SWCA 2023 Sustainability Report

2023

Sustainability Report

OUR PURPOSE

To preserve natural and cultural resources for tomorrow while enabling projects that benefit people today.

INTRODUCTION

Message from the CEO

Welcome to SWCA’s sixteenth sustainability report. Over the years, this report has expanded to cover more than our internal environmental sustainability efforts. In this year’s report, you will read about the sustainability strides we make externally. From our project work to our Spreading the Science Program, we make significant positive impacts on our broader communities. In the 2022 report, we identified five goals that we expected to accomplish in 2023. All but one of the goals were focused on external impact. As an environmental consulting firm, our environmental impacts from operations are limited to business travel, commuting, and leased office space. That said, we never settle when it comes to making changes to lessen our impact in our offices and fieldwork. In fact, in 2023, we created an annual award, Daring to Be Greener, which recognizes the office that best embodies the SWCA environmental sustainability mindset.

Our project work, our people programs, and our philanthropy work are where SWCA excels in making positive contributions to the environment, our employees, and our communities. Each year I create a theme for the company. My inspiration comes from delivering solutions to our clients and engaging with our employees. Our 2023 theme was Partnering with our Clients to Achieve our North Star. Throughout this report, you will see the

steps we took to improve our workplace for our people, to move closer to being a leader in sustainability, to bring sound science and creative solutions to global environmental challenges, and to maintain our dedication to employee-ownership. You will also learn that by partnering with our clients we helped restore and improve ecosystems, habitats, and biodiversity; we protected cultural resources to preserve the past; we worked to create resiliency against climate driven disasters and helped communities recover from past disasters; we worked to improve water quality and quantity; and we helped bring clean energy to communities through renewable generation with minimal impact to the environment. This work makes us all proud.

SWCA achieved record-breaking business growth in 2023, increasing revenue 33% over 2022. Despite our rapid growth, we did not lose sight of our sustainability journey. In fact, we made several great strides in the sustainability arena: acquiring a Sustainability and Management Consulting firm, creating a Sustainability and Management Consulting Division with a C-Suite Leader, and adding two full-time employees focused on internal sustainability.

Joseph J. Fluder, III

WE ACCOMPLISHED THE FIVE SUSTAINABILITY GOALS SET OUT FOR 2023

1. SIGNIFICANTLY EXPAND OUR SUSTAINABILITY SERVICES

SWCA acquired an international Sustainability and Management Consulting firm. See the Sustainability and Management Consulting section for more information.

2. EVALUATE GLOBAL FRAMEWORKS FOR REPORTING AND ALIGNMENT

Understanding the importance of the United Nations Global Compact, SWCA became a participant in 2023. After researching various reporting frameworks, we decided to align with the Global Reporting Initiative. Further details are in the 2024 goals.

3. CONDUCT A MATERIALITY ASSESSMENT

A materiality assessment was conducted in late 2023, which included interviews with over 30 stakeholders. The results of the materiality assessment will be shared in early 2024, and the material items will be addressed.

4. INCREASE SPREADING THE SCIENCE EFFORTS

Spreading the Science efforts increased by 29% in 2023. Details are in the Spreading the Science section.

5. FURTHER DEFINE OUR POSITIVE IMPACT AREAS

Significant progress was made in further defining the positive impact we make. The Positive Impact Areas section expands on this work.

2024 GOALS

GLOBAL REPORTING INITIATIVE

Formally align with the Global Reporting Initiative as our reporting standard for the 2024 sustainability report.

MATERIALITY ASSESSMENT

Communicate the results of our materiality assessment and address the identified material items.

CODE OF ETHICS TRAINING

Implement mandatory Code of Ethics training for all employees.

PAPERLESS PROJECTS

Fully transition to paperless projects when allowed by our clients.

OUR NORTH STAR SWCA is the best workplace and industry leader in sustainability, bringing sound science and creative solutions to global environmental challenges while maintaining a dedication to employee-ownership.

Overview of SWCA

2023 % OF REVENUE BY MARKET

SERVICE AREAS

ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING, PERMITTING AND COMPLIANCE

BIOLOGICAL/ECOLOGICAL SERVICES

CULTURAL RESOURCES

CONSTRUCTION OVERSIGHT

WATER RESOURCES

CLIMATE DRIVEN SERVICES

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

MITIGATION AND RESTORATION

AIR QUALITY AND NOISE

SUSTAINABILITY AND MANAGEMENT

CONSULTING 41 OFFICES 2 NEW OFFICES IN 2023 MONTERREY, MEXICO

TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA

2023 Gives Back

$194,960

TOTAL EMPLOYEE AND COMPANY DONATIONS

3,513

TOTAL VOLUNTEER HOURS AT LOCAL EVENTS

190 GIVES BACK EVENTS

172 ORGANIZATIONS SUPPORTED

SCOPE 1

SCOPE 2

MTCO2E PURCHASED ELECTRICITY, NATURAL GAS FOR OFFICES

SCOPE 3 4,434 MTCO2E

RENTAL VEHICLES, AIR TRAVEL, EMPLOYEE-OWNED VEHICLES, AND EMPLOYEE COMMUTING

Women in the SWCA Workforce

2023 RANKINGS

EMPLOYEES IN 2023 (2022 = 1447) 14% INCREASE YOY (GROWTH) 100% POWERED BY RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY

OUR DIVERSITY (NON-WHITE) HIRES BY 16% OVER 2022

THROUGH TARGETED RECRUITING EFFORTS.

OUR 2023 RETENTION WAS 90% A 6% IMPROVEMENT FROM 2022.

RETENTION RATE OF WOMEN 90%

RETENTION RATE OF PEOPLE OF COLOR 90% 350 INTERNAL PROMOTIONS

Employee Engagement Survey

OF EMPLOYEES PARTAKE IN COMPANY HEALTH BENEFITS

1,646

Positive Impact Areas

In 2021, SWCA announced our alignment with the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs). The United Nations developed these goals as a shared blueprint for all countries to use to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure peace and prosperity.

In 2023, SWCA’s Sustainability Framework Steering Committee chose five SDGs that most closely align with SWCA’s purpose, our services, the markets we serve, and our people. We’ve adopted these five and made them our own, naming them our Positive Impact Areas, because we make a positive difference in these areas.

PRESERVE THE PAST AND PROTECT THE FUTURE

SWCA is dedicated to preserving and protecting communities. From cultural and historical sites to buildings and homes, to greenspace and the natural environment, we work with clients to build more resilient communities to withstand future disasters and the impacts of climate change. When natural disasters strike, we work on recovery projects to help the community and their residents rebuild their lives with an eye toward a more resilient future.

CONSERVE HABITAT

SWCA helps our clients conserve and enhance habitat and ecosystem functions in forests, grasslands, deserts, mountains, wetlands, rivers, and urban areas. Through our project work, we minimize and mitigate impacts, manage outcomes, restore degraded areas, and protect and preserve natural resources where possible. SWCA is committed to working with our clients to encourage the application of best practices as an integral part of their projects.

ADVANCE CLEAN ENERGY THROUGH RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT

SWCA works with clean energy providers, transmission companies, regulators, and landowners to responsibly identify, design, and permit projects that protect, restore, and conserve the surrounding habitat. We engage stakeholders and use our knowledge of the local environment to develop net positive impacts in clean energy projects. We are committed not only to mitigating impacts but also to improving habitat and promoting biodiversity.

PROTECT AND RESTORE WATER-RELATED ECOSYSTEMS

SWCA is committed to helping our clients integrate water resources management, identify creative solutions to mitigate the impacts of drought and erosion and protect water quality in streams, rivers, lakes, aquifers, and wetlands. Our goal is to maintain a healthy habitat for aquatic species while supporting critical water needs for communities.

CREATE AN ATMOSPHERE FOR WOMEN TO SUCCEED

SWCA endorses the United Nations’ Women’s Empowerment Principles. We are committed to empowering women to have an equal voice at all levels of the organization. We provide resources to ensure women feel safe in all areas of the workplace and have pay equity. Setting women up for success starts early in life. Through our Spreading the Science program, SWCA partners with programs to engage the next generation of women in STEM. (Our positive impacts for SDG5 are detailed in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion section)

Sustainability Framework

Conserve Habitat

Conserving and enhancing habitats and ecosystems is nothing new to SWCA. More than 43 years ago, Steve Carothers, SWCA’s founder, started the company with a National Park Service project to inventory the biological resources of the Colorado River corridor and assess impacts from the burgeoning river running industry. This work made important contributions to the understanding of the Colorado River ecosystem in the Grand Canyon and resources management in the park. We now work for many client project types in various geographies, but most of our projects still focus on habitats and species. We have worked with some species for so long that our knowledge of their behaviors is unsurpassed. For decades, our clients have been relying on us to bring them nature-based solutions.

REBUILDING THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER DELTA

The Louisiana Coastal Restoration Protection Authority (CPRA) has embarked on a $2+ billion program to rebuild the Mississippi River Delta by reconnecting the Mississippi River to its surrounding wetlands, creating vital habitat for wildlife, and providing a crucial storm surge buffer for coastal communities. This program, called the Mid-Basin Sediment Diversion Program, includes both the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion and the Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion projects. This is considered one of the largest single ecosystem restoration programs in U.S. history. SWCA provided senior technical support and review of diversion program processes, and strategic National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and environmental impact statement guidance. The team also assessed construction and operational effects of the design plan for the Mid-Breton project and developed the wetland resources technical report associated with the applicant provided information for the 3rd Party EIS process.

IN 2023 ALONE, SWCA DESIGNED THE RESTORATION FOR 29 PROJECTS IN 18 STATES:

459 ACRES OF WETLANDS

115,577 LINEAR FEET OF STREAM

Restoration implementation

far surpassed these numbers.

1,590 LINEAR FEET OF SHORELINE

HELPING ENERGY PRODUCTION AND WILDLIFE COEXIST

Established in 1886, the Babbitt Ranches span more than 700,000 acres near Flagstaff, Arizona. The ranches have a long history of raising cattle and quarter horses, which is still the case today. Babbitt Ranches

President Billy Cordasco strongly believes in the conservation of this land and prioritizing the lives of the wildlife that inhabit it, leading him to transform the ranches in numerous ways. Most notably, he pushed for renewable energy generation on the land because of both the financial benefits it would provide to the family business and the clean energy it would generate for the community, allowing developers to build six solar and wind projects.

SWCA has been working with the Babbitt Ranches for over 15 years on conservation projects and permitting these renewable projects. The team looks for ways to balance the energy needs with the species’ needs. Traditional techniques such as blading the land for solar projects is not permitted on the ranches. Instead, mowing preserves the soil and plants underneath, making revegetation in the future much easier. Solar panels arranged with corridors between them ensures that the movement of large wildlife, such as antelope, is not impeded. Even rabbits, a common food source for golden eagles that frequent the land, have been considered. Fences raised slightly off the ground around solar panels ensure that rabbits can still access the land, preventing population decline in this area and maintaining the stability of the eagles’ food source.

DESIGNING A RIPARIAN HABITAT CORRIDOR

SWCA developed a stream and wetland restoration design for Edgecomb Creek in Snohomish County, WA as part of on-site mitigation for our client’s commercial development project. The restoration of Edgecomb Creek will provide several improvements in stream ecological functions over the existing degraded stream channel. The restored stream channel will consist of a meandering channel connected to side channels and wetland habitats within a riparian corridor containing native forest, shrub, and emergent plant communities. Fish accessibility to the site and upstream reaches of Edgecomb Creek will be improved by the replacement of culverts blocked by sediment that currently act as partial fish passage barriers. The riparian habitat corridor will provide immediate and long-term benefits for salmonids and other fish through native plantings that will provide streambank stability, stream shading, stormwater filtration, and wood recruitment. The project will be monitored for 10 years to ensure that the stream corridor remains stable and continues to provide adequate ecological function both for the target salmonid species as well as other native aquatic fauna.

