Subaru of America, Inc. (SOA) and Interface, Inc. have established a relationship that helps to make the operation of the Interface fleet of light-duty vehicles “climate neutral.” Interface – a world leader in the commercial interiors industry – maintains a fleet of light-duty vehicles. Interface recently chose to add 100 Subaru Outback Limited Wagon 2.5i models to its fleet during an 18-month period. The agreement with SOA contributes in two ways to the Interface commitment to “... eliminate any negative impact our company may have on the environment by the year 2020.”

First, the Outback has been certified by the EPA as among the cleanest and most fuel-efficient vehicles available, which helps toward making the Interface U.S. light-duty fleet 100-percent SmartWaySM certified. This EPA certification is earned by those light-duty vehicles available when evaluating both air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. The Subaru Outback was the highest-rated small SUV in the EPA’s Green Vehicle Guide. According to Tim Riordan, vice president, supply chain for Interface, “We chose the Outback because it is a partial zero emissions vehicle ... and because it has earned NHTSA’s five-star crash-test rating.”

Second, SOA will sponsor the planting of thousands of trees through American Forests’ Global ReLeaf program, which makes the operation of the vehicles climate neutral for the first 60,000 miles. The trees will offset the amount of carbon dioxide produced by the Outback fleet.

Outback vehicles are produced along with Legacy and B9 Tribeca at the Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc. plant in Lafayette, Indiana. The plant recently received the EPA’s Gold Achievement Award as a top achiever in the agency’s WasteWise program.