Canadian leader in the construction industry, Pomerleau is responding to the critical need for the industry to shift its practices to more innovative and sustainable alternatives.
This year, the company released its first environmental, social, and governance (ESG) report along with its new ESG platform, Perspective, which outlines Pomerleau’s 2021 performance, its ambitions, and long-term objectives.
The concrete targets communicated in Pomerleau’s ESG report align with many of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 13 which asks governments and companies to, “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”
Buildings represented the third largest emitter of green house gases in Canada in 2019 (12%), after the transportation and oil and gas sectors, according to the Government of Canada. This glaring statistic is one of the reasons why senior leadership at Pomerleau discussed climate-related risks, opportunities, and initiatives on thirteen occasions in 2021 alone.
The plan
Pomerleau’s strategy to combat climate change is based on scientific facts. It provides a path to reduce the company’s emissions and transform its value chain to contribute to a Net Zero world. The plan is focused on three goals: reduce carbon emissions generated by its own operations (Scope 1 and 2) by 40% by 2030, enable its partners and clients to transition to a low carbon economy, and advance the change by investing the conservation and creation of natural carbon sinks.
In 2022, Pomerleau will invest in natural carbon sinks to raise awareness about the need to protect them, and to increase its capacity to absorb carbon from the atmosphere. The company plans on continuing to find new sustainable solutions to invest in, with communities at the heart of its decisions.
Investing in the future
Taking its investments one step further, Pomerleau created Pomerleau Capital, a subsidiary that specializes in the investment and financing of large-scale complex private infrastructure. Pomerleau Capital manages an asset portfolio of approximately $750 million focused on projects that contribute to the development of healthy and sustainable communities.
The fund is designed to establish lasting partnerships, both for complex infrastructure and for renewable energy projects. The fund’s investment policy accounts for ESG related criteria from the development phase to the management of its portfolios assets.
Since the creation of Pomerleau Capital, Pomerleau has invested in a wind farm, an offshore wind blade manufacturing plant, a mixed-use real estate complex seeking LEED platinum certification, and a high-performing energy-saving data centre, some of which have been completed in partnership with Borea Construction, a subsidiary of Pomerleau that manages and constructs renewable energy projects.
Pomerleau’s commitment
Leading a successful transformation requires an ongoing commitment, which is part of our corporate values to improve our society’s future. Our commitment to ESG is an opportunity for us to create value and make our entire supply chain more sustainable.
*Article featured in Innovating Canada.