MANAGING INVASIVE PLANT SPECIES

Invasive species are one of the greatest threats to the integrity of natural communities and the survival of many indigenous species. The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation takes the threat seriously and engaged SWCA in the planning, permitting, and implementation of invasive plant species management at Mount Tom State Reservation, a prominent recreational area in the Connecticut River Valley. Mount Tom has many state-listed rare species on the property whose habitat is threatened by the growing number of invasive plant species at the reservation. SWCA developed a site-specific invasive plant species management plan aimed at eliminating the presence of invasive plant species from the reservation while protecting and preserving the state-listed rare species.

Advance Clean Energy through Responsible Development

The recent growth of renewable generation has been impressive, and SWCA has been in the middle of that growth. We value our role in the energy transition. In 2023 alone, we worked on well over 800 renewable energy projects. In fact, over 45% of our revenue comes from renewable generation projects and their associated transmission lines. From critical issues analysis to permitting, construction oversight, and postconstruction monitoring, our services are exactly what our clients need. We apply our natural, cultural, permitting, and visual resources expertise to potential renewable energy sites to assist our clients in making development decisions. Both generation and transmission projects have the potential to impact wildlife and their habitat. We work with our clients to identify those impacts and avoid them, if possible. If not possible, we identify mitigation measures. After the project is built, our work continues. We monitor the sites to monitor the postconstruction habitat and wildlife behaviors.

PROVIDING EQUITABLE ACCESS TO CLEAN ENERGY

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe made history when they created their own public power authority, the SAGE Development Authority, that allows the tribe to own and operate all energy production assets within the reservation. As a result, the tribe started work to develop a 235-megawatt (MW), 60-turbine wind farm named Anpetu Wi. SWCA was selected as the primary environmental consultant for the project due to our long history of related project work and strong partnerships between SWCA and tribal groups across the western United States. SWCA and SAGE have been working on extensive natural and cultural resources studies to identify and minimize potential environmental impacts associated with the development of this wind farm. The work on the Anpetu Wi wind farm will serve as the single largest revenue source for Standing Rock, helping to advance equitable access to clean energy, reducing regional dependence on fossil fuels, and bringing new jobs opportunities to the region.

WHEN OPERATIONAL, OUR PERMITTING AND CONSTRUCTION OVERSIGHT WORK FOR RENEWABLE GENERATION PROJECTS IN 2023 ARE ANTICIPATED TO GENERATE 16 GW OF ELECTRICITY

ENOUGH ELECTRICITY TO POWER 11.2M HOMES FOR A YEAR.

Avoiding

16 million metric tons of CO2 emissions.

FULFILLING AMBITIOUS CLEAN ENERGY GOALS

Rhode Island and Connecticut have extremely ambitious clean energy goals. An offshore wind project aims to help both Connecticut and Rhode Island meet their goals in an affordable way. When operational, the Revolution Wind project will generate 704 MW of clean, renewable energy. It will provide 304 MW to Connecticut and 400 MW to Rhode Island. The 65 wind turbines located approximately 24 kilometers off the coast of Rhode Island will generate enough electricity to power over 250,00 homes. In 2023, the Revolution Wind project’s construction and operations plan received approval from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the National Marine Fisheries Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. SWCA supported this project in numerous ways, including developing the NEPA environmental impact statement, which assessed all possible impacts across 17 alternatives, including impacts to air quality, bats, birds, marine mammals, fishing, coastal habitat and fauna, environmental justice, cultural resources, visual resources, water quality, and more. We also held scoping and consultation meetings.

ANALYZING ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS

SWCA is preparing an environmental impact report under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to analyze the environmental effects of the Soda Mountain Solar Project. The project consists of a 300-MW photovoltaic solar facility with a 300-MW battery energy storage system and related facilities on approximately 2,670 acres of land administered by the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the unincorporated portion of San Bernardino County, California, along Interstate 15. The applicant applied to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for an Incidental Take Permit for the desert tortoise and will apply for a Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement.

To support the current environmental impact report, SWCA prepared the following technical reports: air quality and greenhouse gas report, aquatic resources delineation report, cultural resources report, noise report, paleontological resources report, Phase I Environmental Site Assessment, stormwater drainage report, transportation analysis, visual resources report, and water supply assessment.

AVOIDING AND MINIMIZING THE IMPACTS OF A WIND PROJECT

Since 2009, SWCA has worked closely with Power Company of Wyoming (PCW) to characterize environmental resources and develop a project design to avoid and minimize potential natural and cultural resources impacts of the 3,000-MW Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project (CCSM). As the primary environmental consultant for the CCSM Project, SWCA has provided a range of environmental services, including characterizing environmental baseline conditions, preparing permits and applications at the local, state, and federal levels, providing expert witness services at permit hearings, developing reclamation strategies, implementing conservation and mitigation commitments, and developing and implementing construction compliance plans. Innovative technological approaches were used to efficiently collect detailed eagle monitoring data, which allowed for streamlined comprehensive analysis. Comprehensive cultural resources surveys were also performed.

Preserve the Past and Protect the Future

Communities have a dual responsibility to their residents: treasure their history and safeguard their future. However, many times, a community’s history is literally buried and unknown until a new transportation, housing, or other type of project unearths artifacts revealing a community of long ago. This is when SWCA gets involved. As one of the largest cultural resources consulting firms in the country, SWCA has the archaeologists required to “dig into” the past and reconstruct it.

For many communities, the future is uncertain. Climate-related events are becoming more common, and communities in more areas of the United States need to develop resiliency plans for wildfires, hurricanes, floods, and sea level rise. Disasters that used to be infrequent and unforeseen now require planning. When an event does occur, community resources are needed to help residents recover.

SWCA works with communities across the country to develop resiliency plans for climate-driven events, and we are there to help communities recover when an event occurs.

PRESERVING HISTORY ON THE LLANO RIVER

The Llano River, located in west-central Texas Hill Country, is a site where prehistoric peoples camped and thrived on the adjacent river terraces due to the plentiful resources found there. The development of a new bridge to cross the river prompted the Texas Department of Transportation to reach out to long-standing partner SWCA to mitigate impacts of the bridge through an innovative archaeological investigation. A team of experienced Texas archaeologists was assembled to tackle the complex site issues. Using geoarchaeology and mapping techniques, the team was able to gain insight into the daily lives of these prehistoric peoples, even uncovering the various occupations they may have had. These discoveries are critical to protecting the culture and rich history of those who lived there. Despite the site’s fragmented nature, SWCA’s creative data recovery excavations revealed and recorded incredible details of prehistoric life along the river for thousands of years, which would have been otherwise lost but are now preserved for the next generation.

OVER THE PAST 25 YEARS, SWCA HAS COMPLETED

259

wildfire protections

plans, post-fire plans, hazard assessments/fuels plans, plan compliance projects, and educational and outreach programs IN 32 STATES.

HELPING HOMEOWNERS RECOVER FROM DISASTER

Hurricanes Maria and Irma impacted hundreds of single-family homeowners in Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rico Department of Housing (PRDOH), with U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) funding, developed a variety of programs to help these homeowners recover and increase resilience to future disasters. One such program provides direct assistance to single-family homeowners, most of them low- to moderate-income households, for installing photovoltaic solar panels with battery backup and water storage systems. This work will allow these homes to have emergency power and water if municipal utilities are interrupted. SWCA is assisting over 400 homeowners by providing PRDOH with the required environmental review documentation needed to fulfill HUD’s documentation requirements. Navigating this complex web of regulations is one of SWCA’s specialties, and the team is proud to provide our expertise to fulfill PRDOH’s objective of providing resilient housing to disadvantaged residents.

SWCA’s team members include NEPA document and quality assurance specialists, architectural historians for Section 106 National Historic Preservation Act compliance, on-island site inspectors, and geographic information system (GIS) specialists. SWCA also hired two Puerto Rico–based small businesses to assist with the site inspection and data gathering process.

ASSISTING THE PASCUA YAQUI TRIBE WITH RESILIENCY PLANNING

The Pascua Yaqui Tribe is a federally recognized tribe with a rich history and cultural heritage tied to the land and environment. The tribe faces a wide range of challenges related to climate change and environmental hazards. These hazards can drastically impact their cultural heritage and economic livelihood. SWCA assisted the tribe with technical planning support related to tribal resilience efforts. After gathering relevant data from an array of sources, SWCA used scientific analysis, review of local climate and hazard mitigation, GIS mapping, and more to determine the climate risks the tribe may face in the future. This information, along with firsthand accounts detailing climate issues members of the tribe faced, was used to create a comprehensive hazard and needs assessment with actionable project ideas. This will allow the tribe to effectively meet its future resiliency and climate planning goals.

NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS PROTECT A SHORELINE

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) partnered with SWCA to help restore and stabilize a particularly vulnerable portion of the highway using nature-based solutions. After a devastating hurricane season in 2018, NCDOT identified a section of North Carolina shoreline that could become unstable in the likely event of a future hurricane. This also meant that the roadway would become unsafe for residential evacuation. NCDOT partnered with SWCA to implement resiliency measures, including the creation of a living shoreline. Living shorelines are a nature-based approach to bolster coastal areas that are susceptible to erosion and are often made of vegetation or other natural materials. They can self-repair with little maintenance and provide added benefits such as natural habitat creation, increased biodiversity, and improved water quality. With the project’s completion, the community can feel secure knowing that the living shoreline will provide them with more resilient, accessible infrastructure in the event of future natural disasters. This project earned the Climate Change Business Journal Project Merit Award in the Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience category.

Protect and Restore Water-Related Ecosystems

The water quality and quantity in our freshwater streams, rivers, wetlands, and lakes are being impacted by climate change, human-made structures, development, and other factors. This affects aquatic species, riparian habitat, and humans. Much of the project work we perform is restoring freshwater ecosystems such as wetlands, rivers, aquifers, streams, and lakes. This type of work dates to the early years of SWCA when we studied the downstream impacts of Glen Canyon Dam on the native fish population in the Colorado River. More than 40 years later, we are still working on the Colorado River (see our latest Colorado River project in the Water section). Beyond our project work, we volunteer our time to clean up waterways in our communities. Last year

RESTORING THE SCHWARTZ CREEK FLOODPLAIN

we not only volunteered our time, but we also donated to the River Network. The River Network’s mission is to grow and strengthen a transformational national network of water, justice, and river advocates. The organization envisions a powerful and inclusive movement that ensures abundant clean water for all people and nature to thrive.

As part of our commitment to “spread the science,” Dr. Erica Gaddis, an SWCA Senior Natural Resources Director, has authored sections and served as chair for several United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) publications. She has been helping to further the understanding of water-related ecosystems as they relate to the SDGs and SDG 6 in particular.

SWCA has partnered with the American Conservation Experience (ACE) on the design and permitting of many restoration projects over the past several years. One such project is the restoration of Schwartz Creek, located on the Snyder-swetik Wetland Reserve Program conservation easement property in Latah County, Idaho. The goal of this project is to restore the riparian buffer and provide bank stabilization along Schwartz Creek where needed; reconnect the floodplain to restore the functional attributes that support the physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the creek; and restore the hydrology to the floodplain by reconnecting tributaries. By restoring the floodplain for Schwartz Creek, SWCA and ACE seek to convert existing agricultural fields to a wet meadow habitat to improve and increase aquatic and riparian habitat, specifically as it pertains to the existing native Snake River steelhead trout and American beaver populations. SWCA is also conducting the wetland delineation and revegetation planning components of this project.

By restoring the floodplain for Schwartz Creek, SWCA and ACE seek to convert existing agricultural fields to a wet meadow habitat to improve and increase aquatic and riparian habitat

IMPROVING MOAPA DACE SPAWNING HABITAT

Moapa dace is a critically endangered minnow that survives in only one place in the world: the Muddy River headwaters in southeastern Nevada. The upper parts of the Muddy River and the warm springs that give rise to the river are just the right temperature and turbidity for these fish to live a long life of 8 years. However, several barriers to dace passage on the Pedersen Springbrook blocked access to spawning habitat, including a pipe culvert, a concrete drop structure, the U.S. Geological Survey gaging station Parshall flume, and fast flow in this steep Springbrook channel. Removing these barriers and slowing down the flow velocity were essential to the species’ survival. This required careful design of a new step-pool channel and natural-bottom culvert replacement. SWCA provided the restoration design and permitting for the desert spring outflow channel and the natural-bottom culvert to allow for Moapa dace passage.

