Ecomagine That: GE Campaign Not So Green

Two years into its "Ecomagination" environmental campaign, General Electric "continues to sell coal-fired steam turbines and is delving deeper into oil-and-gas production. Meanwhile, its finance unit seeks out coal-related investments including power plants. ... Yet these limitations haven't stopped GE from making a big marketing to-do of its commitment to the environment," notes Kathryn Kranhold. "The primary focus of the conglomerate's marketing efforts these days is a $1 million-a-year campaign to publicize its search for 'innovative solutions to environmental challenges.'" As part of Ecomagination, GE says it will sell $14 billion of "self-described environmentally friendly products" in 2007. It also claims to have reduced "its own greenhouse-gas emission by 4% between 2004 and 2006," though GE does not count emissions from many power plants part-owned by the company. Kranhold describes the discounted emissions as "an unknown but unquestionably significant amount."