News Releases
TORONTO,
March 27, 2009 – For the second year in a row, BMO Financial
Group will join thousands of people and organizations across the globe
and participate in Earth Hour. On Saturday, March 28, BMO will turn off
lights in its offices across Canada and the United States between 8:30
p.m. and 9:30 p.m. to show its support for the global stand against climate
change.
“Earth Hour has spread to virtually every major city in North America
and around the world, and BMO is going to be a part of it again,” said
Jim Johnston, Director, Environmental Sustainability, BMO Financial Group. “At
our main offices and in other major facilities across North America, internal
lighting will be kept to a minimum and our exterior signage will be turned
off. In leased premises we are working closely with property managers on
both sides of the border to encourage their participation.
“Like many of our customers, shareholders, communities and employees, BMO is concerned about the impacts of climate change,” stated Johnston. “We believe it makes sense to promote environmental sustainability and manage our contribution to climate change, and participating in Earth Hour is one of many initiatives we are supporting.”
Anyone who plans to participate in Earth Hour can register their commitment, as BMO has done, at www.earthhour.org.
For security reasons, BMO branches and ABMs will not be included in Earth Hour.
BMO and the Environment:
- In September 2008, BMO's CEO Bill Downe announced that BMO will seek to achieve carbon neutrality by 2010 across our enterprise - worldwide. To reach this goal, BMO intends to reduce net emissions related to energy consumption and transportation to zero within two years. And BMO is committed to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 5 per cent over this period.
- BMO has been a leader in reducing its non-renewable energy consumption. Since September 2007, all newly opened branches, relocations and major renovations (61, so far, in Ontario and Alberta) have been powered from renewable energy. BMO has an agreement with Bullfrog Power, a green electricity retailer that markets energy from clean, renewable sources like wind power and low-impact water power, to purchase over 8,300 megawatt hours of emission-free electricity annually, making BMO a leading purchaser of electricity among financial institutions from the company. This is enough renewable energy to power nearly 100 BMO branches.
- BMO recently redesigned its Corporate Responsibility website and expanded significantly the section devoted to addressing climate change (www.bmo.com/environment). To help customers, investors, employees and other interested parties make sense of it all, the new site provides one of the most complete compilations of corporate performance data among its peers.
- BMO is listed on the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index, the Jantzi Social Index and FTSE4Good Series Index.
- BMO is a long-time signatory and respondent to the Carbon Disclosure Project. BMO has been named as one of two Canadian banks in its Climate Disclosure Leadership Index for 2008.
- BMO has appeared on Corporate Knights Magazine's Best 50 Corporate Citizens list every year since 2003.
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