RESTORING A CONTAMINATED CREEK

Historic industrial activity has left once natural sites throughout the country abandoned and contaminated. This was the case for multiple sites throughout the town of Stratford, Connecticut. One such site, Ferry Creek, was in the process of being remediated in the fall of 2022. SWCA became involved with the project throughout the winter of 2022 and the spring of 2023 to develop a final restoration plan for multiple clients. The plan included installing biodegradable, wildlife-safe coir matting, live staking (inserting dormant but live wood cuttings) and planting native seeds throughout the newly reconstructed floodway to revegetate, control erosion, and stabilize the soil. In addition to the floodway stabilization, SWCA created a tree and shrub planting plan for the south bank of the creek, which will provide the dual benefits of increasing wildlife habitat and beautifying the landscape for businesses on that side of the creek. The site will be fully planted and restored in the spring of 2024.

PROVIDING ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION FOR CARMEL RIVER FLOODPLAIN

The Carmel River in California has been prone to flooding due to years of agricultural activities, land development, and storm erosion. With the help of a wide variety of stakeholders, the Carmel River was given a chance at habitat and floodplain restoration through the Rancho Cañada Restoration Project. One of these stakeholders, the California State Coastal Conservancy, brought on SWCA and McBain Associates to partner on redesigning a 1-mile area of the river. The innovative design will lower the floodplain by as much as 15 feet, and refuges will be created with back channels and overhanging banks for endangered species like the steelhead trout. In addition, the Rumsen Ohlone Tribal Community consulted with SWCA regarding native plant species important to their heritage, identifying those they most wanted to see repopulate in the area and highlighting the cultural significance of this restoration work. SWCA’s work on this project will allow nearby communities to benefit from reduced flood risks, groundwater recharge, and new educational and recreational experiences.

INTRODUCTION

Sustainability and Management Consulting

In 2023, SWCA established a Sustainability and Management Consulting (SMC) service line through the acquisition of ALO Advisors (ALO). In addition to adding a new service line and 20 professionals, SWCA became an international company with this acquisition. Our footprint includes full time staff in the United States, Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal, and Sweden, as well as network partners located in more than 50 other countries around the world. SWCA is now a global sustainability leader, furthering the company’s commitment to impactful, business-aligned environmental stewardship.

SMC’s expertise, sector presence, and geographic coverage provides our clients with a full-service offering in the environmental and sustainability space. The consulting group has a prominent position with multinational corporations looking to implement sustainability in a different way and is working with companies to develop sustainability strategies that are compatible with other business needs and drivers. SMC specializes in helping clients not only design, but also deploy sustainability strategies, initiatives, and investments, all aimed at creating business value while fostering positive environmental and social outcomes.

SWCA is now a global sustainability leader, furthering the company’s commitment to impactful, businessaligned environmental stewardship.

ENABLING MEANINGFUL AND LASTING IMPACT

Through our global network, we involve the right subject matter experts from initial design and collaboration through execution, to ensure the sustainability benefits will last.

RETURN ON SUSTAINABILITY INVESTMENT (ROSI TM ) FRAMEWORK

IMPROVE

EMBED

When Companies embed sustainability risks and opportunties into their strategy and decision-making process they...

DRIVE

DELIVER

Management

Sustainability Drivers of Finance Performance & Competitive Advantage

The SMC team at SWCA has grown both in the United States and worldwide, leveraging a network of affiliates in over 50 COUNTRIES.

The former ALO, in partnership with the New York University Stern Center for Sustainable Business, helped pioneer the Return on Sustainability Investment (ROSI) model, which allows corporations to monetize the full value of investments in sustainability initiatives. While SMC applies this expertise and many other offerings effectively across client sectors and geographies, SWCA executes on the strategies by turning them into project implementations that produce positive environmental and social impacts. This team guides clients from strategic planning to execution, overseeing the entire process from investment to realizing positive returns.

NEW SERVICE AREAS

SUSTAINABLE STRATEGY AND PLANS

DECARBONIZATION INVESTMENT

CIRCULARITY

WATER SECURITY

COLLECTIVE ACTION FACILITATION

CLIENT TYPES

SUSTAINABLE AND RESILIENT SUPPLY CHAINS

NATURE-POSITIVE SOLUTIONS

REPORTING AND STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS

RISK AND OPPORTUNITY ANALYSIS

PEOPLE

Working together, we’re able to have a greater impact in our communities, within our company, and for our clients.

EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SURVEY RESULTS

A Culture of Ownership and Engagement

A company’s culture can be hard to define. It grows out of shared values, commitments, goals, attitudes, and practices. Over the years, SWCA has consciously spent time and effort to define our purpose, values, and goals. We reinforce these every day through our actions and our words to help people feel connected. Our ownership structure also reinforces our “sense of belonging” culture. SWCA is 100% owned by our employees and has been for over 23 years. Our founder is still very active in the company, which helps keep our cherished history alive. This ownership structure and strong tie to the company’s origins creates a culture that sets us apart in our industry. We don’t take this exceptional culture for granted. We take every opportunity to celebrate it. One such way is through our Employee Stars Program. This program recognizes and celebrates individuals who exemplify the attitudes and behaviors of employee ownership at SWCA. Employees nominate fellow employees for these awards, which raises awareness of those qualities that make an owner a star.

Our culture is also strengthened by our shared commitment to our project work and our clients’ success. Our purpose defines why we exist. It connects us to each other, to the environment, and to our clients’ projects.

Our culture is strengthened by our shared commitment to our project work and our clients’ success.

EXCEPTIONAL ENGAGEMENT SCORES

Employee feedback is highly valued and acted upon at SWCA. We obtain feedback through a variety of means on an ongoing basis, but every 18 months, we conduct a formal employee engagement survey, including our latest in the fall of 2023. As with the previous surveys, we partnered with Burke, Inc., an outside research and consulting firm, to conduct the survey. The purpose of the survey is to provide a structured way for employees to provide feedback and input and for leadership to assess employee engagement. Using the same outside firm allows us to compare the results to previous survey results and track progress over time to identify SWCA’s strengths in employee engagement as well as improvement opportunities. All responses are anonymous to SWCA as Burke handles all data confidentiality.

Overall, the results were very positive and consistent with results from our last survey in the spring of 2022. The engagement score did not change from 2022, remaining at 80%. This is 3 percentage points higher than the normative data Burke provided from other company surveys. We had an 81% response rate, slightly down from 2022’s rate of 84%. Supervisors at SWCA are exceptional, scoring between 89% and 93% on all management-related questions. Overall satisfaction with SWCA increased 2 percentage points to 88%. The lowest-rated questions were tied to compensation and respondents’ understanding of the ESOP and its benefit to employees. As always, we learn from both the low and high scores. We address the low scores through gaining an understanding of the factors behind the scores and developing programs to address the factors.

SWCA CONTINUES TO EARN COMPARABLY AWARDS

SWCA earned nine Comparably Awards in 2023. New awards include Best CEO, Best Company Perks & Benefits, and Best Company Happiness. We are proud of these Comparably Awards because the workplace culture platform awards honors based on anonymous employee ratings.

The ESOP ethos produces a caring and collaborative culture, and directly influences how SWCA’s senior leadership makes investment decisions in growing all our employee-owners.This includes commitments to staff development, training, conference attendance, and an ability to make longerterm decisions to retain employees when times get tough.”

ERIC FAJER TALENT ACQUISITION DIRECTOR | ESOP COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE MEMBER

WORKING HOW WE WORK BEST

SWCA has long embraced a flexible, hybrid work model that gives employees the option to either be fully distributed, work a hybrid schedule spending time at home and at an SWCA office, work at the office every day, or work primarily in the field. This model increases employee satisfaction, and with 44% of employees working from home, fewer of our employees are driving to work and contributing to carbon emissions.

Retirement Benefits

Employee ownership offers many benefits to our employees. Our inclusive and collaborative ownership culture is experienced by our employees every day, but one of the greatest benefits of employee ownership is not realized until retirement: the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Every SWCA regular-status employee is eligible to enter the ESOP and reap its financial rewards. We are proud that SWCA’s shareholders are our employees and that SWCA is 100% employee owned.

In 2023, we changed the plan to increase the number of plan entry dates per year and reduce the initial plan eligibility requirements, which enables employees to enter the plan earlier. With the large number of new employees hired in the last 2 years, roughly 53% of our employees are plan participants. That percentage will increase in 2024 with the increased number of plan entry dates. The benefit of the ESOP can’t be overstated. The ability to grow a retirement account at no cost to the employees is a benefit that few firms in our industry offer, and the yearly stock contribution is higher than

the typical 401(k) match in our industry. SWCA’s share price growth has averaged 20% a year for the past five years. The longer employees stay with SWCA, the larger their accounts grow without any contribution on their part.

To help our employees understand the details of the ESOP benefit, we partnered with Certified EO (EO stands for Employee Owned) to help communicate the intricacies of the plan. Our membership with Certified EO allows us to access their library of educational materials and other resources. An educational piece is distributed each month to the entire company.

The ESOP is not the only retirement benefit we offer our employees. We also offer a 401(k) and a Roth 401(k). We have a participation rate of over 60% in our 401(k) program.

Beyond the savings vehicles, we offer free financial advisory services through CAPTRUST to help our employees plan, save, invest, and retire comfortably. CAPTRUST offers personalized advice as well as webinars for all employees to attend.

Every SWCA regular-status employee is eligible to enter the ESOP and reap its financial rewards.

2024 GOALS

COMMUNICATION PLAN

Develop a communication plan to increase leadership’s understanding of how employee ownership impacts employee satisfaction and productivity.

ONBOARDING PROGRAM

Develop and implement a new onboarding program to educate new employees on the benefits of employee ownership.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The 2023 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion action plan (DEI) included measures to create a more inclusive culture, increase talent diversity, to strive for more equity across SWCA, and to give back to our communities. At SWCA, all new hires are assigned harassment prevention training, and all regular status new hires are assigned Unconscious Bias training. With support from the Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), SWCA Staff, People Team, SWCA Leadership, and the Board, our commitment to DEI continues to grow deep and strong. Our core values of Never Settle, Always Learning, Gives Back, and One SWCA support our efforts by guiding how we all show up at work.

Culture

INCLUSION

TALENT DIVERSITY

In 2023, we increased our diversity (non-White) hires by 16% over 2022 through targeted recruiting efforts. SWCA’s hiring of women continues to exceed industry averages by a healthy margin, where around 55% of 2023 hires were women, reflecting our overall percentage of women staff companywide. We intend to continue this trend to further diversify our employee population.

Supporting our diversity hiring and embodying our commitment to advancing young professionals in STEM, we hired 36 interns nationally in 2023, primarily biologists, archaeologists, planners, human resources professionals, and other corporate employees. Internships involve working on SWCA client or internal projects (e.g., fieldwork, data analysis, report writing). Over the 3 years of SWCA’s intern program, we have converted over 50% of the interns into entry-level positions. We are anticipating 45 new intern positions in 2024.

NUMBER OF INTERNS

NUMBER OF INTERNS HIRED AFTER PROGRAM

PERCENTAGE OF FEMALE, PERCENTAGE OF NONBINARY (ADDED NONBINARY AS AN OPTION TO THE 2023 INTERN SURVEY)

PERCENTAGE UNDERREPRESENTED

PERCENTAGE OF MILITARY VETERAN

EMPLOYEE DIVERSITY

EMPLOYEE BREAKDOWN

PERCENT OF HIRES IN 2023

PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN IN WORKFORCE

LEADERSHIP ROLES HELD BY WOMEN

2024 GOALS

REACH UNDERPRIVILEGED YOUTH

Implement a companywide Gives Back campaign to benefit underprivileged youth.

