Together, we've planted 35,000 trees
Resimac's Carbon Conscious™ program offsets more than 4 million kilograms of CO2
In September 2020, Resimac achieved the major milestone of planting 35,000 trees. These trees will remove more than 4 million kilograms of CO2 from the atmosphere.
CO2 emissions caused by burning fossil fuels and deforestation have devastating environmental and health effects. From bushfires and species extinction to creating or contributing to respiratory issues, the effects have a huge impact on people, animals and the environment, so it's important that we all do our part to reduce the impact of CO2 emissions on our planet.
Resimac launched its Carbon Conscious program in 2010 to counter the environmental impact associated with everyday business processes. It partnered with Australian carbon farming company, Carbon Conscious Investments Ltd (CCIU), to plant a native Mallee Eucalypt tree in the Australian Wheatbelt region for every new loan settled.
Resimac CEO, Scott McWilliam, said the program reflected the company's commitment to conduct business in an environmentally responsible fashion.
"We are proud to reach this milestone with our customers. Carbon Conscious is an initiative we’ve been participating in for the last decade, and it’s an important part of our environmental, social and governance (ESG) framework.
"Our partnership with CCI has spurred broader changes throughout our organisation. Since starting the program, we have dramatically reduced our paper consumption, and we’re on our way towards becoming completely paperless. This is helped by our recent move to offering a completely digital loan origination process," said Scott.
Other initiatives Resimac is participating in include a partnership with Food Ladder, which uses hydroponics and sustainable technologies to help communities grow their own food, and volunteering at The Station Ltd, a drop-in centre in Sydney that caters for adults who have difficulty obtaining and sustaining accommodation. Earlier this year following the devastating bushfires, Resimac and its directors also donated $75,000 to the Salvation Army Disaster Appeal and $25,000 to WIRES – Emergency Fund for Wildlife.
Anthony Fitzgerald, Executive Director at Carbon Conscious Investments, said: "January 2020 marked the 10 year anniversary of our Voluntary Carbon Offset relationship with Resimac and we thank them for the long term commitment that has resulted in 35,000 trees being established in the Western Australian Wheat Belt.
"The project forests are established using native tree species that are drought and fire resistant, and in addition to offsetting CO2, they play a role in increasing the available habitat for native birds, insects, lizards and mammals," said Anthony.
Who is Carbon Conscious Investments?
CCIU is an Australian company that produces carbon credits through carbon farming. Carbon farming is the process in which you plant trees, measure their growth, and sell that growth as Voluntary Carbon Offsets (VCO) or Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) to organisations, who then can claim the ACCU as a carbon credit to offset against the emissions that the company produces.
When companies support carbon farming projects, it not only offsets their environmental impact, it also puts value into farming operations by mitigating the effects of previous over clearing.
For more information about Carbon Conscious, you can visit their website here.
The opinions expressed in this article are the opinions of the author(s) and not necessarily those of Resimac.