Climate Change Data

Schnitzer Steel Industries, Inc.

Climate Impact & Sustainability Data (2009, 2013-09-01 to 2014-08-31, 2014-09-01 to 2015-08-31, 2019, 2023, 2024)

Reporting Period: 2009

Environmental Metrics

ESG Focus Areas

  • Environmental Stewardship
  • Resource Recycling
  • Sustainable Business Practices

Environmental Achievements

  • Recycled over 4.1 million tons of ferrous metal and 397 million pounds of nonferrous metals in fiscal year 2009.
  • Recycled approximately 300,000 cars annually, with estimated CO2 savings equivalent to 8,811 pounds per car.
  • Electric arc furnaces use 75% less energy than ore-based steel production furnaces.
  • Partnered in the Fishing for Energy initiative, recycling tons of old fishing gear.
  • Implemented a propane tank removal program, removing potentially explosive tanks from homes.
  • Upgraded equipment to conserve water and reduce energy consumption (e.g., rainwater harvesting, efficient fans).

Social Achievements

  • Partnered with municipalities and Aurjent to address old propane tank disposal.
  • Participated in the Cash for Clunkers program, handling vehicle recycling responsibly.
  • Received the Steel Manufacturers Association 2008 Recycler of the Year Award for mercury switch recycling.
  • Karileen Restoration Project in Federal Way, Washington, received the 2009 Friends of the Hylebos “Innovation in Conservation” award.

Governance Achievements

  • Embedded sustainability into decision-making processes.
  • Established environmental management and continuous evaluation requirements.

Climate Goals & Targets

Environmental Challenges

  • Handling contaminants in recycled materials (e.g., mercury switches in vehicles).
  • Disposal of old propane tanks.
  • Environmental impact of industrial activities on watersheds.
Mitigation Strategies
  • Rigorous program for mercury switch extraction and disposal.
  • Partnership with municipalities and Aurjent for propane tank removal and recycling.
  • Habitat restoration projects (e.g., Karileen Project, Little Bear Creek).

Supply Chain Management

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Awards & Recognition

  • Steel Manufacturers Association 2008 Recycler of the Year Award
  • 2009 Friends of the Hylebos “Innovation in Conservation” award

Reporting Period: 2013-09-01 to 2014-08-31

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:185,832 tCO2e/year
Scope 1 Emissions:108,766 tCO2e/year
Scope 2 Emissions:77,066 tCO2e/year
Scope 3 Emissions:Not disclosed
Renewable Energy Share:Not disclosed
Total Energy Consumption:Not disclosed
Water Consumption:1,164,709 m3/year
Waste Generated:59,236 tons/year
Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed

ESG Focus Areas

  • Environmental

Environmental Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Social Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Governance Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Short-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed

Environmental Challenges

  • Not disclosed
Mitigation Strategies
  • Not disclosed

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Not disclosed

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Not disclosed
Transition Risks
  • Not disclosed
Opportunities
  • Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, Greenhouse Gas Protocol, AA1000 APS (2008)

Certifications: Null

Third-party Assurance: Trucost

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • Not disclosed

Awards & Recognition

  • Not disclosed

Reporting Period: 2014-09-01 to 2015-08-31

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:181,000 metric tons CO2e
Scope 1 Emissions:105,039 metric tons CO2e
Scope 2 Emissions:75,874 metric tons CO2e
Scope 3 Emissions:Not disclosed
Renewable Energy Share:Not disclosed
Total Energy Consumption:Not disclosed
Water Consumption:1,283,810 cubic meters
Waste Generated:44,876 metric tons (landfill disposal)
Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed

ESG Focus Areas

  • Environmental

Environmental Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Social Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Governance Achievements

  • Not disclosed

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Short-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed

Environmental Challenges

  • Not disclosed
Mitigation Strategies
  • Planning to implement a formal tracking system in FY2016 to assist in prioritizing issues, identifying trends, and monitoring progress. Planning to implement a third-party software system in FY2016 to collect and track energy, water and waste and help organize environmental performance data across its business divisions.