STANDARDIZE JOB DESCRIPTIONS

Standardize job descriptions and job posting templates with minimum requirements across all levels.

COMPETITIVE PAY

Create externally competitive pay ranges.

TALENT ACQUISITION TRAINING

Train the Talent Acquisition Team and hiring managers on bias in interviewing to keep inclusion and diversity top of mind during the hiring process.

SWCA created a culture that would attract women, a culture of inclusion, belonging, and equality where women feel valued and heard.

SENIOR LEADERSHIP ROLES HELD BY WOMEN

INCLUSION AND BELONGING

Understanding that all employees don’t celebrate the same holidays, we allocated a floating holiday for employees to use for any holiday that is not a company-recognized holiday. We also allocated 1 paid hour per month for all employees to use for ERGsponsored meetings and events. Additional highlights include:

• Launched an Early Career ERG in 2023, bringing the total number of ERGs to 14.

• Added executive sponsors for 12 ERGs; the executive sponsors meet with ERG leads to understand the needs and challenges of the ERG and provide mentorship and guidance. They help bridge the gap between company leadership and their ERG to advocate for the ERG and ensure strategic alignment between the ERG goals and business goals.

• Implemented 12 inclusion and diversity theme months and 10 inclusion moments to help raise awareness of the difficulties our employees and their communities face and how we all can increase inclusion.

• Created training videos for three ERGs based on their own personal experiences.

• Hosted three ERG panel discussion events with over 300 participants.

• Delivered four SupportLinc emotional support webinars with over 100 participants.

EMPLOYEE RESOURCE GROUPS ICONOGRAPHY

GIVING BACK TO UNDERREPRESENTED POPULATIONS

The 2023 DEI action plan also included tying our efforts to our Gives Back program, with a goal to direct 30% of our total impact to underrepresented populations. Our analysis shows we contributed $62,502 to houselessness, food security, disadvantaged youth, and disaster relief. This accounted for 32% of SWCA’s total impact. If we include our contributions to women’s causes, the value increases to 33.5%.

Our inclusion and diversity themed months introduced an avenue to give back to charitable organizations selected by each ERG. During the themed month, SWCA matched employee donations to the ERG-designated nonprofit. In 2023, more than $10,000 was donated to these ERG charitable organizations.

Compensation equity was a focus in 2023. We implemented pay ranges for all jobs, established guidelines for pay decisions that align with our compensation philosophy and created a cadence for ongoing compensation reviews.”

JUDY COOPER

TOTAL REWARDS VICE PRESIDENT

Create an Atmosphere for Women to Succeed

As stated earlier in the report, SDG 5 is one of SWCA’s SDGs of focus. We believe we can and do make a positive impact to gender equality through our actions. Women are equally represented in our organization, which is not a claim many firms in our industry can make. SWCA has made a concerted effort to attract women to our company, and it has taken years to promote and hire enough women in the company to bring an equal balance of women and men (women now account for 55% of our workforce). The first step was to create a culture that would attract women, a culture of inclusion, belonging, and equality where women feel valued and heard. This commitment came from our Board of Directors and CEO and was reinforced at every level, from training courses to leading by example. It is clear to every employee that our CEO recognizes, and rewards talented people based on results, not on gender, color, or ethnicity.

To further the culture of inclusion, we created a Women of SWCA ERG whose purpose is to promote, elevate, and actively connect women across the company in a safe and shared space, regardless of geography or job title. Our intent is to empower SWCA women as a fully supported, positive, and powerful team within the company by providing them with resources and discussion around diversity, inclusion, gender, self awareness, and ways to manage societal pressure.

This ERG is very active with 114 members across SWCA. The members meet twice a month, have an ongoing chat, and celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day. The Women ERG also selected Equity Now as its sponsored charity. Equality Now was founded to work for the protection and promotion of the human rights of women around the world.

We also take action outside of SWCA. We understand that increasing the pool of women to hire begins with attracting girls and young women to the field. Part of our Spreading the Science program is focused on educating girls and young women about the sciences and possible careers in the field.

In 2023, we held 17 events focused on this type of education, from giving talks in kindergarten classrooms to giving lectures in college classes. Through our Gives Back program, our employees also donate to nonprofits such as Girlstart and Supporting Women in Science, which encourage girls and women to enter scientific fields.

Recruiting & Retaining Talent

RECRUITING SUCCESSES

In 2023, SWCA experienced exceptional growth. We hired more than 600 staff, with approximately one-third of those being temporary field technicians. This hiring flow emulates 2022 and is over 40% higher than the most active hiring year before COVID, underscoring SWCA’s growth.

Hiring results can be attributed to market growth, especially SWCA’s environmental and cultural compliance support of renewable energy and climate resilience. In addition, our commitment to flexible work environments, such as hybrid and distributed (remote) work arrangements, and our transparent inclusion of salary ranges on all our job postings, also likely improved hiring results.

SWCA also made a conscious effort to promote internally rather than default to external hires. We promoted 350 individuals and converted over 30 temporary staff to full-time positions. For the most senior levels in the company, internal promotions increased to more than 60% of the available openings, the vast majority of these filled competitively.

SWCA’s recruiting team focuses on incorporating best practices throughout the posting and selection process, seeking to eliminate bias in decision making and create a hiring process that is fair, equitable, and consistent. This involves employing effective, non-biased interview questions, leveraging hiring committees, and focusing the selection process on the work to be done in each job and competencybased skills, rather than arbitrary educational and experiential requirements that may not be aligned with the effective performance of the essential functions of a job.

We made a conscious effort to promote internally rather than default to external hires, resulting in 350 promotions in 2023.

RETENTION IMPROVEMENTS

Compared to 2022, 2023 retention rates significantly improved across all categories. Overall, our 2023 retention was 90%, a 6% improvement from 2022. Retention of women and people of color, at 90% each, also increased, reflecting similar improvement percentages compared with those of 2022.

Factors that account for retention improvements include:

• Increased investment in people-centered supervisor training (“Level Up” described below).

• Increased emphasis on internal promotions.

• The continued maturity of our affinity-based ERGs, including those for women, caregivers, people of color, veterans, and mental health support.

• High overall employee-engagement scores with the transparent presentation of results companywide and on an office-by-office basis.

• Implementation of company improvements based on staff feedback at all levels. One example was the creation of a new floating holiday to account for the different spiritual and religious commitments of our staff.

• Emphasis on company wellness at the highest levels of the organization, and the use of flexible

“wellness” days so individuals can recharge and care for loved ones.

• A proactive effort to increase salaries to fair levels while ensuring that staff are paid based on their contributions and performance, rather than other factors or biases.

• Workload sharing across the organization so individuals are more productive and worry less about whether there is adequate future work. SWCA staff typically produce 30% of their work for offices other than their own.

• Implementation of new measures to improve the experience of field staff while ensuring that their voices are included to improve fieldwork quality, safety, and enjoyment. In 2024, this will be an area of increased companywide emphasis.

• SWCA’s commitment to flexible work environments, including allowing staff to move from full-time to part-time depending on personal life needs.

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT | JENNY STOKOWSKI

Over the past nine years, Jenny Stokowski has served in a variety of roles at SWCA. She started her career path in 2015 as a temporary employee working as a Cultural Resources Specialist/GIS Technician. Soon she took on the Senior Administrative Assistant position, then GIS Specialist, a Lab Manager, a Project Manager, then a Team Lead. Her career continued to grow, and in 2023 she was promoted to Program Management Director. When reflecting on her time at SWCA, Jenny highlighted the immense support she felt from the company. She was encouraged to pursue internal roles where she could best utilize her many skills and unique professional background. Jenny also acknowledged the role that company culture played in her long-lasting career at SWCA. She truly believes that SWCA puts employees first and adapts policies, benefits, and priorities based on employee engagement surveys and employee feedback, ensuring that everyone feels heard.

Employee Development

SWCA’s robust Employee Development program aligns with our Always Learning and Never Settle core values. We make significant investments in the development of our people through several training and development programs. From formal training to on-the-job training, SWCA employees averaged 43 hours of training in 2023.

• We continue to invest in our award-winning Career Development program, the Career Landscape. The Career Landscape provides a litany of resources to support our staff as they navigate their unique career paths. A key element of the program is our formal performance check-in process which prioritizes delivering robust feedback twice per year. In 2023, 95% of SWCA regular-status employees received their performance check-ins.

• SWCA has made a significant investment in the Level Up leadership development program, which focuses on best practices in leadership. Nearly 200 SWCA leaders completed the multi-day, in-person Level Up workshop in 2023. Eighty-five percent of attendees indicated Level Up has had a significant or extreme impact on their performance as a leader. The retention of SWCA employees who have attended Level Up has been over 95%, and turnover within the individual teams of program graduates has been down over 33%.

• SWCA maintains and develops the Always Learning Lab, a repository of web-based training content available for all employees. The Always Learning Lab contains developmental content supporting the Career Landscape, corporate values, and behavior competencies the company has identified are most highly correlated with professional success at SWCA.

• Beyond internal training, SWCA encourages employees to pursue external formal educational and developmental activities. Our tuition reimbursement program gives employees the financial support to pursue a degree or other educational undertakings to further their development.

SWCA has seen significant returns on our employee development investments. The percentage of leadership vacancies filled by internal candidates increased from 48% in 2022 to 63% in 2023. The percentage of projectlevel roles filled by internal candidates increased from 48% to 64% during this same period. SWCA also converted record numbers of temporary-status employees to regular-status roles.

The percentage of leadership vacancies filled by internal candidates increased from 48% in 2022 to 63% in 2023.

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT | JESSICA BRINTON-MCBEAN

I decided to go back to school for my master’s degree back in 2021 after working at SWCA for about 5 years. It was something I had wanted to pursue, but the timing just never seemed to align. I wasn’t sure it made sense to leave my job to go back to school when I was really seeking career growth in my current profession, and I already enjoyed my job at SWCA. I learned about an online program at Colorado State University that would allow me to pursue my masters in Rangeland Management and Ecology while continuing to work full time. SWCA’s Educational Assistance Program supported me all the way through my degree, and I am now getting ready to graduate in the spring with zero student loans. I am so incredibly grateful for the support of SWCA and my colleagues while I achieved this lifelong goal!

SWCA’s Educational Assistance Program supported me all the way through my degree, and I am now getting ready to graduate in the spring with zero student loans.”

JESSICA BRINTON-MCBEAN NATURAL RESOURCES TEAM LEAD

2024 GOALS

LEAP LEVEL UP

Deliver 10 LEAP Level Up leadership training sessions.

PROJECT MANAGER SUPPORT

Design and deliver learning and development to support SWCA’s project managers.

Health Benefits

At SWCA, we understand that compensation is one of many benefits that an employee receives from the workplace. In addition to compensation, our Total Rewards program encompasses health, wellness, retirement, and work/life balance benefits. We are committed to providing industry-leading, affordable, and diverse benefit programs that support and reinforce a healthy work/life balance. As a result of benchmarking, employee feedback, and working closely with our benefits providers, we improve our benefits program every year. In 2023, we added to and expanded our health benefits.

• To bolster our mental health program, we expanded access to mental health care by covering out-of-network mental health office visits at the in-network benefit level.

• SWCA expanded internationally in 2023. With that expansion came the need to develop a global Total Rewards strategic plan to integrate a global employee base into the SWCA programs.

• To increase awareness of our health benefits program and help employees make informed benefit decisions, we added monthly live benefit presentations.

84%

OF EMPLOYEES PARTAKE IN COMPANY HEALTH BENEFITS.

SWCA CONTINUES TO COVER AT LEAST 80% OF TOTAL COSTS FOR ALL MEDICAL PLANS.

OUR PPO PLANS ARE 52% LESS EXPENSIVE FOR INDIVIDUALS AND EQUAL TO OR LESS FAMILIES COMPARED TO NATIONAL AVERAGES.

