Commitment to Sustainabilityeticeng.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ETIC-Sustainability-Report-2018-1.pdfETIC is committed to continuously researching new and better ways to incorporate

March 2018

Commitment to Sustainability Environmental Sustainability Report 2018

Page i

2018 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT

Contents

WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY? ...............................................................................................................1 Sustainability Efforts ................................................................................................................. 2 Social Responsibility ................................................................................................................ 3 Our Culture .............................................................................................................................. 4

WORK SAFE LIVE SAFE .....................................................................................................................5

2018 ACCOMPLISHMENTS ..............................................................................................................6 Composting Program ............................................................................................................ 6 Recycling Program ................................................................................................................. 6 Water Consumption ............................................................................................................... 7 Energy Use ............................................................................................................................... 8 Reduce Carbon Emissions ..................................................................................................... 9

2019 STRATEGIC GOALS ...............................................................................................................10 Short Term Goals ................................................................................................................... 10 Long Term Goals ................................................................................................................... 11

WASTE REDUCTION PRACTICES ....................................................................................................12 Phytoremediation ................................................................................................................. 12 Electronic Reporting ............................................................................................................. 12 Waste Minimization............................................................................................................... 12 Carbon Footprint Reduction ............................................................................................... 13

SUMMARY ......................................................................................................................................13

SUSTAINABILITY TEAM....................................................................................................................15

Page 1


WHAT IS SUSTAINABILITY?

Sustainability is defined as the ability to support long-term ecological balance.

Sustainability development is commonly defined by the UN World Commission on

Environment and Development as the “ability to meet the needs of the present without

compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs”.

Here at ETIC, we are committed to sustainable practices. We focus on our commitment

to reduce environmental impacts, maintain our award-winning safety record, enhance

our community involvement, and promote the use of diverse and local suppliers.

We encourage creative forward-thinking that will improve efficiency, cost effectiveness,

and provide innovative solutions to environmental issues for our clients while maintaining a

safe work environment.

Page 2


Sustainability Efforts

ETIC is committed to protecting and enhancing our environment. Environmental

protection is always our primary objective. In managing our business, we all strive to:

▪ Participate in the formulation of federal and state environmental legislation,

regulations, and policies that may significantly impact the environment and our

business.

▪ Integrate environmental protection considerations into ETIC planning and decision

making.

▪ Seek opportunities to recycle waste both onsite and offsite.

▪ Purchase and use recycled materials.

▪ Work with appropriate environmental agencies and organizations to ensure timely,

reasonable, and cost-effective solutions to environmental issues.

▪ Encourage employee environmental stewardship

Page 3


Social Responsibility

It is important to give back to the community. A healthy environment and strong

community create a better business environment and support meaningful change.

The year 2018 was another fantastic community involvement for ETIC. We participated in

16 different community events from school athletic fund raisers to worldwide

environmental movements donating over 283 hours and over $5,000 in monetary funding.

Page 4


Our Culture

ETIC values transparency, accountability, quality, social responsibility, sustainability, and

safety. Through our business practices we strive to:

▪ Be transparent internally and to our clients.

▪ Be accountable to everyone for every task.

▪ Provide quality work products.

▪ Show social responsibility by being actively involved in our communities.

▪ Be committed to our environment and to safeguarding our environmental legacy.

▪ Create a healthy and safe work environment for all.

ETIC professionals are PASSIONATE about enhancing the

environment and sustaining our future.

ETIC’s PROVEN performance is the basis for our success in not only

serving our clients effectively, but in being good environment

stewards.

ETIC employs PRACTICAL processes to analyze the problems, identify

solutions, and safely deliver services that protect the environment.

Page 5


Work Safe Live Safe

Safety is part of who we are and how we think. It is incorporated in our daily lives; at home

and at work. When we implement safe practices to protect people, we are also protecting

the environment; when we plan for safe work, we are being environmental stewards; when

we safely manage wastes, we are managing our footprint. We believe everyone deserves

a safe place to live and work.

▪ Outstanding safety record

▪ Emphasis on Behavioral Based Safety

▪ Comprehensive safety training

▪ Commitment to meet or exceed compliance requirements

▪ Gold Shovel Standard Certified

Page 6


Recycled 50,000 Pounds of Paper

Saved 425 Trees

63 Cubic Yards of Landfill Space Conserved

E-cycled Over 500 Pounds of Electronic

Equipment

2018 ACCOMPLISHMENTS ETIC is committed to continuously researching new and better ways to incorporate green

and sustainable principles and practices into our daily operations.

Composting Program

In 2018, ETIC initiated a composting program with the focus on removing all biodegradable

items from the kitchen garbage disposal system.

Recycling Program

As part of our ongoing sustainability efforts, we have implemented several recycling

programs (including e-cycle), upgraded our computer operating system and converted

paper forms to electronic forms. We also reduce project generated waste by utilizing best

management practices whenever possible.

Page 7


Replaced Sprinklers with Drip System Irrigation

Installed Low-Flow Toilets

Planted Drought-Resistant Plants

Water Consumption

ETIC is continuously looking for ways to reduce the amount of water we use in the office

and on our job sites. We dramatically reduced water consumption by renovating our

landscape, replacing lawns with drought-resistant plants; and replacing the sprinklers with

drip system irrigation. Inside the building, we installed low-flow toilets. At jobsites, we

began using non-potable water instead of water from hydrants for dust suppression and

site restoration.

ETIC has reduced our annual water consumption by more than 300,000 gallons in the last

five years, from approximately 409,000 gallons in 2013 to 102,000 gallons in 2018.

