Brewer Molson Coors has set 2020 targets for reducing its water intensity by 20 percent, its energy intensity by 25 percent and carbon emissions intensity by 15 percent over last year's levels, in its 2011 corporate sustainability report.
The company says that the goal of these targets is "to drive lower consumption of natural resources in a way that has the maximum impact in mitigating and adapting to climate change." MillerCoors, the company's US-based joint venture with SABMiller, also recently set targets for its environmental impacts.
Molson Coors' Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions dropped 5.7 percent from 2010 to 2011, according to the report. In 2010, the company produced 948,128 metric tons of CO2 equivalent, compared to 893,346 in 2011. The reduction is down to a 12.7 percent drop in the company's Scope 2 emissions, which fell from 534,338 metric tons of CO2e in 2012 to 466,467 in 2011. Molson Coors' Scope 1 emissions increased slightly year-on-year.
Since its 2008 baseline Molson Coors has decreased its absolute carbon emissions by just over 20 percent.
Molson Coors' emission efficiency has improved by 21 percent since its 2008 baseline. The company's reduction target is 7 percent by the end of 2012 (for scope 1 & 2), meaning that it has reduced emissions by three times the initial goal. In 2011 the brewer saw a 5.4 percent decrease in carbon intensity use over the previous year. The company's total energy use increased 3 percent over the year, from 9.4 Mj in 2010 to 9.7 Mj in 2011.
Since 2008 Molson Coors has reduced its absolute energy use by 11 percent. It has a goal of reducing its energy use by 15 percent over 2008 levels.
Within each brewery, Molson Coors has energy teams focused on identifying and implementing energy saving initiatives. The company has undertaken lighting replacement projects at several breweries, replacing old light fittings with more efficient ones along with control systems that detect the need for lights. The brewer has also installed variable speed drives onto motors and optimized distribution voltage across sites. In Canada, an upgrade of the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems across the sites has been "hugely successful" in reducing energy and saving thousands of metric tons of carbon dioxide, the report says.
Molson Coors’ water use in 2011 was down 2 percent over the previous year, from 239 million to 234 million hectoliters.
In 2011, the company achieved a water-to-beer ratio of 4.57:1 averaged across its operations in Canada and the UK. In the US, five of MillerCoors' eight breweries - whose environmental impacts contribute to figures in this report - achieved water-to-beer ratios under 4.00:1, which is below the industry average of 5.00:1, the report says.
Also in 2011, the company carried out watershed risk assessments in each of its breweries worldwide. Water risk was determined based on local conditions, including demand, long-term growth and water availability. Using expert third parties with extensive local and global knowledge, along with resources like the World Business Council for Sustainability Development's Water Tool, Miller Coors says it has identified breweries in water-stressed locations or with apparent risk due to water availability.
In June, Molson Coors was among a group of 45 international companies that agreed to set targets on their own water efficiency and wastewater management in factories and operations, and called on governments attending the Rio+20 Earth Summit to make global water security a top priority.
The companies' 45 CEOs — all of whom have endorsed the Global Compact’s CEO Water Mandate — pledged to work with suppliers to improve their water practices, and partner with nongovernmental organizations, UN agencies, governments and public authorities, investors, and other stakeholders on water-related projects and solutions.
Earlier this month, MillerCoors announced its 2011 environmental results. The joint venture reduced the amount of water used in the production of beer by 1 percent from 2010 to 2011. It reduced the amount of waste it sends to landfill by 55 percent since 2008, surpassing its revised 2015 goal by 5 percentage points four years early.
To read Environmental Leader's coverage of Molson Coors' earlier reports click here: 2010, 2009 and 2008.
