There’s no end to the pressures to turn green or at least get a bit greener in 2010 than you were in 2009.

But if your company values its reputation, don’t take concepts like sustainability lightly, and don’t just slap “green” on your advertising. It’s best to take the time to adopt eco-friendly improvements that ring true in the marketplace.

Otherwise you’ll be accused of being faux green — tagged for “greenwashing” instead of actually reducing your company’s environmental footprint.

Who wants to be on a 12 Hilarious Corporate Attempts to Look Green list? This compilation by the staff at the WebEcoist pokes fun at what they think are fake attempts to go green.

Some of their greenwashing highlights of 2009 include:

• the EcoSmart Hummer, creating an electric-hybrid that gets 100 miles per gallon wasn’t seen as believable by the eco-critics
• McDonalds, despite cutting energy usage (and related GHG emissions), increasing recycling and otherwise making bonafide green improvements, the company is dismissed as a greenwasher, because it is a fast-food producer, and that just doesn’t sit right with the green police. Plus, the company added a green shade to its logo.
• Huggies line of  Pure & Natural Disposable Diapers made the no-no list for simply adding a piece of cotton to the outside of the diaper, which is reputed to contain dioxin compounds, and
• Zoe & Quido’s Pet Boutique gets a ribbing for an ad touting that all of its bags are “disposable.” Perhaps a bit of editing could have saved the New Mexico company the greenwashing label because the company does tout products made from hemp, which is a popular material for the green true believers.

To avoid getting lampooned, make sure your eco-friendly projects produce measurable results, such as reduced electric bills, fewer tons per year of air emissions, smaller water bills, less waste sent to landfills or fewer pounds of plastic packaging used.

Tags: greenwashing, Huggies, Hummer, McDonald's, Zoe & Quido's Pet Boutique