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Not disclosed

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Not disclosed
Transition Risks
  • Not disclosed
Opportunities
  • Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, Greenhouse Gas Protocol, AA1000 APS (2008)

Certifications: Null

Third-party Assurance: Trucost

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • Not disclosed

Awards & Recognition

  • Not disclosed

Reporting Period: 2019

Environmental Metrics

Renewable Energy Share:90%

ESG Focus Areas

  • Safety
  • Sustainability
  • Integrity
  • Ethics
  • Compliance
  • Diversity
  • Inclusion
  • Community Engagement

Environmental Achievements

  • 4% reduction in absolute energy use
  • 5% reduction in absolute emissions
  • 90% electricity from carbon-free sources
  • Over 50% of water reused
  • Recycled 4.3M tons of FE scrap metal
  • Recycled 667M lbs. of NF scrap metal
  • Produced 478k tons of finished steel from scrap

Social Achievements

  • Fiscal 2019 was the safest year recorded in our Company’s history. Our annual total recordable injury rate was 33% better than fiscal 2018.
  • 100% of our employees, union and non-union, participated in our Code of Conduct training.
  • For the fifth consecutive year, Schnitzer was named a World’s Most Ethical Company by the Ethisphere Institute.
  • Long-term sustainability goal to donate at least 10,000 hours of paid Volunteer Time Off by 2025.

Governance Achievements

  • Awarded World’s Most Ethical Company Designation for the fifth consecutive year in Fiscal 2019 by the Ethisphere Institute
  • Adopted a clawback policy for the recovery of incentive compensation
  • Appointed a Chief Sustainability Officer
  • Enhanced Sustainability Report to provide long-term goals
  • Appointed a Chief Diversity Officer
  • Implemented a Supplier Code of Conduct
  • Adopted a human rights policy

Climate Goals & Targets

Medium-term Goals:
  • Achieve and maintain at least 90% carbon-free energy use through FY 2025
Short-term Goals:
  • Achieve a 1.00 Total Case Incident Rate by FY 2025
  • Donate at least 10,000 hours of paid Volunteer Time Off by FY 2025
  • Reduce GHG emissions from AMR operations by 25% by FY 2025
  • Achieve a profitability improvement target of $15/ton by leveraging sustainability-based initiatives by FY 2021

Environmental Challenges

  • Challenging market conditions marked by sharp declines in selling prices for our products
  • Margin compression in Auto and Metals Recycling (AMR) business due to drop in ferrous and non-ferrous selling prices
  • Decline in year-over-year results at Cascade Steel and Scrap (CSS) due to extended customer destocking and lower finished steel volumes
Mitigation Strategies
  • Productivity improvements
  • Investments in advanced metal recovery processing technologies
  • Volume growth
  • Diversifying sales
  • Strong working capital management
  • Reducing debt

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement
  • Supplier Code of Conduct

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB)

Certifications: World’s Most Ethical Companies by the Ethisphere Institute, Ethics Inside © Certification, Anti-Bribery Program Verification

Awards & Recognition

  • World’s Most Ethical Company by the Ethisphere Institute (five consecutive years)

Reporting Period: 2023

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:144,040 tCO2e (Scope 1) + 25,485 tCO2e (Scope 2)
Scope 1 Emissions:144,040 tCO2e/year
Scope 2 Emissions:25,485 tCO2e/year
Renewable Energy Share:46% of total energy use, 100% net carbon-free electricity
Total Energy Consumption:3,187,713 GJ/year
Water Consumption:1,219,891 m3/year
Waste Generated:730,997 tons/year
Carbon Intensity:approximately 0.14 mtCO2e per mt of finished steel

ESG Focus Areas

  • Environmental Management
  • Employee Safety
  • Talent Recruitment & Retention
  • Employee Training & Development
  • Local Community Relations
  • Carbon Neutrality
  • Employee Satisfaction
  • Climate Change Management
  • Ethics
  • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Environmental Achievements

  • Surpassed goal to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions from recycling operations by 25% versus 2019 baseline, achieving a 27% reduction.
  • Maintained 100% net carbon-free electricity across operations for the third consecutive year.
  • Certified 24 additional facilities within our ISO-certified EMS, now covering 28% of our facilities.

