SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS IMPACT REPORT 2021 / 2022
Environment
Environment
As a firm we want to ensure that the principles of the circular, net-zero economy are embedded within every aspect of our business and that we play our part in contributing to positive change. We are committed to minimising our impact on the environment through the pursuit of a programme of monitoring and continuous improvement.
Our focus is on increasing resource efficiency, minimising negative impact on the environment and aligning with objectives of our key stakeholders – our clients, our people and our suppliers. We feel it is important to constantly review and report on our performance in relation to our impact and we also want to promote a culture of environmental awareness throughout our organisation. Over the past year we have made significant progress in relation to external accreditation, our business travel and our environmental pro bono work. We were particularly pleased to win the Green Professional Services award at the 2022 Green Awards in April.
OUR CARBON OFFSETTING JOURNEY
In early 2021 we publicly announced our commitment to being carbon negative by 2025. As a firm we have committed to an ambitious strategy to reduce Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 50% of 2018 levels by 2025 and we are currently on target to achieve this. We continue to work with external consultancies to assist us in the delivery of the key measures required to achieve our carbon reduction goals and we are pleased to report a 19% reduction in our carbon emissions this year compared to 2020/21. The significant reduction in carbon emissions for 2020 and 2021 is attributed to the lack of travel by our people during the pandemic. Our calculations are based on the Location Based Method (LBM).
Transport Initiatives
In our 2020/21 report we stated that as a firm we wanted to reduce our air travel going forward. Over the past year we have examined our business travel and how best to reduce our emissions in this area. To address this, in January 2022 we revised our Travel & Entertainment policy. Our people are now asked to consider, before deciding to travel by air, if their journey is absolutely necessary and if their business could be done via a virtual option instead.
As a result of this change in our policy we have already seen significant changes in travel practice and culture, but most importantly in our carbon footprint when compared to previous years:
The firm continues to explore alternatives so that it can provide more sustainable options through highly managed online meetings, events and other operations. We have installed electric charging points for cars in our car park at Ten Earlsfort Terrace. The aim is to increase the number of charging points in 2022 and to encourage staff who drive to work to switch to electric vehicles where possible. The firm offers an incentive scheme for certain staff to purchase electric vehicles. We also encourage staff to cycle to work and have secure lock up facilities for cyclists and showers and changing rooms for those who wish to use them. Regular Bicycle Service Days are held to complement the firm’s Bike to Work Scheme that is offered to all employees. Bicycle helmets are provided for those members of staff who wish to avail of the Dublin City Bike Scheme when travelling to city centre meetings.
Carbon Offset 'Double Gifting'
The firm is currently examining the potential to purchase domestic emissions allowances, even if not internally certified, in a volume equal to the volume of certified emissions that we purchase outside Ireland. We have given ourselves a number of years to identify the most impactful projects and committed partners in which we can invest.
Energy Efficiency
As a firm we are committed to efficient energy usage at our offices at Ten Earlsfort Terrace. We are pleased to have reduced our electricity consumption (kWh TFC) by 27% compared to our 2018 baseline and our gas consumption (kWH TFC) by 48.1% compared to our 2018 baseline. We have successfully completed our full external recertification audit via Certification Europe in May 2022 and have also received recertification of our ISO50001:2018 Energy Management accreditation in June 2022. We attained this certification first in 2019 and we are required to be fully recertified every three years.
SCIENCE BASED TARGET SETTING
We are committed to setting ambitious carbon footprint reduction targets, for Scopes 1, 2 and 3, that align with the greatest ambition required to reach the Paris Agreement goals of keeping global warming below 1.5°C by 2030. In April 2022 our carbon reduction targets were formally validated as science based by the Science Based Targets Initiative. The SBTi mobilises companies to set science-based targets and boost their competitive advantage in the transition to the low-carbon economy.
We are also pleased to report that we have signed up to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) to formally disclose our progress in our carbon reduction strategy and ensure we receive external validation for our work in this area. The CDP is a not-for-profit charity that runs the global disclosure system for investors, companies, cities, states and regions to manage their environmental impacts. It is a system that has resulted in unparalleled engagement on environmental issues worldwide. It is the world’s most comprehensive dataset, and its data fuels and tracks global progress towards building a truly sustainable economy for people and planet. We have completed our response with our climate change impacts to the 2021 CDP and the results of all responders will be available publicly in January 2023.
UPDATE ON SAFE WATER PROJECT
In 2021 we reported how we offset 100% of the firm’s 2018, 2019 and 2020 carbon footprint by investing in the Zambia Safe Water Project via the carbon offsetting company, CO2balance UK. In June 2022 we invested in a further 2,040.8 credits to neutralise our carbon footprint for 2021. The Zambia Safe Water Project is located in the Lundazi District of Zambia where, to consume safe water, communities must purify water collected from unclean sources by boiling it over fires fuelled by firewood, resulting in the release of carbon emissions. CO2balance, works with its local partner, Reformed Open Community Schools, to rehabilitate broken boreholes to deliver safe water to rural communities, thereby reducing carbon emissions. To date 3,000 boreholes have been repaired. CO2balance develops projects under Gold Standard certification.
“The Zambia Borehole Project continues to progress well. We have recently been carrying out WASH training – Water, Sanitation & Hygiene – we run these training activities every year in the communities in order to raise awareness of best practices in looking after the borehole, the water containers as well as wider hygiene practices. The project is in its final stages of its second Verification with The Gold Standard. This is the independent carbon standards organisation with whom we validate and verify the project.
We have rehabilitated and maintain 50 boreholes within this project area in the Eastern Province of Zambia. We are in the process of expanding the project to identify, fix and maintain a further 56 broken boreholes. At the moment we are carrying out “technical assessments” on these boreholes to work out what the problem is and what is needed to fix them. We hope to begin the process of rehabilitating them over the next few months. It is predicted that this will result in a further 12,500 people having access to safe water thanks to the project.”
PAUL CHIPLAN CO2 BALANCE