Ambitious strategy to become Net Positive across four key pillars by 2030

Hammerson plc has become the first real estate company globally to launch a comprehensive Net Positive strategy covering both environmental and socio-economic impacts. The strategy, which will be delivered through its existing Positive Places sustainability platform, will set stretching targets across four key pillars with the aim of having a net positive impact across its pan European portfolio by 2030.

This strategy is in line with Hammerson’s mission to create retail destinations that deliver value for all stakeholders and create positive and sustainable long term impacts for generations to come.

Hammerson’s objective is to be Net Positive in four areas where it has the greatest material impacts and therefore the greatest opportunities to drive change, as follows:

Carbon

What is covered:

• All carbon emissions from public mall and back of house space, corporate operations and business travel;
• Carbon emissions from tenant procured energy;
• Embodied carbon in construction materials;
• And energy used during construction.

How they are achieving Net Positive:

• Minimise emissions through efficiency projects such as LED lighting installation, efficient switching systems and good management;
• Install renewable generating systems on existing assets and new developments and maximise the use of generated energy on site;
• Design of future developments to minimise operational carbon emissions;
• Purchase 100% renewable energy for the portfolio wherever possible;
• Additional creative initiatives to offset remaining emissions, through investment in offsite projects and renewable energy.

Resource Use

What is covered:

• All operational waste, including tenant activities;
• All development waste.

How they are achieving Net Positive:

• Minimise waste generated on operational assets and maximise the recycling and reuse of waste materials on site;
• Work with contractors to minimise construction and demolition waste from our developments and maximise reuse and recycling;
• Manage waste out of developments during the design phase, reducing consumption;
• Minimise the use of resources that are neither recycled nor renewable through application of our design standards across all areas of work, including fit out;
• Create innovative ways to offset any raw material use, and any waste sent to landfill.

Water Use

What is covered:

• All landlord procured water;
• All tenant procured water where the landlord has influence over usage;
• Water consumed during construction activity.

How they are achieving Net Positive:

• Reduce drinking water consumption from mains supplies at managed assets through water efficiency programmes;
• Minimise water demand at new developments through design;
• Invest in water harvesting and recycling technologies where possible at managed assets;
• Identify and undertake projects that will either replenish water resources or recycle waste water to offset drinking water consumption.

Socio-economic

What is covered:

• Employment and skills;
• Health and well-being;
• Local investment and enterprise.

How they are achieving Net Positive:

• Invest in jobs, skills, training and enterprise programmes across our portfolio and development activities;
• Establish a clear place-making strategy to reflect the needs of our local communities, delivered through our asset management and development programme;
• Set community engagement plans for each asset that address issues identified as relevant to the local community;
• Set locally specific baselines and measure performance against these.

Hammerson has developed a plan to meet these stretching targets by 2030 through 3 distinct phases, as follows:

• 2016 – 2020: Focus on landlord controlled impacts;
• 2021 – 2025: Landlord controlled and development impacts;
• 2026 – 2030: Landlord controlled, development and tenant controlled impacts.

The ambitious new targets build on the achievements of Positive Places, Hammerson’s existing sustainability platform, which was introduced in 2012. Since 2006, Hammerson has succeeded in reducing carbon emissions from across its managed assets by approximately 33,000 tonnes (35%) on a cumulative basis, equivalent to the annual carbon emissions of 3,800 UK households. Since 2015, 33,000 tonnes (94%) of waste has been diverted from landfill, equivalent to the weight of 6,600 adult elephants. And in 2016, initiatives to limit water use resulted in a reduction of 10,742m3 of water from the UK portfolio, equivalent to 240,000 showers.

By 2030, Hammerson aims to remove a total of 757,200 tonnes of carbon emissions from its operations under its Net Positive targets, which is equivalent to the annual carbon emissions of 85,000 households.

In addition to vital environmental benefits, these initiatives are already delivering significant commercial benefits for both Hammerson and its retail tenants, through lowering medium-term energy and carbon pricing risk and reducing operational costs.

Commenting on today’s announcement, David Atkins, CEO of Hammerson plc, said:

“The ambitious targets we are setting out today demonstrate our commitment to drive change and represent the logical next step for Positive Places. Over the past ten years, our industry leading sustainability strategy has achieved significant carbon and energy savings and delivered meaningful socio-economic impacts for the local communities in which we operate. Net Positive will allow us to go even further.

“Working with our retail tenants, contractors, consultants and suppliers we are already delivering projects that contribute to this commitment. This year, we expect to deliver our first carbon neutral development and have 100% clean electricity contracts across our UK and Ireland shopping centre portfolios.

“I’m proud that Hammerson has become the first real estate company globally to identify such comprehensive targets, and by extending our aims to tenant impacts, we will be able to directly support our retail clients and deliver best in class retail assets that are fit for the future.”

JLL Upstream Sustainability Services provided consultancy support, data analysis and advice for Hammerson’s Net Positive initiative.

See Hammerson CEO David Atkins talk about the Net Positive Strategy

This press release was originally published on the Hammerson website here.