Social Achievements

  • Nearly 90% of facilities were free of any lost time injuries, and our instance of serious injuries and fatalities was zero.
  • Certified as a Great Place to Work® for the third consecutive year.
  • Named by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the 2023 World’s Most Ethical Companies® for the ninth consecutive year.

Governance Achievements

  • Launched an Executive Steering Committee for Sustainability (ESC) to further incorporate Sustainability into our strategy and operations.
  • 100% Independence among the non-management directors serving on the Board
  • 50% Board Diversity among the non-management independent directors

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Incorporate all Company facilities within our ISO 14001 certified Environmental Management System (EMS) by the end of FY2026
  • Achieve a 70% employee participation rate in our retirement benefits program by the end of FY2028
Short-term Goals:
  • Reduce Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions from recycling operations by 35% by the end of FY2028
  • Achieve a 1.00 TCIR by the end of FY2025
  • Donate at least 10,000 hours of paid volunteer time off by the end of FY2025
  • Achieve a 25% employee participation rate in our physical and mental wellness programs by the end of FY2025

Environmental Challenges

  • Economic headwinds and geopolitical instability
  • Increased total case incident rate (TCIR)
Mitigation Strategies
  • Furthered multi-year Sustainability targets despite challenges.
  • Continued efforts to achieve a TCIR of <1.00 by 2025 by identifying hazards and promoting risk mitigation through frequent process improvements.

Supply Chain Management

Responsible Procurement
  • Supplier Code of Conduct

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Extreme weather events
Transition Risks
  • Regulatory changes
Opportunities
  • Development of energy-efficient products

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: GRI, SASB

Certifications: ISO 14001 (partially)

Third-party Assurance: S&P Global Market Intelligence

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • GRN Steel™ (net-zero carbon emissions steel)

Awards & Recognition

  • #1 on Corporate Knights’ 2023 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World
  • TIME100 Most Influential Companies of 2023
  • Great Place to Work®
  • World’s Most Ethical Companies®

Reporting Period: 2024

Environmental Metrics

Total Carbon Emissions:0.026 mtCO2e
Scope 1 Emissions:142,217 tCO2e
Scope 2 Emissions:109,196 tCO2e
Scope 3 Emissions:Not disclosed
Renewable Energy Share:17%
Total Energy Consumption:3,314,882 GJ
Water Consumption:1,335,568 m3
Waste Generated:776,619 MT
Carbon Intensity:Not disclosed

ESG Focus Areas

  • Governance
  • Environment
  • Social

Environmental Achievements

  • 75% of mega-shredders have advanced air quality controls and VOC treatment systems.
  • 50% of operating sites are certified to ISO 14001.

Social Achievements

  • Increased participation in retirement benefits program to 72.61%
  • Logged 1,300 hours of paid volunteer time off.

Governance Achievements

  • Maintained a high percentage of independent directors on the board (6 out of 7).

Climate Goals & Targets

Long-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Medium-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed
Short-term Goals:
  • Not disclosed

Environmental Challenges

  • Not disclosed
Mitigation Strategies
  • Not disclosed

Supply Chain Management

Supplier Audits: Not disclosed

Responsible Procurement
  • Not disclosed

Climate-Related Risks & Opportunities

Physical Risks
  • Not disclosed
Transition Risks
  • Not disclosed
Opportunities
  • Not disclosed

Reporting Standards

Frameworks Used: SASB, CDP

Certifications: ISO 14001

Third-party Assurance: Not disclosed

UN Sustainable Development Goals

  • Not disclosed

Not disclosed

Sustainable Products & Innovation

  • Not disclosed

Awards & Recognition

  • Not disclosed