TD sponsoring free H20 stations at water bottle-free music festival

CALGARY, July 18, 2011 /CNW/ - As part of their green efforts, the Calgary Folk Music Festival will not be selling any bottled water at Prince's Island Park, home of the four-day music festival, July 21 -24. Instead, TD will be sponsoring several TD H20 stations on the island to provide, free, refreshing tap water to those who BYO(w)B (bring your own water bottle). In addition, the TD comfort crew will be circulating the crowd, serving water to thirsty festival goers from their eco-friendly portable packs.

"Being able to go beyond a traditional event sponsorship, by doing something impactful like helping to reduce waste and conserve water, is the kind of innovative community partnership TD looks for," says Monique Bateman, Senior Vice President, Prairie Region, TD Canada Trust. "The Calgary Folk Music Festival is known for being a leader in green initiatives when it comes to outdoor events, and we're proud to help bring this annual event to Calgarians." TD is also sponsoring the TD stage for the duration of the festival.

In 2010, the Folk Festival recycled more than 1200 kg of beverage containers, which included plastic water bottles. Even while the Festival becomes more efficient at collecting and disposing recyclable material, it is expected that the weight of beverage containers will decrease by eliminating the sale of bottled water and encouraging people to enjoy healthy water for free with their own reusable bottles.

According to filterforgood.ca, an estimated 2.4 million metric tonnes of plastic are used to bottle water each year, and it takes an estimated three litres of water to produce one litre of bottled water.

"We endeavour to take care of all our patrons' needs and providing water is primary. So although we do not sell bottled water, as many events now also do not as part of their ecological initiatives, we provide enough water to make the festival experience a pleasant one for our audience and volunteers," says les siemieniuk, General Manager, Calgary Folk Music Festival. "For those that do not have their own water bottles we provide some for sale on site." For more information about the festival's other green efforts, and how you can do your part, visit the festival website.

This music festival isn't the only way TD is showing its commitment to the environment. In 2010, TD announced that they were the first North-American based bank to be completely carbon neutral and were named to the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World ranking. In Calgary, the TD Friends of the Environment Foundation has invested over $2,000,000 in 300 community-based environmental projects and continues to sponsor local environmental initiatives, like the annual TD Tree Days.

For a complete schedule and to purchase tickets, visit www.calgaryfolkfest.ca.

About the Calgary Folk Music Festival
Now in its 33rd year, the Calgary Folk Music Festival has been Calgary's largest, most prominent annual gathering of original, independent artists in a creative, multi-faceted artistic program.  Featuring 69 artists on 7 stages, this year's festival runs July 21-24, 2011 at Prince's Island Park.

About TD Bank Group
The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group (TD). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves more than 19 million customers in four key businesses operating in a number of locations in key financial centres around the globe: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Canada Trust and TD Insurance; Wealth Management, including TD Waterhouse and an investment in TD Ameritrade; U.S. Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with approximately 7 million online customers. TD had CDN$630 billion in assets on April 30, 2011. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.