JD partners up with WWF on environment

JD.com Inc, China's second-biggest e-commerce player, announced a donation of 10 million yuan ($1.47 million) to support a series of environmental initiatives to be made jointly with the World Wide Fund for Nature China.

The partners will work together in various fields, including resource recycling, carbon emissions reduction, sustainable supply chains and green logistics, to promote social sustainable development.

As a first step in its work with the WWF, JD will become the first Chinese e-commerce company to install large-scale photovoltaic power generation systems on warehouse rooftops.

Covering a total of 1.5 million square meters, the project is expected to reduce the company's annual carbon dioxide emissions by 150,000 metric tons, which are equivalent to planting 20 million trees or saving 60,000 tons of coal.

"Giving back to society has always been core to our mission, and we have been committed to providing support to disaster relief, education and environmental protection over the past few years," said Liu Qiangdong, chairman and CEO of JD.

"I am very excited to join forces with the WWF, one of the biggest environmental conservation organizations in the world, which will take our environmental protection efforts to the next level and further raise awareness of environmental issues with the general public in China," Liu said.

"The protection of our natural environment is one of the most serious challenges facing humanity," said Wang Shi, president of WWF China's board.

He added that JD has been active in embracing environmental solutions, and these initiatives in cooperation with WWF would encourage more companies and consumers to join the cause of environmental protection.

JD recently announced the launch of its Green Stream Initiative to promote the use of sustainable and greener packaging materials throughout its supply chain, in partnership with nine major brands. They include Lego, Nestle and P&G.

By 2020, JD expects to reduce the number of boxes used throughout the supply chain by 10 billion, which was the total number of all boxes used in China in 2015.

The company is continually looking to leverage technology to create efficient e-commerce solutions. In June, the company began operating its first fleet of clean energy delivery trucks in Beijing, Shanghai and Chengdu, becoming the first domestic logistics player to employ large-scale green delivery vehicles.

More than 100 new energy delivery trucks are expected to reduce JD's annual carbon dioxide emissions by over 584 tons.

The company said it will increase its work with brand owners, logistics companies and packaging companies to encourage recyclable packaging and the use of bio-degradable materials in the future.

Zhuang Qiange contributed to the story.

fanfeifei@chinadaily.com.cn