OUR HIGH DEDUCTIBLE HEALTH PLANS ARE 90% LESS EXPENSIVE FOR INDIVIDUALS AND AT LEAST 8% LESS EXPENSIVE FOR FAMILIES COMPARED TO NATIONAL AVERAGES.

SWCA HAS A 40% HIGHER HSA EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTION THAN OTHER COMPANIES IN OUR INDUSTRY.

SWCA OFFERS BOTH PAID PARENTAL AND PAID FAMILY LEAVE TO ALL EMPLOYEES, WHEREAS ONLY 20% OF EMPLOYERS

OF SIMILAR SIZE OFFER THESE BENEFITS (BASED ON THE 2022 DISABILITY MANAGEMENT EMPLOYER COALITION REPORT).

Wellness

The well-being of our employees and their families is important to SWCA, and to our employees. Our holistic wellness program recognizes our diverse needs and focuses on the total health of an individual, thereby helping them grow, prosper, and flourish. SWCA’s Wellness Program, Thrive, encompasses five dimensions: emotional, environmental, financial, physical, and social. For the past several years, SWCA has offered the Cigna MotivateMe program to Cigna members. The program has been quite successful; however, to be more inclusive we wanted to extend the wellness offerings to all employees and offer programs beyond the physical aspect of wellness. In 2023, SWCA selected Burnalong, a digital health and wellness platform that offers a diverse range of well-being classes, inclusive challenges, and social motivation.

2023 PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

• Collaborated with the Safety Team to create the “Surviving or Thriving” Safety Kickoff meetings, which focused on mental health awareness.

• Teamed up with the Inclusion and Diversity Group to host four SupportLinc emotional support webinars.

• Hosted mental health first aid training.

• Hosted the annual fitness challenge. We had 40 teams involved, which amounted to 833,354 total minutes of activity. The 406 participants on the teams became quite competitive.

• Published quarterly preventive care reminders including those for men’s and women’s health, cancer screening kits, and diabetes retinal exam.

• Implemented a Financial Wellness program that includes free financial advisement and quarterly educational webinars.

• Enhanced our SupportLinc Employee Assistance Program by adding an addiction care navigator.

EMPLOYEE TESTIMONIAL | RHETT RAIBLEY, STAFF BIOLOGIST

I could not be happier with the wellness programs offered by SWCA. From physical health to mental health and beyond, SWCA’s selection of programs is top notch. As a former college athlete, I know that physical and mental health are both equally imperative to the success of a person, and I am glad that I have so many options at SWCA to help maintain my wellness as I perform work in both the field and office. Along with that, I would have never thought that a workplace would care enough about overall wellness of employees to offer the social, financial, and environmental wellness opportunities that are currently offered on top of physical and mental opportunities. I enjoy how some of these wellness opportunities allow for friendly competition between offices or individuals as well. Over the course of the past few years’ annual fitness challenges, I received numerous messages from fellow employees, some of whom I have not met in person, encouraging me to keep it up. That type of camaraderie was very helpful in keeping me going during the challenges and reflects a healthy culture that I am happy to be a part of. When the opportunities that are offered are taken advantage of, I am a firm believer that SWCA has offered a recipe for success.

Our Science Leadership Program

SWCA created the Science Leadership Program (SLP) to provide a structured way for technical experts within SWCA to receive recognition for their achievements and support their career growth. The SLP offers professional development opportunities, such as encouraging members to present their research. This helps members learn how to effectively communicate research to a wide variety of audiences, which is critical to maintaining our professional credibility. Members of the program make scientific advancements, develop innovative solutions for clients, and promote the technically focused culture of the company.

Practice groups serve as a channel to inform practitioners of relevant regulation changes within the field, ensuring employees have up-to-date information needed to complete their work.

PRACTICE GROUPS

One core component of the SLP is our practice groups. The program includes 25 technical practice groups, each with a distinct focus. When technical staff are onboarded, they are sent information on each practice group and are automatically added to the group that aligns with their expertise. These groups provide a collaborative space to exchange best practices, project insights, and in-depth resources. Participants have a variety of opportunities available through these groups, such as attending office hours and brown bag presentations. The office hours serve as an opportunity for employees to share insights on relevant project work in technical areas and as an open forum for questions and discussion. The brown bag presentations

encourage cross-fertilization between disciplines and offices throughout the company and allow members to share knowledge and business tips.

Fostering collaboration within technical areas is just one of the practice groups’ purposes. They also serve as a channel to inform practitioners of relevant regulation changes within the field, ensuring employees have up-to-date information needed to complete their work. Through their involvement in these groups, employees can also identify leaders in the company who can act as informal mentors as they embark on their career journeys. Having a mentor can accelerate career growth and support employees navigating work situations.

PRACTICE GROUPS

BIOLOGY

CEQA

CONSTRUCTION

COMPLIANCE

CULTURAL RESOURCES

ENGINEERING

FERC NATURAL GAS

FIELD

FIRE AND FORESTRY

GIS

HISTORIC PRESERVATION

HYDROPOWER

INCIDENT RESPONSE

LAND DEVELOPMENT

MARINE RESOURCES

NATIVE COMMUNITIES

PALEONTOLOGY

PHASE I ESA

PLANNING

PROJECT ACCOUNTING

PROJECT MANAGEMENT

REMOTE SENSING

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

STATISTICS

VISUAL RESOURCES

WATER

PUBLICATION INCENTIVE PROGRAM

SWCA strives to recognize and reward the exceptional work of our scientists and technical staff. Our Publication Incentive Program rewards employees for publishing research that is relevant to their technical discipline. Several types of publications are eligible for SWCA’s bonus incentive such as trade journals, book reviews, peer-reviewed local/regional journals, and more, which allows a wider variety of employees to participate. By providing recognition, we motivate employees to remain ambitious in their research and share the knowledge they have gained with their scientific and technical communities.

UNIVERSITY WORK

To strengthen local connections, as well as share scientific knowledge more widely, numerous leaders involved with the SLP have connected with local universities and colleges. Many of our scientists and staff hold adjunct faculty positions or are guest lecturers at universities across the United States. Establishing these relationships with higher education institutions allows us to increase our early career staff pipeline and give back to the growing group of young scientists entering the workforce.

PLANET

Sustainability lies at the core of SWCA, serving as the guiding principle that drives our actions, decisions, and solutions, striking a harmonious balance between human activities and the health of our planet.

Environmental Sustainability Efforts

2023 was another successful year in SWCA’s sustainability journey. Externally, we continued to address the growing impact of climate change to ecosystems through the development of sound strategies like resiliency planning, community engagement, and nature-based solutions. Combining our scientific expertise and creative approach helps us provide clients with sustainable solutions that make business sense.

Through SWCA’s Sustainability and Management Consulting group, we also support organizations in tracking their corporate carbon footprints and design action plans to reach emissions reduction targets. This process requires large-volume data analysis, carbon accounting skills, and engagement with internal teams to understand key sources of emissions. Collaboration

with decision-makers is critical in identifying decarbonization opportunities and estimating their costs and required investments. We offer significant value to our clients through these types of projects by helping them close process gaps, understand carbon-related data, and work toward their reduction plans, while also considering the associated business implications.

Our internal structure includes three committees that develop and implement our various sustainability efforts: the Sustainability Framework Steering Committee, the Environmental Sustainability Committee, and the Green Team Network. Each has a unique role to play in making sustainable changes through engagement, shared goals, and innovative ideas.

THE SUSTAINABILITY BADGE PROGRAM

The Sustainability Badge program, introduced in 2022, expanded in 2023. This program encourages offices to achieve sustainability goals locally and provides a way to track progress toward goals. The badges are organized into topic groups that cover a range of sustainability issues. The topic areas are fleet, fieldwork, purchasing, waste, energy, water, green team, and education. In 2023, 80% of offices had earned at least one badge, demonstrating high engagement levels and program success. In 2024, we will work to

provide offices and Green Team representatives with the tools needed to obtain more of these badges. To do so, the Environmental Sustainability Committee will select a handful of badges that they believe will have the greatest impact on the achievement of company sustainability goals. These “priority” badges will be communicated to Green Team representatives with the expectation that offices attain them in 2024.

Growth in Badge Program

DARING TO BE GREENER AWARD

2023 was the inaugural year for the Daring to be Greener Award, developed by the Environmental Sustainability Committee. This award will be given out annually to the office that best embodies SWCA’s environmental sustainability mindset. This is demonstrated by the office setting and achieving sustainability goals through earning badges and implementing companywide goals. The award is based on several criteria. Most notably, it is based on the total number and difficulty rating of badges earned during the year. Each badge has a point value based on the level of effort and commitment involved in achieving it. We are proud to announce that the Amherst office received this award for 2023. The Amherst office gained 132 points and earned 21 badges, signaling their commitment to the program and to furthering sustainability at SWCA.

RATING SYSTEMS

In 2023, SWCA was assessed by two rating systems: ISNet and Ecovadis. These rating systems provide a clear way for us and our clients to understand our yearly progress toward sustainability. ISNet evaluates progress in areas like health, safety, quality, cybersecurity, and ESG. Ecovadis is a robust sustainability rating system that assesses companies based on environmental, labor and human rights, ethics, and sustainable procurement practices.

NEW COMPANYWIDE POLICIES AND GUIDELINES

Several companywide policies and guidelines were developed and rolled out in 2023:

SWCA Sustainability Policy

The Sustainability Framework Steering Committee developed a formal, companywide policy that addresses SWCA’s commitment to sustainability regarding project work, people, partnerships, and operations.

Sustainable Procurement Policy

The Sustainable Procurement Policy addresses procurement throughout the company and encourages staff at SWCA to source office supplies, company branded apparel, and equipment from vendors who align with our sustainability goals. More specifically, these goals include reducing our reliance on nonrenewable or environmentally harmful materials and working with suppliers who adhere to fair labor practices and comprehensive human rights policies.

Sustainable Travel Pledge

The Sustainable Travel Pledge, created by the Environmental Sustainability Committee, targets

employees that frequently travel. Each year, these employees are asked to commit to using alternative transportation when possible, conserving energy and water in hotels, and traveling with a reusable water bottle to reduce single-use plastic waste; among other sustainable actions.

Sustainable Event Guidance

The Sustainable Event Guidance provides information on embodying a sustainable mindset when planning various types of events. It includes sustainable practices for offices to look for, or request, in hotels, venues, and caterers and how to reduce water and waste consumption. Additionally, it provides ideas on how to make travel, procurement, and event marketing eco-friendly.

Energy Star Policy

SWCA’s Energy Star Policy requires all new purchases of large appliances in our offices be certified through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star program. To reduce unnecessary waste, the policy only applies when our offices are looking to replace an existing, non-functional appliance or when needing to purchase a new appliance.

THE UNITED NATIONS GLOBAL COMPACT PARTICIPATION

In July, SWCA joined the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), a voluntary leadership platform for the development, implementation, and disclosure of responsible business practices. As a member, we committed to aligning our operations with 10 universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment, and anticorruption, and act in support of United Nations’ goals and issues embodied in the SDGs.

2024 GOALS

BADGES

Ensure that all offices attain “priority” badges.

SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES

Encourage sustainable practices for distributed employees.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

METHODOLOGY

In 2023, Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions were calculated in accordance with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard. We obtain detailed information on company-owned vehicles, ATVs, and boats from accounting reports to use in the calculation of Scope 1 emissions. SWCA has 41 leased office spaces, 19 of which are in multi-tenant buildings without individual meters. In calculating Scope 2 emissions, when meter data is not available, electricity usage is calculated based on the average use per square foot in the region where the SWCA office is located. Scope 2 does not include the energy used by distributed employees because home offices are not under SWCA’s operational control. For Scope 3, we track miles for rental vehicles and employee-owned vehicles used for business travel through accounting reports. We use surveys and expense reports to track commuter and air miles.

