The measured emissions are considered indirect CO2 emissions as per the Greenhouse Gas Protocol classification of emissions and result from the consumption of energy (Scope 2) or business trips (Scope 3). As a service provider, we produce scarcely any direct CO2 emissions (Scope 1) such as those caused by industry through plant operations.
The calculation is based on the consumption figures for district heating and paper as well as our business travel. Given that we have obtained our electricity in Hannover exclusively from renewable sources since 2012, no emissions are caused in this regard. We are currently unable to quantify emissions caused by our reinsurance business, our investments and our suppliers.
1 The present figures differ from those published in the Sustainability Report 2016 due to retrospective adjustment of the number of kilometres actually flown on business trips. This in turn necessitated an adjustment of the data on CO2 emissions.
Our CO2 emissions in Hannover in the year under review amounted to 8,390 tonnes, an increase of 1.3% year-on-year. The rise in emissions is driven primarily by the increase in the number of kilometres flown on business trips.
Business trips are necessary in order to maintain a presence with our national and international clients. Travel within Germany is normally undertaken using long-distance rail transportation and is therefore carbon-neutral. Business travel by plane, on the other hand, accounts for around 96.3% of our total calculated emissions. For this reason, our travel policy requires a check to be made before every trip to determine whether the purpose of the trip can be accomplished using alternative communication tools. The roll-out of a new unified communication platform means that web conferencing is now possible from all workstations. In order to ensure that not only small but also larger meetings involving several participants per location can be held in the form of a web-based conference, more than 40 web conference rooms have been set up worldwide; along with camera and video technology, these are also equipped with remote white boards, thereby making it possible to share sketches and drawings made at the meeting across all locations. Since 2008 we have worked together with the climate protection organisation atmosfair to calculate, control and offset for our Hannover location air travel that cannot be avoided. In 2018 we began to log and extensively offset the business flights undertaken by our locations in the Asia-Pacific region. We are aiming for full offsetting from 2020 onwards. The smaller share of our CO2 emissions at the Hannover location (3.3%, corresponding to 313 tonnes of CO2) which is attributable to district heating, business trips by car and paper consumption is also offset through payments to Friends of the Earth (BUND). Since 2016 we have operated at our Hannover location with a net zero carbon footprint.
The CO2 emissions from business travel increased in the year under review to 8,116 tonnes (previous year: 8,029 tonnes1)
1 The present figures differ from those published in the Sustainability Report 2016 due to retrospective adjustment of the number of kilometres actually flown on business trips. This in turn necessitated an adjustment of the data on CO2 emissions.
Emissions are also caused when our employees commute to work by car or public transportation. This involves indirect environmental aspects that we cannot directly measure or control. In order to limit the associated emissions we are proactive in offering our staff teleworking opportunities. Emissions can be avoided by eliminating the daily commute to work. Some 37% of the staff employed in Hannover already make use of this opportunity. Employees who ride their bicycle to work are provided with adequate change and shower facilities on our premises. Since 2018 we have offered our employees at the Hannover location a season pass on a collective basis for commuting with the regional public transport association (GVH).
Since 2008 Hannover Re has offset all CO2 emissions caused at the German locations and selected international locations by making offset payments to the climate protection organisation atmosfair. atmosfair implements projects in accordance with the rules and procedures of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) enshrined in the Kyoto Protocol and also according to the "Gold Standard" established by international environmental organisations.
Climate protection projects around the world – especially in developing countries – are supported by the payments. Since mid-2017 these offsets have been used in equal measure to assist projects designed to cut emissions in Rwanda and Nepal.
Rwanda is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. A large sector of the population cooks with charcoal and firewood, as a result of which wood is a resource in high demand. Our contribution helps to equip the region with efficient ovens that consume 80% less wood than traditional stoves. This reduces overexploitation of forests through logging and protects the habitat of endangered mountain gorillas. At the same time, the measure goes hand-in-hand with a reduction of CO2 emissions.
In rural Nepal, too, wood is the primary energy source – and in short supply owing to the strong population growth. Our offset payments promote small-scale biogas systems for households that currently use non-renewable energy resources. The biogas is channelled to gas cookers through pipes, hence eliminating the need for firewood and avoiding the build-up of fumes. Moreover, by connecting the toilet to the system it is also possible to improve the hygiene situation in the households.
In 2018 we spent a total amount of EUR 185,787.56 on the projects in Rwanda and Nepal.
The emissions caused at our location in Germany by our use of district heating, paper consumption and business travel by train and car are offset through payments made to the moorland project of Friends of the Earth Germany (BUND – Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland). Partially drained moors are rewatered under this project. Dewatered moorland emits roughly the same quantity of harmful greenhouse gases as road traffic in Germany; rewatering a moor, however, inhibits the process through which greenhouse gases are released.
In 2018 we spent an amount of EUR 8,764.00 on the moorland project.
Paper-intensive publications such as our Group Annual Report, brochures and the documents for the Annual General Meeting are printed on a carbon-neutral basis. Other publications such as this Sustainability Report, for example, are made available to our stakeholders only in paperless form. We have committed ourselves to this approach in our internal Corporate Design Manual. The measures that have brought about the reduction in paper consumption are described in detail in the section entitled "Paper consumption".
Thanks to our decreased paper consumption, the CO2 emissions for this item also fell to 6.88 tonnes (previous year: 8.68 tonnes).
in t CO2 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Scope 1 | Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Scope 2 | Total | 266.87 | 243.43 | 255.96 | 264.18 | 263.78 | |
Electricity (100% green energy) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
District heating | 266.87 | 243.43 | 255.96 | 264.18 | 263.78 | ||
Scope 3 | Total | 8,123.35 | 8,037.55 | 8,108.64 | 8,314.53 | 7,531.35 | |
Business travel | 8,116.47 | 8,028.87 | 8,099.41 | 8,305.70 | 7,529.50 | ||
Plane | 8,077.60 | 7,984.46 | 8,057.00 | 8,298.00 | 7,507.00 | ||
Train | 4.07 | 6.79 | 6.96 | 7.70 | 6.50 | ||
Car | 34.80 | 37.62 | 35.45 | n.a. | 16.00 | ||
Paper | 6.88 | 8.68 | 9.23 | 8.83 | 1.85 | ||
We do not separately measure CO2 emissions from waste generated in operations, employee commuting or investments. |