Brown Thomas-Arnotts’s €0.60 charge on paper bags called out as greenwashing as retailer opposes climate action Pathfinder traffic plan

A new 60-cent charge on paper bags at Brown Thomas and Arnotts department stores has been called out as greenwashing while the retailer continues to oppose a climate action Pathfinder project around its central Dublin stores.

The department stores — which are jointly run and owned — are seen as key members of the Dublin City Centre Traders Alliance, which was set up to oppose the College Green Plaza and is currently opposing the Dublin City Centre Transport Plan, which is a Pathfinder project aimed at accelerating climate action by giving priority to sustainable transport and reducing emissions.

Dublin Bus, the National Transport Authority and Dublin City Council have said that the transport plan will make buses more effective in the city centre and also help cross-city bus routes run more effectively. The transport plan is also supported by a majority of councillors, public consultation submissions, and groups such as the Climate and Health Alliance.

ALSO READ: In numbers: Dublin City Centre Transport Plan

The Dublin City Centre Traders Alliance’s only apparent activity is lobbying against car-free spaces on College Green and Capel Street, as well as projects such as the Liffey Cycle Route and now the transport plan.

Brown Thomas-Arnotts, which runs Brown Thomas and Arnotts department stores, was sold a number of years ago by the Irish–Canadian Westen family to the group made up of Thailand’s Central Group and Austria’s Signa Holding.

According to media reports today, Brown Thomas-Arnotts chief executive Donald McDonald said: “We were the first retailer in Ireland to set science-based targets to reduce our emissions, and now we are the first to commit to aiding afforestation efforts on the island of Ireland.”

He was referring to a new 60-cent charge on paper bags, profits from which will go to planting trees across Ireland as part of the retailers’s new partnership with Crann, which describes itself as a voluntary tree organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of our trees, hedgerows and woodlands.

McDonald claimed that the partnership “underscores our dedication to the environment and highlights the critical need for afforestation in Ireland.”

Jason Cullen, the chairperson of the Dublin Commuter Coalition, a group dedicated to promoting sustainable transport, said the company was obstructing climate mitigation measures in its trading areas in central Dublin.

“The irony of Brown Thomas’ faux concern for the climate, by implementing a cost-saving measure is not lost on the commuters of Dublin plagued with ever-increasing traffic as they sit on public transport, due in part to their obstruction of climate mitigation measures,” Cullen said.

He added: “If Brown Thomas were genuine about wanting to address climate change, then perhaps they could start with supporting measures to improve the air quality, greening, public transport and pedestrian space in the city they trade in.”

It’s not the first time that the higher-end retailer has made environmentally friendly claims while opposing transport projects that are at least partly aimed at reducing emissions. The company said in 2021 that it is promising to cut its emissions by 50% by 2030.

At the time, McDonald said: “As a business in existence for more than 175 years we have always put sustainability at the heart of everything we do…”

But responding to that, the Dublin Commuter Coalition said: “They have been holding up progress in Dublin for years. Either they or the Dublin City Centre Traders Alliance (a car parking business conglomerate which claims to represent them) have opposed to: College Green Plaza, Liffey Street pedestrianisation, Interim Liffey Cycle Route, COVID mobility measures to name but a few.”