NORFOLK, Va., April 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) has been recognized for outstanding performance in measuring and reducing its emissions.

The American Carbon Registry gave Norfolk Southern its Corporate Excellence award for making a public commitment to reducing CO2 emissions 10 percent below 2009 levels by 2014 and for reaching nearly 40 percent of that five-year goal in the first year.

ACR said, "The reductions were achieved through improvements in locomotive fuel efficiency, increased energy efficiency of buildings and railroad facilities, and operating efficiencies that allowed the company to move higher volumes of freight over its 22-state network. In addition to in-house emission reduction activities, in 2011 Norfolk Southern launched Trees and Trains , a $5.6 million partnership with ACR member GreenTrees to restore 10,000 acres in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley by planting six million hardwoods & cottonwoods."

" We appreciate ACR's recognition of our environmental stewardship," said Blair Wimbush, NS vice president real estate and corporate sustainability officer. " Our collaboration with GreenTrees will foster revitalization of the Mississippi Delta's environmental health and generate economic benefits for a region long served by Norfolk Southern. Our company's 180-year history tends to give us a long-term perspective, and this kind of sustainable, lasting initiative is exactly what we like to do ."

The American Carbon Registry, a non-profit enterprise of Winrock International, is a leading carbon offset program recognized for its strong standards for environmental integrity. Founded in 1996 as the first private voluntary GHG registry in the world, ACR has set the bar in the global voluntary carbon market for offset quality and operational transparency and continues to lead innovation.

Norfolk Southern Corporation is one of the nation's premier transportation companies. Its Norfolk Southern Railway subsidiary operates approximately 20,000 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. Norfolk Southern operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is a major transporter of coal and industrial products.

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SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation