Sciessent Strengthens its Commitment to Sustainability by Offsetting its Operational Greenhouse Gas Emissions Through BEF Investment

Sciessent Strengthens its Commitment to Sustainability by Offsetting its Operational Greenhouse Gas Emissions Through BEF Investment

Purchase of carbon offsets supports marine efficiency, renewable energy, forestry management and climate action projects

Beverly, MA — (January 21, 2021) – Sciessent today announced that it has purchased 400 metric tons of verified carbon offsets from Bonneville Environmental Foundation (BEF)
to balance greenhouse gas emissions produced by its operations. Through this investment, Sciessent is mitigating its impact on the environment by supporting green initiatives aligned with the Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement.

As a leading global provider of environmentally responsible products, including antimicrobial, odor control and water repellent solutions used across a broad range of industries, Sciessent decided to extend its environmental consciousness to its own carbon footprint. In early 2020, the company took an inventory of its greenhouse gas emissions with the help of a consulting firm and discovered that it had produced 355 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents (MT CO2e) in 2019. Sciessent’s highest emission areas were in shipping, electricity and travel.

“We built Sciessent on a foundation of sustainability working closely with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for 20+ years to produce solutions safe for the environment, and guiding our partners on environmentally responsible product development,” said Sciessent CEO Paul C. Ford. “Early last year we decided to assess the impact of our daily operations on the environment, everything from how we ship our products, to how much energy and paper we use, to how much waste we generate. Once we became educated on the extent of our carbon footprint, we explored options to mitigate it with BEF.”

Sciessent has purchased from BEF 400 verified carbon offsets, which are issued in return for investment in climate protection projects. One carbon offset represents the reduction of greenhouse gases equal to one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e).

Sciessent’s investment is equivalent to mitigating the environmental impact of:

•      Greenhouse gas emissions from 86.4 passenger vehicles driven in one year, or
•      CO2 emissions from 45,010 gallons of gasoline consumed¹

“As a voluntary participant in offsetting its footprint, Sciessent has aligned with those commitments made by many nations to reduce global emissions, such as those named in the Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement,” said Heather Schrock, Director, Environmental Partnerships, Bonneville Environmental Foundation. “We are pleased to have them as a partner in balancing the environmental impacts we cannot avoid.”

Sciessent and BEF worked collaboratively to select carbon offset investments that were relevant to Sciessent’s business or related to the emissions the company is working to mitigate (e.g., shipping, energy usage). These include:

• Marine efficiency: AkzoNobel’s Marine Coatings business has worked with The Gold Standard Foundation to create the first approved carbon credit methodology in the marine industry. In addition, this eco-efficient technology reduces the transference of invasive species and improve air quality in port communities by reducing emissions of harmful air pollutants.
• Renewable energy: The Prairie Winds grid-connected wind project near Minot, North Dakota generates emissions reductions by displacing the carbon emissions from traditional energy sources such as coal and natural gas.
• Forestry management: Located on more than 8,000 acres of mixed hardwoods in northeast Tennessee, the offsets from the Doe Mountain Improved Forest Management Project provide regular income stream for the recreation area’s trail and infrastructure improvements while conserving Doe Mountain’s visually stunning landscape for future generations.
• Climate action: The Clinton Landfill Gas Collection and Combustion Project consists of the collection and destruction of landfill gasses (LFG), reducing the quantity of methane released to the atmosphere from the decomposition of waste. The RemTec ODS Destruction Project in El Dorado, Arkansas properly manages and destroys ozone depleting substances (ODS) used in products such as aerosols, refrigerator and air conditioning coolant, and fire extinguishers.

Sciessent has garnered industry recognition for its commitment to sustainability, including bluesign® approval for all of its technologies – Agion®, ActiveXL, Lava®, Lava XL® and Curb®, listing of these products on the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Foundation ZDHC Gateway, and Level 3 compliance from the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Foundation.

¹ Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator, EPA, https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator

About Sciessent

Sciessent is a leading provider of customized antimicrobial, odor control and water repellent solutions that enhance the value of customers’ products. Agion antimicrobial solutions from Sciessent have been incorporated into a wide range of healthcare, industrial, and consumer applications, including medical devices such as central venous catheters and IV access ports, drinking water applications like water filters and ice making equipment, and textiles and apparel. For more information, please visit www.sciessent.com.

About BEF

A national nonprofit, BEF empowers businesses to be in balance with the environment through a full suite of environmental products, educational and community engagement programs and custom solutions that help our partners address their unavoidable energy, carbon and water impacts.