DATA INTEGRITY

Scope 2 emissions decreased in 2023 for two reasons. First, in our previous greenhouse gas inventories a conversion error resulted in overreporting of emissions from natural gas. This error was corrected in 2023, causing emissions from natural gas to decrease significantly. From 2022 to 2023, the total square footage of our offices increased 0.5% but our emissions from purchased electricity still decreased. In addition, even though total electricity usage increased in 2023, our emissions from purchased electricity were lower than in 2022. This is attributed to less eGRID output emissions rates for carbon dioxide, ammonium, and nitrous oxide, which fluctuate on an annual basis due to changes in the resource mix (the generation percentage from each fuel type) and the addition of more “clean” energy sources to the grid.

Scope 3 emissions increased in 2023 because we began tracking business air travel data through SWCA’s expense software, allowing us to capture more accurate mileage information. In the past, we collected this information through a voluntary survey sent to employees at the end of the year. By using this new method of data collection, we were able to obtain approximately 75% of our total air miles traveled. Reworking our data collection process led to an increase in the amount of data collected, resulting in a significantly higher number of air miles compared to 2022. In addition, we used a targeted survey to gather detailed information on employee commuters. As a result, the commuter response rate increased from 84% in 2022 to 88% in 2023. With a commitment to reporting the most accurate information, we will continue to find ways to improve our data collection process.

2024 GOALS

RENT ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Rent electric or hybrid vehicles for business use when suitable.

FLEXIBLE WORK MODEL

Continue to use the flexible work model to reduce emissions from commuting.

OFFICE MOVES

Consider aspects of sustainability when an office is moving and leasing a new space.

PURCHASE ELECTRIC VEHICLES

Purchase electric or hybrid vehicles when feasible.

Emissions Over the Last 3 Years

Energy Use

ENERGY REDUCTION STRATEGIES

Buildings are one of the largest contributors to global emissions due to the amount of energy used to cool, heat, and light them. Most of our offices are leased spaces in multi-tenant buildings, leaving us little control over energy reduction in these spaces. However, we do look for ways to reduce the energy use that is within our control and encourage our employees to consider their actions. Our Sustainability Badge program includes six badges related to energy reduction:

SWCA is looking at transitioning our offices to renewable energy where possible. This transition will also allow us to reduce utility costs in the long term. To make this switch, we are assessing the renewable energy options and programs available to individual offices through their electric providers.

In 2023, we purchased a total of 1,511 megawatts in RECs to offset the total electricity consumed in our offices.

ENERGY USE EFFICIENCY AND RENEWABLE ENERGY CERTIFICATES

In 2023, SWCA started tracking Energy Use Intensity (EUI) at the company. The EUI in 2023 was 31.02 kBTU/square foot. We will continue to track this number on an annual basis, which will allow us to see trends and provide a better understanding of our companywide energy use year to year.

SWCA is committed to offsetting our impact through the purchase of renewable energy certificates (RECs). In 2023, we purchased a total of 1,511 megawatts in RECs to offset the total electricity consumed in our offices. This means that 85% of the energy used in our offices comes from renewable sources.

EXTERNAL IMPACT

Renewable energy generation has become increasingly popular over the years as our society recognizes the growing need to transition away from fossil fuels to prevent climate change. Using renewables can help reduce greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere and decrease pollution, making them a more sustainable alternative to traditional energy sources. At SWCA, we recognize just how important this is. We work on many projects related to renewable energy generation and transmission, including onshore and offshore wind, solar, hydropower, and more. Our services include conducting preliminary analysis and technical studies, permitting support, and postconstruction monitoring to ensure stewardship and regulatory compliance. The work we do in the energy sector is something we value at SWCA, and we are proud to be a part of the transition toward a cleaner future.

PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

NEW YORK

LONG ISLAND CONNECTICUT

RHODE ISLAND

TOTAL NUMBER OF ENERGYRELATED BADGES

NUMBER OF ENERGY-RELATED BADGES EARNED IN 2023 4

NUMBER OF OFFICES THAT EARNED ENERGYRELATED BADGES IN 2023

OFFICE ENERGY USE

TOTAL SQUARE FOOTAGE OF OFFICES (SQ. FEET)

SOUTH FORK WIND

New York’s South Fork Wind recently became the first utility-scale offshore wind farm in federal waters to deliver power to the United Sates. As the third-party NEPA consultant, SWCA led the preparation of an environmental impact statement to assist in making this proposed project a reality. Located more than 30 miles off the coast of New York, two of the 12 turbines have been constructed so far. Once complete, South Fork Wind will generate approximately 130 megawatts of clean energy, enough to power 70,000 homes and meet the energy needs of East Hampton, Long Island. SWCA began assisting the Bureau of Ocean Management with the NEPA process on the South Fork Wind project in 2018. We provided agency coordination, facilitated public meetings, supported consultation for Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Action and Section 7 of the Environmental Species Act, and prepared the draft and final environmental impact statement. SWCA’s multidisciplinary team involved specialists in air quality, water resources, environmental species, visual resources, and public involvement and stakeholder engagement.

194,855

TOTAL ANNUAL ENERGY USE (MMBTU/YEAR) 6,943.97

EUI (KBTUS/SQAURE FOOT/YEAR) 31.02

TOTAL KILOWATT HOURS 1,510,715

2024 GOAL

RENEWABLE ENERGY

Secure electricity for offices from renewable sources, where available.

Waste Reduction

The waste the world produces not only contributes to pollution and degradation of ecosystems but can also increase overall greenhouse gas emissions. With exorbitant amounts of waste piling up in landfills, SWCA recognizes the urgency of addressing this issue. Internally, we stress the importance of waste reduction and diversion and ensure our employees have access to the resources and information needed to implement waste reduction practices. Through our Sustainability and Management Consulting practice, we also help our clients adopt principles of a Circular Economy to minimize their impact on the environment.

Through the Sustainability Badge program, local offices promote recycling, composting, and a waste-reduction culture.

OFFICE WASTE

In 2022, all SWCA offices committed to ending single-use plastic purchases and switching to plastic-free alternatives such as bamboo or compostable sugar cane fibers. Through the Sustainability Badge program, local offices promote recycling, composting, and a waste-reduction culture. As of 2023, there are seven badges related to office waste, and more than 67 badges have been awarded to 20 SWCA offices.

The seven badges are:

Understanding that much of SWCA’s office waste is generated through used technology equipment, our technology department partnered with two recycling nonprofits to dispose of our outdated equipment. In collaboration with PCs for People, a non-governmental organization that collects used computers and distributes them to low-income individuals and organizations, more than 2,200 pounds of SWCA’s outdated and used computers were identified and donated. In 2023, we partnered with Human-I-T, a nonprofit organization that provides used devices, internet access, and digital skills training for vulnerable communities. This added partnership diverted almost 2,000 pounds of used equipment, empowering low-income families.

FIELD WASTE

In addition to the badges that address waste reduction in the office, SWCA has also developed badges for its fieldwork. As of 2023, there are two badges related to waste:

NUMBER OF WASTERELATED BADGES EARNED IN 2023

NUMBER OF OFFICES THAT EARNED WASTE-RELATED BADGES IN 2023

Client Waste Solutions

COLLECTIVE ACTION

As public support for waste management policies continues to grow, Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and PostConsumer Recycled (PCR) content initiatives, are driving recycling efforts and advancing across the U.S. These laws are more common in regions like Europe and North America. EPR refers to the environmental policy approach in which the responsibility for managing post-consumer packaging collection and recycling is transferred onto producers.

2024 GOALS RECYCLING

100% of the offices have a recycling program in place by the end of 2024.

COMPOSTING

50% of offices have a composting program by 2025.

In addition to this growing pressure, petroleum-based and related products packaging are classified as undesired waste by traditional waste collection structures due to the contamination caused by the residual liquid product left on their waste management equipment. Addressing this industry wide challenge requires collaboration from stakeholders across the value chain. SWCA is the Program Administrator of the National

Lubricant Container Recycling Coalition (NLCRC). The NLCRC is an industry-led coalition that engages with brand owners, packagers, recyclers, and waste haulers to accelerate cost-effective solutions for the recovery and recycling of packaging for petroleum-based and related products. This is becoming necessary for companies to avoid public scrutiny, maintain reputational value, and proactively navigate legislative action that could lead to value chain disruption. Some of the NLCRC’s activities and objectives are:

• To conduct legislative monitoring regarding EPR in the United States.

• To promote research and development in circular solutions for petroleumbased and related products.

• To develop tools and communications for Best Practices sharing with members of the value chain and other interested parties.

The NLCRC represents a compelling opportunity to develop a true market-level circular business model that relies on the collaboration of all stakeholders within the value chain.”

ATLANTA LUBRICANT CONTAINER RECYCLING PILOT

In the spring of 2022, the NLCRC launched a collaborative collection and recycling program that focused on consumer plastic packaging for engine oil and other petroleum-based products.

The pilot had a 21-month duration and involved more than 40 locations in Atlanta, including retail stores, auto care centers, and a community collection center. It is estimated that the project contributed to the reduction of more than 11,000 pounds of waste.

This project was fundamental in assessing the economic benefit of post-consumer recovery and recycling, as well as studying consumer waste disposal behaviors to facilitate future scalability.

TRISTAN STEICHEN DIRECTOR AT THE NLCRC AND SERVICE LINE DIRECTOR AT SWCA

Water

OFFICE WATER REDUCTION

As water scarcity continues to become a larger global issue, companies have an important role to play in conservation and other solutions. SWCA recognizes this and works diligently to tackle water-related issues both internally and externally. Internally, we address this issue at the local level wherever possible through the Sustainability Badge program. We have three sustainability badges related to water. Two badges are awarded to those offices with water-saving toilets and faucets, reducing the overall water consumption in offices. One badge addresses drinking water. Offices earn this badge by installing a water cooler. This provides our employees with access to filtered drinking water while helping reduce plastic waste by eliminating single-use water bottles.

WATER BADGES

TOTAL NUMBER OF WATERRELATED BADGES

NUMBER OF OFFICES THAT EARNED WATER-RELATED BADGES IN 2023

NUMBER OF WATERRELATED BADGES EARNED IN 2023

CLIENT WATER SOLUTIONS

Through our project work, we improve water quality and help manage water quantity, restore wetlands, advise companies on how to reduce their water consumption, and conduct water risk assessments among other water services. SWCA’s Sustainability and Management Consulting group helps our clients address water stewardship through various projects that create value across the globe.

SOURCE VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS

Manufacturing companies use Source Vulnerability Assessments (SVAs) to evaluate risks and opportunities related to water supply, quality, availability, and compliance, among other topics. SWCA develops these assessments to help our clients understand the water resources in their key regions of operation and the impact their operations have on water resources. In 2023, SVAs were conducted for 17 production facilities of multiple global brewing and bottling companies across six countries. We worked with these companies to identify more than 170 vulnerabilities in their operations and 80 opportunities for better water management. These findings are key to incorporating more sustainable waterrelated practices in their operations, which will have a positive effect on the environment and local communities.

RISK/RESILIENCE ASSESSMENTS

We help our clients assess the potential impact of climate change on their operations through the evaluation of different plausible scenarios. For companies in the agricultural sector, for example, unreliable weather conditions, such as changing patterns of precipitation, affect crop yields and operational performance. Water risk assessments were conducted to identify regions exposed to an elevated risk of drought and water stress to show the associated business consequences of these events. Furthermore, we complement this assessment by estimating the financial implications of inaction.

COLLECTIVE WATERSHED MANAGEMENT

To achieve water security, intersectoral collaboration is needed. We support our clients by building organizations that promote financial and governance mechanisms to deploy nature-based solutions and promote the sustainable management of watersheds. These organizations operate through a long-term conservation model in which funds or resources are assigned to conduct research, restoration, preservation, and resilience-building activities. Its main purpose is to contribute to the better governance of water resources, using a science-based approach to find solutions that address a city’s water security. We also support land managers to promote healthy watersheds.

