July 1, 2008 – Ball Corp. has spiced its first-ever sustainability report with a new corporate goal to cut greenhouse gas emissions 16% over the next four years – primarily by trimming weight from its iconic beverage bottles and cans, the Denver Business Journal reports.

Developing lighter, more easily recyclable packaging forms the crux of Ball’s new climate management platform, the company says. (Lighter packaging uses less material and requires less energy for transportation, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions.)

The report highlights a multi-year project that will see the company converting to a lighter-weight beverage can lid in North America next year. The lighter lid will save about 9,900 tons of aluminum a year and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 85,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, Ball estimates.

The company is also turning to recycled materials in manufacturing to make a significant cut in energy costs. Ball predicts that it can cut 95% of the energy used to make aluminum cans from virgin material and 74% of the energy required to make steel cans. The report also states that by recycling a ton of PET bottles the company saves the equivalent of about 400 gallons of gasoline.

Find Ball’s new sustainability report here.