1 | Eversource 2019 Sustainability Report
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1 | EVERSOURCE 2019 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS MESSAGE FROM JIM JUDGE ............................................. 4 SUSTAINABILITY AT EVERSOURCE ..................................... 7 REPORT ASSURANCE ..................................................... 9 OUR ENVIRONMENT ...................................................... 10 LOWERING OUR OPERATIONAL EMISSIONS ............................................................................................................. 11 Climate Change ............................................................................................................................................................... 13 Our Footprint ................................................................................................................................................................... 15 Operations Optimization .................................................................................................................................................. 17 ADDRESSING REGIONAL ENERGY CHALLENGES .................................................................................................... 20 Clean Energy ................................................................................................................................................................... 20 Electric Vehicles .............................................................................................................................................................. 24 Energy Efficiency Programs ............................................................................................................................................ 27 Technology & Innovation ................................................................................................................................................. 33 ACCOUNTABILITY ......................................................................................................................................................... 37 Water Resources ............................................................................................................................................................. 37 Waste Management and Pollution Prevention ................................................................................................................. 41 Environmental Compliance .............................................................................................................................................. 42 ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP .............................................................................................................................. 43 Promoting Stewardship.................................................................................................................................................... 43 Preserving Biodiversity .................................................................................................................................................... 45 Responsible Land Management ...................................................................................................................................... 46 OUR BUSINESS ........................................................... 49 About Our Company ........................................................................................................................................................ 50 2019 Awards and Recognition ......................................................................................................................................... 51 Corporate Governance .................................................................................................................................................... 52 Ethics and Risk Management .......................................................................................................................................... 53 Financial Performance ..................................................................................................................................................... 54 Sustainable Supply Chain................................................................................................................................................ 56 SERVING OUR CUSTOMERS ............................................ 60 Customer Experience ...................................................................................................................................................... 61 Financial Assistance ........................................................................................................................................................ 62 Reliability & Resiliency Initiatives ..................................................................................................................................... 64 Emergency Preparedness ............................................................................................................................................... 70 2 | EVERSOURCE 2019 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT Distributed Generation ..................................................................................................................................................... 72 In the Community ............................................................................................................................................................ 72 O U R P E O P L E ............................................................. 77 Safety .............................................................................................................................................................................. 78 Workforce Investment ...................................................................................................................................................... 80 Diversity and Inclusion ..................................................................................................................................................... 83 Eversource Green Team ................................................................................................................................................. 88 Employee Wellness ......................................................................................................................................................... 88 MATERIAL TOPICS & ALIGNMENT WITH UN SDGs ................... 90 3 | EVERSOURCE 2019 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT MESSAGE F R O M J IM JUDGE C HAIRMAN, PRESIDENT AND C EO If this were any other year, I would start this message by stating that 2019 was Eversource Energy’s best year in our history. I would share that we posted strong operational and financial performance and excellent returns for investors, while embracing and defining our growing role as a catalyst for clean energy. While this is all true, we currently face a world undergoing a public health crisis, and a nation working through a social equality crisis. It is clear that we are operating under circumstances that could not be described as “business as usual.” It seems more appropriate, therefore, to address how the many steps we have taken to create a sustainable company have allowed Eversource, throughout the pandemic and social unrest, to show leadership and excellence on many different fronts. Pandemic Response Since the onset of the pandemic in the United States, our electric, natural gas and water delivery systems have operated smoothly and without incident. Even in these unsettled circumstances, we are serving the needs of our 4 million customers and maintaining safe, reliable service. That’s a testament to the training, expertise and professionalism of our employees to support our operations and uphold Eversource’s reputation as a provider our communities are counting on under these extraordinary circumstances. We are fortunate to be an organization that has strong practices and procedures for crisis management, as well as extensive experience working through storms and other disruptions. This experience has served us well as we deal with a unique challenge that has upended daily life. We moved to protect our employees quickly, enabling many of them to work from home and enhancing our already extensive programs and services to support them. We also created social distancing protocols and other workarounds to ensure the safety of our employees who work in the field. And, we supported our customers by 4 | EVERSOURCE 2019 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT pledging to keep electricity, water and natural gas flowing regardless of their ability to pay — waiving late fees, suspending shutoffs and providing flexible payment options. We went further. In recognition of the immediate impact of the pandemic on the communities we serve, we donated more than $2 million through the Eversource Foundation to nonprofit organizations in Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. These funds included our regular $1.2 million annual donation to United Way agencies across all three states and an additional $1 million to be dispersed to those and other agencies providing social services such as food pantries and health and human service organizations. We also created a special hotline and a support team to help small business owners apply for assistance through the federal government’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Despite the significant changes as a result of the pandemic, our performance remains strong on key operating metrics