Management of our direct environmental impact
Reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the fight against climate change
The Crédit Agricole Group’s Medium-Term 2020 Plan sets the objective of reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions by 15%, measured by the carbon balances at 2020 and covering the 13 entities involved in a FReD approach implemented by the Group, our corporate social responsibility management tool. Crédit Agricole CIB is therefore logically part of this commitment. The baseline year selected was 2014. As far as Crédit Agricole CIB is concerned, in the 2014 financial year, the three most “energy-intensive” items for a total of 82.8% were business travel, energy and fixed assets, for 32%, 27.1% and 23.7% respectively. Actions that can be measured through indicators have therefore been defined for these three items, such as reducing the electrical consumption of buildings, reducing business travel and focusing on the planning of working time. In addition to the quantitative actions chosen, regular actions to raise awareness of both good day-to-day habits and better use of work tools should help to consolidate the reduction objective.
Lastly, Crédit Agricole CIB offset 14,298 tonnes of CO2 equivalent by cancelling Verified Carbon Units (VCU) certificates corresponding to dividends received in 2017 in connection with its investment in the Livelihoods Fund1.
Pollution and waste management
If Crédit Agricole CIB does not generate significant pollution directly, the Bank still devotes substantial effort to waste recycling. On the campuses in Montrouge and Saint-Quentin-en Yvelines, numerous actions were implemented to reduce impacts on the environment: zero phytosanitary products, recycling of waste (paper and cardboard, cans, plastic, ordinary industrial waste and waste from maintenance), products with eco-labels for indoor cleaning, setting up a site charter2 to sort and recycle waste as much as possible. Concerning the limitation of food waste, activities are undertaken to raise awareness among employees (posters, self-service fruit and vegetables).
Actions have been implemented in the various entities of Crédit Agricole CIB, particularly in Europe and Asia (implementation of a charter of best CSR practices in the Nordic countries, replacement of individual bins with centralized collection points and replacement of individual printers by collective printers in Hong Kong, etc.).
Electricity
For Crédit Agricole CIB in the Paris region, the buildings in Montrouge and Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines consume 100% “green” electricity, meaning that it is generated by renewable sources of energy. An objective of reducing consumption by 5% per annum has been set for the Terra, Champagne and Provence buildings. For example, in 2017, Crédit Agricole CIB acquired more than 100 low-energy fan coil units. In London, the electricity consumed is also 100% “green”. In Spain, the actions taken between 2014 and 2017 have helped to reduce the consumption of electricity by nearly 400,000 kWh (replacement of the heating system, less machines in the machine rooms, replacement of neon strips by LED). Finally, progress plans are deployed locally, for example in the Nordic countries (installation of LEDs and motion sensors).
Gas
Crédit Agricole CIB reports on the consumption of gas of all Crédit Agricole CIB Group entities, including those of Indosuez Wealth Management. For Crédit Agricole CIB in the Paris Region, a target of 5% reduction in consumption per year is set for the Terra, Champagne and Provence buildings. For example, the boilers of the Champagne and Provence buildings were replaced in 2017 by more efficient condensing boilers.
Water consumption
With regard to Crédit Agricole CIB in Montrouge, the Éole and Terra buildings are equipped with a rainwater recovery system and use water-saving machines for cleaning the floors. In 2017, a daily water consumption log was set up throughout the Evergreen campus, specifically to identify non-visible leaks.
Paper
Crédit Agricole CIB continues to take action to reduce the consumption of paper, such as the choice of fonts in this document, sending electronic greetings cards and encouraging double-sided printing in the international network.
Travel footprint
Given the considerable weighting of personal travel in Crédit Agricole CIB’s global carbon audit, business travel and commuting measures constitute the main mitigating factors in the Company’s direct footprint. Amongst others, on the campuses in Montrouge and Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the actions taken to raise the awareness of employees include providing electric bicycles and cars, incentives for car-pooling with reserved parking spaces and video-conference equipment to reduce travel. The efforts to control the transport footprint continued in 2017 and, on a like-for-like basis, a decrease (11%) was achieved in the number of kilometres travelled for transport and business travel by train and plane between 2016 and 2017.
Besides, the actions identified as part of the Mobility Plan on the campuses of Montrouge and Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines will help us continue our efforts to reduce our environmental footprint.
Certification of buildings
The Eole building located at the Montrouge campus has obtained an operating certification (excellent level). The Terra building has been certified “HQE Exploitation” since 2015. The Silvae building has been awarded a “BREAM” (Very good) and “HQE Construction” (excellent level) construction certification. In Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, the Champagne and Provence buildings are certified as “BBC (low consumption building) Renovation”. Internationally, which covers nearly 110 locations, China obtained LEED certification at the end of 2015 on its new Shanghai building and Canada obtained BOMA certification in 2016. Finally in Belgium, the sites are Valideo certified.
1Livelihoods: The purpose of this fund is to improve the living conditions of rural populations in poor countries thanks to carbon financing. For example, one of the fund's projects involves financing the planting of fruit trees in rural African communities and the development of agro forestry. This makes it possible for the populations concerned to increase their income from food and also to stock carbon. The investors are compensated with carbon credits.
2A site charter ensures an environmental quality approach when building a real estate project. It defines a set of environmental requirements.