Retail property carbon footprint reduction

04 November 2008

Lend Lease has achieved a carbon footprint reduction of 8.75% across retail portfolio by reducing water and energy use, and waste to landfill.

Lend Lease, the integrated retail, residential and commercial provider has announced that it has achieved an 8.75% reduction in its carbon footprint associated with energy usage across its retail portfolio for the common landlord areas. The findings, unveiled in the Sustainability Update for its UK Retail & Communities business, highlight both Lend Lease’s successes and challenges faced in their bid to reduce their impact on the environment and to develop sustainable communities.

Key successes from Financial Year 2006-07 to Financial Year ending June 30th 2008 include a;
- reduction in carbon footprint associated with energy usage of 8.75% across the retail portfolio, exceeding the goal of 5% reduction (common landlord areas)
- reduction in carbon footprint associated with energy usage across assets under management (common landlord areas) and leased tenancies by 1,400 tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e[1]) - equal to 6,283 return trips from London to Dundee in Scotland by car[2]
- 23% reduction in carbon footprint associated with energy usage within the common areas at The Meadows, Chelmsford – saving approximately £10,000 in energy bills
- reduction of waste sent to landfill of 576 tonnes across the retail portfolio (including tenant waste) – equivalent to the weight of 72 Double Decker buses (Recycle for London)
- reduction of total water use at Bluewater by 7% or almost 14,900,000 litres – equivalent to the volume of almost six Olympic sized swimming pools[3]

The Update follows the launch of the inaugural 2007 Sustainability Report which announced the company’s sustainability objectives, performance and future targets across 11 core areas of sustainability. This Update details their refocused Sustainability Strategy and performance over the past year as they strive to reach their goals.

Lend Lease is working to build a business where sustainability is integral to the way in which they operate. The past year has witnessed the assembly of a dedicated Sustainability Team and the implementation of measurement and reporting processes allowing Lend Lease to comprehensively and comparably measure their impact across their operations.

Dan Labbad, Chief Executive Officer at Lend Lease commented: “We’re pleased with the progress we have achieved over the past year and we remain committed to affecting positive change, both within our own business and across the industry. We view the Sustainability Update as an open expression of our dedication to sustainability and detail both the successes we have enjoyed and the challenges we have faced. We are fully committed to learning from these challenges and further progressing our measurement and reporting which is essential to meeting our annual targets and long-term objectives.”

Lend Lease Corporation’s sustainability performance is rated by independent agencies including:
- the Carbon Disclosure Project report, undertaken on behalf of institutional investors representing over US$57 trillion of assets under management
- for the third year running, Lend Lease has been included on the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI), which is used to manage funds and other financial products worth almost US$6 billion
- Lend Lease has also been included on the Goldman Sachs JBWere Climate Leadership Index

The Sustainability Update can be viewed at www.lendleasesustainability.co.uk