Project Spotlights

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

In 2023, SWCA developed a water stewardship and replenishment assessment for Gap Inc. focusing on a cotton-growing region in India. The project identified the key water vulnerabilities, the root cause of these vulnerabilities, and the right mitigation action. In addition, the team found and engaged potential partners to carry out the tasks to deploy a replenishment project.

For such assessments, the vulnerabilities and root causes were identified using satellite imagery combined with auxiliary data. To help identify potential partners with a proven record of operating in the field, SWCA used artificial intelligence, specifically natural language processing, the branch of artificial intelligence that gives computers the ability to understand text. Factors that contributed to success or failure were 1) strategic use of technology, 2) engagement with like-minded organizations, and 3) persistence.

2024 GOALS WATER TRACKING

Track water consumption in offices with water meters.

RAIN GARDEN

Investigate rain garden development in our communities as a way to offset our water use.

ANALYZING IMPACTS ON THE COLORADO RIVER BASIN

With the water levels in Lake Mead and Lake Powell dropping, operating plans for the coordination of the two reservoirs are crucial for managing the water resources in the Colorado River basin. SWCA is involved with three National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) processes that analyze the impact of the various operating plans. The Interim Guidelines Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) is focused on near-term actions (2023-2026). The SEIS includes planning, developing, and executing the tasks and strategies necessary to successfully accomplish the environmental activities for the continued coordination of Lake Powell and Lake Mead. The Long-Term Experimental Monitoring Program SEIS will develop and analyze potential operation alternatives at Glen Canyon that may serve to disrupt spawning of smallmouth bass and other warmwater invasive fish that pass through the dam pursuant to NEPA. The Colorado

River Operations Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) Post-2026 will develop and analyze future operations at Lake Powell and Lake Mead (post-2026 operations) to develop long-term strategies for Colorado River operations while simultaneously addressing current drought conditions and preparing for possible low run-off and low reservoir conditions. This process analyzes and documents all relevant impacts, conditions and issues associated with the proposed action and its alternatives; public review processes; and coordination with Mexico. SWCA is assisting with the analysis of significant environmental issues resulting from the proposed action and its alternatives in the EIS and is managing the public involvement tasks and supporting Bureau of Reclamation with tribal engagement. Read about SWCA’s past work in the Colorado River basin here.

SWCA is involved with three National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) processes on the Colorado River that analyze the impact of the various operating plans.

Sustainable Procurement

Sustainable procurement practices should address more than carbon footprints. SWCA’s sustainable procurement practices also include ethical sourcing and fair labor rights within the value chain. In 2023, we formalized our sustainable procurement practices by developing a Sustainable Procurement Policy that emphasizes the importance of these practices and outlines purchasing parameters like ensuring materials are recycled/sustainable, ethically sourced, or locally sourced.

In addition to our policy, we affect change through our Sustainability Badge program. Sustainable purchasing is one of the topic areas included within this program, with 12 sustainable procurement-related badges:

The badges encourage our office leaders to make small switches to eco-friendly items. Examples include changing to tree-free items like toilet paper or tissues, using reusable dishware in the breakrooms, and buying reusable and compostable coffee pods. Even these small swaps can make a difference when it comes to reducing waste, protecting ecosystems, and ensuring the fair treatment of workers. The badges serve as a constant reminder for our offices to think more intently about their purchasing decisions.

When adding items to the SWCA store, an online platform where we provide clothing and other items to our employees, we always keep sustainability in mind. We do this by ensuring that these items are made from recycled or eco-friendly materials. We also assess our suppliers to guarantee that any new items are ethically sourced.”

LUIGI LEONE SENIOR MARKETING SPECIALIST

PROCUREMENT BADGES

TOTAL NUMBER OF PROCUREMENT-RELATED BADGES

33

NUMBER OF PROCUREMENTRELATED BADGES EARNED IN 2023 15

NUMBER OF OFFICES THAT EARNED PROCUREMENT-RELATED BADGES IN 2023

2024 GOALS

SUSTAINABILITY REQUIREMENTS

Include environmental sustainability requirements in subcontractor contracts.

SUSTAINABILITY QUESTIONS

Include sustainability questions in the subcontractor prequalification.

PARTNERSHIPS

We build strong relationships with our clients, communities, teaming partners and stakeholders to create an environment of trust and comradery. These partnerships increase our positive impacts.

Strong Client Relationships

SWCA’s partnerships with clients are core to our business. More than 40% of our current clients have been partnering with us for at least 5 years. And when our clients succeed, we succeed.

For clients working with multiple project managers across SWCA’s regions, we started assigning client managers in 2012 and client technical managers in 2021 to ensure coordinated communications and consistent, high-quality service. This approach resulted in 55% growth in business with these clients over a 5-year period. Over that same 5-year period, the publicly traded clients experienced an average 51% rate of return for their shareholders.

We take great care to ensure that all clients’ expectations are met, from the private homeowner to the Fortune 100 client. Since 2014, we’ve had a formal client feedback program that solicits key client satisfaction data from active clients. In 2023, we increased the number of formal client responses 134% while maintaining a highly favorable 97.6% client satisfaction rate. We also improved our Net Promoter Score, a metric indicative of client loyalty, by 12 points from a 73 in 2022 to an 85 in 2023.

Sales Growth with Key Clients 2019-2023

We take great care to ensure that all clients’ expectations are met, from the private homeowner to the Fortune 100 client.

Giving Back

SWCA’s formal Gives Back program was established over 10 years ago with the mission of supporting the places where we live, work, and play by donating to and participating in an array of community service projects. Although Gives Back is a national program, most of the impact is seen at the local level with each office organizing events that benefit local causes. Therefore, success of the national program is highly dependent on local office participation. Ten years into the program, SWCA’s commitment to giving back has never been stronger. In fact, Gives Back is one of SWCA’s four core values.

Through a matching grants program, company-sponsored Gives Back hours for all employees, a companywide campaign, and Call to Action events, SWCA’s total impact was $194,960 in 2023. Causes with the highest impact were food security, environmental stewardship, disadvantaged youth, and disaster relief/recovery. The map on pages 62 and 63 displays the 75 environmental stewardship events held in 2023.

SWCA offices collectively held over 190 events logging more than 3,513 volunteer hours.

SPRING INTO ACTION CAMPAIGN

Each year, SWCA chooses a national cause to support and organizes a companywide Gives Back campaign. In partnership with SWCA’s Green Team Network, the Spring into Action campaign promoted environmental stewardship through local volunteer efforts, such as cleanups, trail maintenance, and planting trees, along with donations to local and national environmental organizations. The campaign ran throughout the month of April, aligning with Earth Day and Arbor Day. SWCA offices collectively held over 45 events logging more than 500 volunteer hours. Through matching employee volunteer hours and donations, this campaign had a total impact of $12,000. SWCA’s matching donation was split between two national organizations, Ecosystem Restoration Camps and the River Network.

MAUI CALL TO ACTION

When the Maui fires struck, our Hawaii employees requested a companywide Call to Action to raise funds for the victims of the fire. SWCA and our employees responded with donations totaling $33,370. SWCA further helped Maui by donating our advanced satellite imaging services after the Maui fires. These imaging services assisted local and federal disaster relief agencies in preparing post-fire damage assessments.

THE 2023 EILEEN FAGAN CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS AWARD

The office Gives Back programs are led by a Local Office Champion (LOC). Understanding that the success of an office’s Gives Back program highly depends on the dedication and passion of the LOC, the Gives Back Committee created an award for LOCs. New in 2023, the Eileen Fagan Champion of Champions Award recognizes the LOC that went above and beyond to develop and implement an office program that created a positive impact for their local community.

Kendall Duncan is the first recipient of this award. Kendall has been a LOC since the inception of the Gives Back program. Year after year, Kendall has been a strong leader and advocate for giving by creating numerous events and ongoing relationships with Austin nonprofits. Her leadership has helped the Austin office win two Have a Heart Awards (in 2015 and 2022). The Austin office consistently scores high in the Have a Heart Award competition. In 2023, through Kendall’s leadership, the Austin office held 12 Gives Back events.

2024 GOALS

IMPACT

Generate a total impact of $220,000.

DENVER OFFICE EARNS THE 2023 HAVE A HEART AWARD

EVENTS

Hold 40 environmental stewardship events.

Each year, SWCA recognizes and rewards an office that best exemplifies the giving spirit of the Gives Back program with the “Have a Heart Award.” In 2023, the Denver office earned this award due to their strong commitment to giving back in their community. The office held more than 14 Gives Back events and volunteered over 227 hours. They raised over $1,513 in donations and, with the company matching, had a financial impact of well over $3,000. As impressive as those numbers are, the Denver office also organized several events with other offices, which helped to broaden and deepen the impact. The nonprofits that benefitted from the Denver office’s efforts include Wildland Restoration Volunteers, Denver Public Schools Foundation, Colorado Children’s Hospital, Denver Animal Shelter, and Mile High Youth Corps. The office even donated a used truck to Colorado Public Radio.

GIVES BACK METRICS

Environmental Stewardship

A record number of environmental stewardship events took place in 2023, in part due to the Spring into Action campaign, which encouraged offices to organize stewardship events with SWCA matching employee volunteer hours with financial donations. In total, we organized 75 environmental stewardship events in 2023.

Spreading the Science

We believe in sharing the knowledge we gain through our research, project work, education, and experience with communities outside of SWCA. This goal is to further the collective understanding of the environment including species, habitat, cultural resources, restoration, and water. In 2018, SWCA formalized the Spreading the Science program with the mission of conducting and cultivating environmental education efforts for both youth and adults in our communities and beyond. We volunteer our time at schools, environmental education events, science fairs, nature festivals, and science-based nonprofits. SWCA supports these efforts through paid Gives Back hours that employees receive and through donations to the organizations where they volunteer.

ERICA GADDIS’ WORK WITH THE UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME (UNEP)

UNEP is the leading global authority on the environment. Its mission is to inspire, inform, and enable nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of future generations.

UNEP is driving transformational change by drilling down on the root causes of the triple planetary crisis: climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.

SWCA’s Dr. Erica Gaddis served as the chair of the UNEP report Measuring Progress: Environment and the SDGs in 2023. This biannual report series summarizes global progress on the environmental dimensions of the SDGs. In addition, Erica has been working with UNEP on the freshwater chapters of the Global Environment

Outlook (GEO) series since 2005. The GEO series is the flagship publication for UNEP occurring on a 5-year cycle to keep the state of the global environment under review and identify innovative policy solutions. In GEO-6, Erica contributed to a focused analysis on the Colorado River high-flow experiments and resulting adaptive management strategies. Erica is currently serving as one of two coordinating lead authors for the freshwater chapter of GEO-7, which focuses on the global state and trends of freshwater systems including intersections with the triple planetary crises. SWCA is supporting Erica’s time participating in GEO-7 as part of our commitment to ESG.

We believe in sharing the knowledge we gain through our research, project work, education, and experience with communities outside of SWCA.

A CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY PARTNERSHIP

John Dietler, a Senior Vice President at SWCA, has served on the Dean’s Advisory Board for the College of Natural and Social Sciences at California State University Los Angeles since 2018, forging a powerful relationship between SWCA and the University.

Through formal recruiting efforts, guest lectures and panels, and information-sharing between SWCA employees and professors, John and other employees in SWCA’s Pasadena office have been able to create deep connections with faculty members and expose many students to environmental career options. This partnership provides SWCA with a direct tie to

a large and relatively untapped talent pool while providing opportunities to students from diverse backgrounds – 92% of students at the school are Hispanic, Asian, Black, American Indian, Pacific Islander, or another non-white background, and 55% of students are the first in their family to go to college. This is especially important in a field that historically has been less diverse than others. The bonds created here will only continue to grow stronger in the coming years, helping to spread the word about and create a positive narrative around an overlooked career path.