Page 8


Energy Use

We strive to lower our energy consumption and minimize the use of non-renewable

energy to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Practical measures to reduce energy

use included upgrading some appliances and equipment to more energy efficient units,

replacing light fluorescent bulbs to LED lighting; and replacing more than half of our

servers with virtual servers.

Since 2013, ETIC has reduced annual electricity use by approximately 29,000 kilowatt hours

(kWh) – a 28% reduction, and annual natural gas use by approximately 800 therms – a

25% reduction.

Upgraded to Energy Efficient Appliances and Equipment

Upgraded to LED Lightings

Virtual Servers

Page 9


Use of Public Transportation or Carpool

Efficient Scheduling Strategy

Reduce Carbon Emissions

One of ETIC’s top sustainability initiatives is to significantly reduce carbon emissions. Since

2013, we have implemented several policies to support this goal, such as encouraging

staff to carpool or use public transportation; utilizing staff, vendors, and contractors within

a 50-mile radius of work sites as much as possible; combining multiple tasks per trip/site

visit; efficiently planning routes to multiple site visits in one mobilization, and planning for

staff to use local lodgings on multi-day project work.

We have reduced our gasoline usage by approximately 30% since 2013. We also started

monitoring our diesel use in 2016 and have kept our diesel use from rising above 2016 use.

Page 10


2019 FOCUS

2019 STRATEGIC GOALS

Short Term Goals

1 Energy Efficiency Monitoring

▪ Improve energy efficiency

▪ Track performance of equipment and other electrical systems

▪ Assess power usage and identify issues

2 Paper Use Reduction

▪ Switch Accounts Payable to electronic invoice routing

▪ Launch the Electronic Administrative Manual

3 Fleet Management

▪ Continue replacement of older fleet vehicles

▪ Revisit consideration for hybrid vehicles and charging

stations installation

Page 11


• Optimize Office Space

• Efficiency of Approval

Routing

• Productivity

• Renewable Energy

Source

• Tax Credits and Rebates

• Energy Efficiency

• Business Cost (Water)

• Fresh Water Use

• Water Sent to Sewage

Facilities

• Water Demand

• Promotes more

conscientious water use

• Tax Credits and Rebates

• Energy Efficiency

Long Term Goals Environmental protection is ETIC’s primary end goal.

ETIC strives to protect the planet, promote responsible

use of resources, optimize waste and energy reduction

and maximize cost-savings. ETIC is committed to

identifying additional ways to incorporate sustainable

principles and practices into the company’s daily operations.

In 2019, ETIC is focusing on laying the groundwork to install electric vehicle chargers,

continuing to implement efficient paperless systems, and evaluating capital improvement

costs to improve energy efficiency and decrease environmental impact.

Go Paperless

Solar Panel Installation

Recycle Grey Water

Hybrid Vehicles/Charging Stations

• Office Supply Cost

• Storage

• Deforestation

• Operating Cost

• Fossil Fuel Consumption

• Greenhouse gas

emissions and pollutions

• Fuel/Gas Cost

• Operating Cost

• Greenhouse gas

emissions and pollutions

Page 12


WASTE REDUCTION PRACTICES

Phytoremediation

▪ Provides an efficient and effective method for remediating less volatile and soluble

remaining hydrocarbons

▪ Allows time for natural attenuation processes to work in less accessible areas

▪ Reduce carbon emissions

▪ Create an area of carbon sequestration

▪ Cost effective

Electronic Reporting

Waste Minimization

Electronic reporting in lieu of hard copies

Recycle metal and concrete

Use sampling techniques that minimize waste water

generation

Page 13


Carbon Footprint Reduction

SUMMARY

ETIC formally launched our Sustainability Program in 2013 but the practice has been part of

our daily lives since the beginning. Recycling has always been encouraged. We recycle

materials from paper to electronics, and most everything in between. After launching the

Sustainability Program, ETIC focused on raising recycling and sustainability awareness

company-wide. Sustainability practice was expanded to project sites. Reducing our

carbon footprint became a priority in project planning. Our technical leaders have been

analyzing the work methods we use and are replacing some of our remedial approaches

with more efficient and effective methods as applicable.

2018

Launched

Sustainability

Program

Recycling &

Sustainability

Awareness

OS Upgrade;

Started

Paperless

Transition

Fleet Upgrade;

Sustainable

Landscape

Innovative

Remedial

Solutions

Economic

Social

Environmental

2013-

2014

2015-

2016 2017 2019

Utilize local vendors

Schedule multiple tasks in one trip

Vehicle

charging

initiative

Continue to

build on

successes

Page 14


ETIC continues to be passionate about enhancing the environment, sustaining the future

and committing to the communities in which we live in. We also will continually place

emphasis on safety. ETIC has an outstanding safety record due to all our staff and our safety

culture. We are committed to keeping our staff and the communities we work in safe.

We’ve come a long way since the inception of our Sustainability Program. However, we

also recognize that the road to our end goal is even longer. We will continuously research,

study, and implement efficient and cost-effective methods of reducing our environmental

impact. We will continually educate our staff about the importance of practicing

sustainability. Economic development, social development, and environmental protection

are what we are striving to achieve.

Page 15


SUSTAINABILITY TEAM

Christa Marting

President & CEO

Laurén Seltmann

Administrative Operations

Manager

Andy Wottrich

Graphics Manager

Andrew Spinardi

Project Engineer

Ken Simon

Senior Project Manager

Pleasant Hill ■ Arcadia ■ Fresno ■ Martinez

www.eticeng.com

Documents

Commitment to Sustainabilityeticeng.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/ETIC-Sustainability-Report-2018-1.pdfETIC is committed to continuously researching new and better ways to incorporate