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OUR CARBON FOOTPRINT

Tracking U.S. Engineering’s Carbon Emissions

What is Our Carbon Footprint?

Below, we detail U.S. Engineering’s carbon footprint and show you how we calculated it.


Total U.S. Engineering GHG emissions over the last three years

2019


5,068 CO2 e tons

2020


4,897 CO2 e tons

(3% reduction)

2021


5,676 CO2 e tons

(11% increase from 2019 baseline)

2022


4,866 CO2 e tons

(7.6% reduction from 2019 baseline)

What makes up these numbers?

We determined these totals by measuring our GHG in emission scopes, which are the three main categories GHG are measured in.

Scope 1

Direct on-site emissions (usually due to burning fuels) in facilities or by fleet vehicles

Scope 2

Direct emissions associated with electricity purchases for facilities

Scope 3

Emissions from value chain related to all other company activities (not directly controlled by the company itself)

What did we include in our scopes?

This EPA graphic summarizes the major GHG sources that many companies can report. The list below summarizes what emissions have and have not been included in our GHG baseline calculations.  https://www.epa.gov/climateleadership/scope-1-and-scope-2-inventory-guidance
Vehicle Fuel/Facility Natural Gas (Direct Emissions)

Facilities. Fuel used in all buildings owned, leased and rented by the company, including natural gas, diesel, fuel oil and industrial gases at MX.

Fleet Transportation. Fuel used for the purpose of commuting in vehicles owned, leased or hired by the company or in privately owned vehicles, including gasoline, diesel, in miles traveled.
Electricity use (Indirect Emissions)

Facilities. Electricity used in all buildings owned and rented by the company.
Indirect emissions from sources not owned by the company

Business Travel. Miles traveled for relevant mode of transport, including flights, rental car, taxi. (Excludes local commuter travel)

Heavy Goods Vehicles. Fuel purchased by subcontractor/supplier for use in HGVs, including gasoline, diesel, in miles traveled.
There are Scope 3 emissions that were not included in the current GHG emission calculations. These emission sources could be considered in future inventory plans. ​​​​​​​

Local Commuter Travel

Supply Chain Transportation

Embodied carbon due to construction materials

Waste

Emissions from subcontractors

Vehicle Fuel/Facility Natural Gas (Direct Emissions)

Facilities. Fuel used in all buildings owned, leased and rented by the company, including natural gas, diesel, fuel oil and industrial gases at MX.

Fleet Transportation. Fuel used for the purpose of commuting in vehicles owned, leased or hired by the company or in privately owned vehicles, including gasoline, diesel, in miles traveled.
Electricity use (Indirect Emissions)

Facilities. Electricity used in all buildings owned and rented by the company.
Indirect emissions from sources not owned by the company

Business Travel. Miles traveled for relevant mode of transport, including flights, rental car, taxi. (Excludes local commuter travel)

Heavy Goods Vehicles. Fuel purchased by subcontractor/supplier for use in HGVs, including gasoline, diesel, in miles traveled.
There are Scope 3 emissions that were not included in the current GHG emission calculations. These emission sources could be considered in future inventory plans. ​​​​​​​

Local Commuter Travel

Supply Chain Transportation

Embodied carbon due to construction materials

Waste

Emissions from subcontractors


Why did we use 2019 to establish a baseline?

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in significant changes in USE operations between March 2020 and June 2021.  We wanted to understand how these changes affected our GHG emissions and compare them against a period of normal operations. 

Therefore, USE established 2019 as the baseline year and will base our initial sustainability report on emissions measured over calendar years 2019, 2020 and 2021.

How did U.S. Engineering use GHGs over the past few years?

Year-to-year breakdown


2022 by percentage

Fuel consumption of U.S. Engineering fleet vehicles continues to be the largest contribution (54% of the company total). Our fleet traveled over 3.1 million miles in 2022, evenly split among the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions. Our Rocky Mountain Region operations accounted for 52% of the total fleet mileage.

Facility emissions result in the next highest source of emissions at 34% of the total, with purchased electricity at 21% and natural gas usage at 13%.

Team member business travel at 6% and product transportation at 6% make up the remainder of USE’s emissions profile.