TEACHING WATERSHED AND CONSERVATION PRINCIPLES

SWCA’s Half Moon Bay office partnered with Abundant Grace and Potrero Nuevo Farm to assist with a harvest. Abundant Grace assists the homeless and disadvantaged population in Half Moon Bay, and part of that help comes through a partnership with Potrero Nuevo Farm. The farm donates use of its land, harvest support, seed, farm equipment, and other materials to Abundant Grace Coastside Worker, which feeds low-income and unhoused populations. Through Abundant Grace, Potrero Nuevo hires unhoused individuals and others who are struggling and trains them in organic farming techniques and land conservation practices. Twenty-three of Half Moon Bay’s office staff assisted Potrero Nuevo through sharing ideas for teaching watershed and conservation principles. In addition, we shared information about the Drought Resiliency project the Half Moon Bay office is initiating through the local Resource Conservation District.

GOVERNANCE

As an employee-owned company, we are committed to growing our business in a sustainable way for our current and future shareholders (employees).

A Solid Structure

As an employee-owned company, we are committed to growing our business in a sustainable way for our current and future shareholders (employees). As the company grows, the Board of Directors and Executive Leadership Team analyze and evaluate the company structure to ensure it is right for the size of the company. With the strong growth we have seen over the past few years, our Board and CEO decided to scale SWCA’s organizational structure. In 2023, three new C-Suite positions were created and filled: Chief Delivery Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and a Global Strategic Management Officer to lead the new Sustainability and Management Consulting Division. Adding these three positions strengthens the top-level decision making and brings much needed leadership at the highest ranks in the organization.

CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

SWCA’s Board of Directors (Board) and senior leadership are responsible for the stewardship of our company. In 2017, we moved to having four external and four internal Board members. This approach strengthened our governance and increased thought diversity. Over the past 10 years, the Board also diversified in gender and is now 38% female. The diverse backgrounds of our Board provide us with a wealth of experience to draw upon to guide SWCA into the future and continue to provide value to our employees, clients, and the environment. The Board has been instrumental in supporting SWCA with our strategic planning approach during periods of growth and through challenging times such as the pandemic.

The Board has four committees, all of which are focused on governance. The committees work on risk management, Board succession planning and diversity, CEO performance evaluation, total rewards and compensation, growth and acquisition strategy, and SWCA’s sustainability from a financial and environmental perspective. The Board and committees meet quarterly. However, the committees may meet more often when needed. The Board also attends educational sessions to learn more about our industry, SWCA projects and services, or other items such as technology, AI, cybersecurity, and risk.

SWCA Board

GAYLE ROBERTS

BOARD CHAIR, COMPENSATION/ ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN COMMITTEE

CHAIR, EXTERNAL DIRECTOR

BOB WILSON

EXTERNAL DIRECTOR

DR. LAURA HUENNEKE

EXTERNAL DIRECTOR

RICK ADAM

AUDIT AND COMPLIANCE COMMITTEE CHAIR, EXTERNAL DIRECTOR

DR. STEVE CAROTHERS FOUNDER, INTERNAL DIRECTOR

JOSEPH J FLUDER III

VICE CHAIR, MERGERS AND ACQUISITION COMMITTEE CHAIR, INTERNAL DIRECTOR

DENIS HENRY

NOMINATING AND GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE CHAIR, INTERNAL DIRECTOR

NORMA CRUMBLEY

INTERNAL DIRECTOR

SWCA C-Suite

JOSEPH J FLUDER III

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER & PRESIDENT

DENIS HENRY

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER & EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, INTERNAL DIRECTOR

BOB KROEGER

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

DEBORAH OWENS

CHIEF PEOPLE OFFICER

SCOTT SLESSMAN

CHIEF GROWTH OFFICER

NORMA CRUMBLEY

CHIEF DELIVERY OFFICER

ROBERT KLOEPFER

GLOBAL STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT OFFICER

LINDA LANNEN

CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER

EMBEDDING SUSTAINABILITY

SWCA has three committees focused on sustainability. The Sustainability Framework Steering Committee is composed of our CEO, Chief People Officer, Global Strategic Management Officer, Technical Services Vice President, and Sustainability Technical Director. This committee develops the company’s sustainability strategy and works with the Board on overall direction. Sustainability is a standing agenda item for the board meetings with sustainability progress reported to the Board each quarter.

The Environmental Sustainability Committee consists of employee representatives from across the company and, taking direction from the Sustainability Framework Steering Committee, develops the sustainability goals for operations. Structure was added

to the Environmental Sustainability Committee in 2023 and will be further developed in 2024. Eight subcommittees were formalized to address environmental sustainability efforts in the offices and field. Each subcommittee is tasked with helping the offices earn badges and developing sustainability goals in their respective areas.

Finally, the Green Team Network is made up of local office employees that take direction from the Environmental Sustainability Committee but have the flexibility to set and tackle their own sustainability goals, while also implementing companywide initiatives at the local level.

These three committees work together to embed sustainability in SWCA at all levels.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE

EDUCATION FLEET

Eight subcommittees were formalized to address environmental sustainability efforts in the offices and field.

Ethics, Conduct, and Human Rights

SWCA has a comprehensive Code of Ethics that all employees review and sign as a part of onboarding and are expected to abide by in their daily work.

THE CODE OF ETHICS COVERS THE FOLLOWING TOPICS:

ANTI-CORRUPTION AND ANTI-BRIBERY

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

CONFIDENTIALITY

INSIDER TRADING

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT

DISCRIMINATION AND HARASSMENT

HUMAN TRAFFICKING

HEALTH AND SAFETY

POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS

GIFTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

REPORTING REQUIREMENT

To report actions that violate SWCA values or policies, employees have access to an Ethics Hotline. This is a confidential and anonymous resource whereby any concerns or violations can be promptly reported.

2024 GOALS

CODE OF ETHICS TRAINING

Implement mandatory Code of Ethics Training for all employees.

REQUIRED TRAINING

SWCA offers employees an extensive library of recorded training courses. Most courses are voluntary, although some are mandatory. Discrimination, harassment, unconscious bias, safety, and cybersecurity courses are all mandatory. In 2024, we plan to develop and roll out mandatory Code of Ethics training.

Safety By Choice Not by Accident

The safety of our employees is paramount. As such, our Safety Team is continuously improving our safety program and tools. One tool is our Safety Incident Reporting Emergency Notification (SiREN) app. As our emergency notification system, SiREN is vital to our safety program. In 2023, we upgraded the app to make it much more intuitive and easier to use, which is important in an emergency. It also has more dropdown options and an improved automated email distribution feature.

Our Safety Team also worked with our Wildfire Safety Advisory Group (WSAG) to add real-time wildfire safety advice on the SiREN app. This is important because crews in the field may suddenly become aware of an impending wildfire but may not be sure what steps to take. The WSAG can provide information regarding the speed and locations of nearby wildfires and indicate whether evacuation is advised.

In addition to SiREN improvements, we developed a new incident tracking system called Safetracker that is easier to use than the previous system and greatly enhances our incident trend analysis capabilities.

Our Safety Team, along with our Learning Team, launched a new and much improved Defensive Driving Training Module that is streamlined, takes less time, and focuses on the areas that are most likely to cause accidents.

With an expanded safety team, we are better positioned to respond to the everincreasing requirements of our clients through third-party safety program tracking websites. Responding to the requirements is crucial because noncompliance on these sites will quickly lead to denial of project work to SWCA until deficiencies are corrected.

“SURVIVING OR THRIVING” SWCA’S 2023 SAFETY KICKOFF

Every spring, SWCA holds a Safety Kickoff. This year’s kickoff was focused on the safety aspects of good mental health. Good mental health helps ensure staff are not distracted by the stresses of life, which increases the chances of having accidents or causing injuries. Part of the presentation was intended to bring awareness to the great resources that SWCA offers for mental health support, which many were not aware of. In addition to the spring Safety Kickoff, the Safety Team provides two yearly training courses for our employees: core training and field training. In 2023, the core training course completion rate increased by 5%, and the field training course completion rate increased by almost 4%.

OSR OF THE YEAR

At SWCA, each office has an Office Safety Representative (OSR) who oversees the Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) compliance of employees in their office. Every year, one outstanding representative receives the OSR of the Year Award, which recognizes their dedication and commitment. The 2023 OSR of the Year awardee is Sondra Johnson from our Phoenix office! Sondra’s outstanding performance in this role exceeded expectations, demonstrating her self-reliance and her ability to manage a variety of responsibilities with ease. Her willingness to offer help to others also made her a true team player, earning her this well-deserved recognition.

Cybersecurity

At SWCA, we recognize the cybersecurity landscape is evolving rapidly, especially with hybrid and remote working models. Our best practices and robust approach to managing data protection allow us to adapt to this changing landscape, minimize risks, and increase trust with our clients. Building this trust and being transparent with clients is especially important to us and will continue to be a priority as we oversee and adjust our cybersecurity strategy in the future.

SWCA uses a layered security approach that focuses on risk management and aligns with industry best practices, as well as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), which are industry frameworks for information security program management and controls. SWCA is ISO 27001 certified, and our recent audit highlighted excellence with our Security Incident Response Plan, our Business Continuity Plan, and our management engagement and program integration with company objectives. Our layered security approach positions SWCA to effectively identify, protect, detect, respond, and recover from threats.

With a focus on protecting our systems and data from threats, SWCA actively manages information security and data privacy with hundreds of best practices, including:

POLICIES AND PRACTICES

• An understandable and enforceable Information and Technology Security and Acceptable Use Policy. All new employees are required to sign this policy, and emails are sent out when updates to this policy are made.

• Best practice authentication and password requirements including multi-factor authentication.

• A best-in-class Security Incident Response Plan is used as needed. When any incident is investigated using this plan, a post-incident report is shared with leadership describing the events that occurred, any impact to the company, and any lessons learned or follow-up actions needed.

TRAINING

• Mandatory monthly training provided by NINJIO, a company that provides cybersecurity awareness training through short and engaging videos.

• Reoccurring advanced training for employees with privileged access. These employees are required to take at least one exam per year re-certifying general privileged access practices and policy compliance.

ASSESSMENTS

• Annual internal audit with results reported to Board.

• Annual external assessments using ISO or NIST standards.

DRILLS AND SCANS

• Cross-team tabletop exercise drills with neutral third-party observers. These tabletop exercises are used to practice response capability and assess our ability to perform during specific scenarios.

• Weekly vulnerability scanning for internal systems.

• Annual external penetration testing.

• Periodic attack surface evaluation.

LAYERED SECURITY APPROACH

SWCA uses a layered approach to Information Security which empowers us to effectively manage controls without reducing the pace or effectiveness of our business.

Client Centered Program Management

SWCA’s rapid growth and the increasing size of client projects led us to formalize a program management infrastructure. Many of our clients are growing, and we expect to continue growing with them. With this program management structure, we are better positioned to address our clients’ needs nationally, improve our team responsiveness as well as the quality of our deliverables, and create a more positive client experience.

This structure is executed at the national level, meaning the approach to meeting client needs, the look and feel of our deliverables, and the methods we use to meet client needs will be consistent across all office locations. With one point of contact appointed to handle client responses, resourcing, scheduling, and staffing, the decision-making process for both the client and SWCA is significantly streamlined. With a highly personalized team that is familiar with the client’s processes and procedures, SWCA will further our position as a trusted partner ready to tackle any project.

The adoption of this program management structure has already produced significant results at SWCA. We have been able to learn the intricacies of our clients’ businesses at an accelerated pace, providing us with more opportunities to create connections within their organizations. These connections are key to building deeper partnerships with our clients, bolstering their confidence in us and making us their consultant of choice when new needs arise.

SPOTLIGHT | NORMA CRUMBLEY –CHIEF DELIVERY OFFICER

In July 2023, Norma Crumbley became SWCA’s first Chief Delivery Officer. As Chief Delivery Officer, she plays a pivotal role in enhancing client experience with a focus on three critical pillars: program management, innovation, and scientific and technical expertise. Norma uses best management practices for client collaboration, quality of deliverables, scientific and technical excellence, process optimization, and client-focused innovation.

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