Commenting on the commitment, Managing Partner Geoff Moore said “Sustainable Business is one of the key components of the way we work. We are committed to sustainable outcomes for our business, people, environment and the communities in which we operate. Our Carbon Reduction Strategy will provide a roadmap for our journey in sustainability and guide us to achieving our carbon reduction goals”.

As part of this carbon reduction strategy, we commit to implementation of an ambitious strategy to reduce Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 50% of 2018 levels by 2025.

In parallel, we commit to being carbon neutral from 2021 onwards by investing in certified sustainable sequestration projects that meet the highest ethical and environmental standards. In addition, by 2025 we aim to be carbon negative by supporting domestic sustainable sequestration, land use rehabilitation and biodiversity projects, with a view to removing twice as much carbon dioxide from the atmosphere as we emit.

Arthur Cox is committed to science based measurement of its carbon footprint – Scope 1, 2 and 3 and to report annually on our progress.

The firm’s Sustainable Business Committee has obtained independent audits of our direct and indirect carbon emissions for 2018 and 2019 and will continue to commission independent audits of our carbon footprint on an annual basis.

We have engaged Sustineo, an external sustainability consultancy, to assist us in delivering the key measures required to achieve our carbon reduction goals.

We are committed to –

• Building on the firm’s existing energy efficiency and renewable sourcing initiatives, including to the fullest extent possible procuring energy from renewable sources; optimising infrastructure and training our people on efficient energy usage.
• Reducing carbon from business and business related travel, including commuter impacts.
• Using local suppliers and implementing sustainable procurement policies that focus on environmental credentials of suppliers to minimise supply chain impacts.

Examples of our investment in minimising the impact of our operational footprint include:

• Ongoing commitment to maximising energy efficiency as evidenced by achieving certification to the ISO50001:2018 Energy Management Systems Standard in 2019 through our commitment to making efficient use of energy at our Dublin office, in order to conserve natural resources and reduce carbon emissions.
• Investing in the most energy efficient premises as evidenced by our Dublin office obtaining LEED Platinum for Internal Design and Fit Out in 2019 and obtaining LEED Platinum for Shell and Core in 2018.
• Installing a combined heat and power unit, solar thermal panels and two ice bank storage units to minimise primary energy use, particularly at peak times.
• Installing a rainwater harvesting system which has reduced our water usage intensity by 56%, minimising the burden on water mains infrastructure.
• Minimising waste, in particular single use plastics, and striving towards 100% reuse, recycling and recovery with zero waste to landfill.
• Reducing the level of the firm’s paper usage and seeking to purchase paper with 100% recycled content.