Our ESG Reporting
Our annual ESG reporting provides detailed updates on our ESG strategy and the progress we’ve made on topics that are important to the company and to our stakeholders.
Protecting Our Planet
Our mission as a water utility requires us to deliver—and steward—the planet’s most precious resource. We are working to minimize our environmental footprint from the source to the tap while investing in the long-term resilience and reliability of our water supply and system. Integral to this is our extensive work to understand how climate impacts our business and to develop and implement a cohesive, long-term strategy to address risks and realize opportunities.
Climate Change Strategic Planning & Risk Management
Our climate change resiliency planning process includes rigorous and thoughtful analysis of climate scenarios and potential impacts to our business. We aim to identify, mitigate, and adapt to risks and address opportunities through our climate change strategy and through redundancies that help us reliably serve customers and promote resilience.
Energy & Emissions
We are working across our business and supply chain to use energy more efficiently, improve fleet sustainability, and transition to renewables. In 2023, we increased our renewable energy consumption to nearly 14%, up from 9.3% the year prior. To help drive further progress, we have also set a science-aligned target to reduce our Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 63% by 2035 from a 2021 base year, and continue to explore ways to quantify and reduce value chain emissions.
Water Supply Resilience & Reliability
We must manage water sustainably to keep providing this finite resource to customers in the face of climate risks and population growth. We seek to safeguard existing sources and adjust our approach as needed to provide long-term availability. To help mitigate risks, we plan across various climate scenarios and timeframes, invest in infrastructure, and continue to diversify water supplies.
Water System Resilience, Reliability & Efficiency
Our customers rely on us to provide safe drinking water and, in some cases, wastewater treatment as well. We’re taking action across our distribution system and operations to help ensure our infrastructure is resilient to climate risks, reliable for our customers, and efficient at conserving water and energy. In 2023, we invested $383.7 million in infrastructure projects.
End-Use Conservation
Using water sustainably helps preserve the supply for generations to come, save energy, and create fewer associated emissions. We promote water conservation through education and incentives for our customers. In 2023, we invested $4.4 million to encourage water savings through water conservation rebates and programs that are estimated to result in 95 million gallons of water saved annually by our customers.
Environmental Management, Compliance, and Stewardship
California—home to 90% of our operations—leads the nation in setting policies aimed at reducing environmental impacts. Group is committed to complying with all regulations for potable water, wastewater discharges, and environmental quality. Additionally, our environmental stewardship activities include protecting local watersheds, sourcing sustainably, and managing waste responsibly.