Automaker GM is planning to make half of its 181 manufacturing plants worldwide “landfill-free” by 2011 through initiatives to reuse or recycle some 90 percent of its waste, according to USA Today. The not-reused, not-recycled portion of the waste would potentially be incinerated to produce energy. GM has yet to formally announce the program, but USA Today reports that the company already has 10 “landfill-free” plants in operation and a spokesperson told the paper that another 80 plants will likely meet the no-landfill-waste goal sometime in 2010. GM, along with other U.S. automakers, has been struggling financially lately as high gasoline prices have substantially curtailed SUV sales that had been a central part of its business model. Automakers that have focused on offering greener vehicles, such as Honda and Toyota, have lately fared much better than GM whose green-car offerings are still quite slim. However, GM has focused its efforts on developing one green car, the Chevy Volt, a plug-in hybrid slated for release sometime in the next few years when battery technology catches up to GM’s design.
