that 'likes' the Verdigris Group Facebook page, we commit to plant 1 tree in Colorado’s pine-beetle devastated forests.” Forest-based carbon offset projects like this, fight climate change by sequestering carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere in trees and soil and have many co-benefits for the community and local wildlife. "Anyone can lend a hand in this effort simply by visiting facebook.com/VerdigrisGroup, clicking 'Like' at the top of their page, and posting the words 'Save our forests' as a comment. Verdigris Group pledges to inform you exactly where your tree is planted, providing you GPS coordinates and progress reports about these efforts on the page."

Verdigris Group’s three primary operating divisions include their development division, Verdigris Properties, which concentrates on developing green / LEED Certified commercial and residential properties. They are currently in the due diligence phase of land acquisition for a planned multi-family project in Breckenridge, Colorado that is slated to achieve LEED Gold Certification under the U.S Building Council ‘s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design green building rating system. “This project will be the first of its kind in this market-place, raising the bar in residential real estate development in Summit County and serving as a beacon of what sustainable development can achieve,” says Hasenstab. This project will achieve an estimated reduction in energy consumption of 46% over a similar, traditionally built project, and a reduction in the total cost of ownership saving tens of thousands of dollars in utility savings during a typical 30-year mortgage period.

Verdigris Consulting is the sustainability consulting arm of the organization which incorporates a diverse team of LEED Accredited Professionals, sustainability experts, architects, engineers and management consultants who provide a broad range of strategic and technical sustainability consulting services for developers, builders, contractors, businesses, non-profits, and governmental organizations. Some of the services Verdigris Consulting provides are: LEED Certification Management & Support Services, Design & Development Consulting, Life Cycle Inventory & Assessment, Enterprise Carbon Accounting, Green Product LEED Specification Services, Energy Consulting and Strategic Development Consulting Services.

Their third primary operating unit is Verdigris Realty - “The World’s Only Carbon Neutral Property Brokerages™” specializes in the marketing and sale of a wide spectrum of property-types. Verdigris Realty’s brokerage experience includes transaction management in raw-land, agricultural, educational, health-care, commercial and a variety of residential project-types.

Verdigris Group is headquartered downtown Chicago with their Rocky Mountain regional offices located in Colorado.

You can visit Verdigris Group on the internet at: www.verdigrisgroup.com.

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