Sustainability
At Arvida we recognise the choices we make can have a profound effect on New Zealand’s environment, society and economy. We are committed to making good choices that will have a positive impact and support a more sustainable future for New Zealand.
We have embedded sustainability into our business strategy. Our sustainability framework sits underneath our four strategic pillars: Growing Well, Engaging Well, Living Well, and Nurturing Well.
Our sustainability framework
We have developed this framework to help us integrate environmental, social, and economic values across Arvida and its strategic pillars.
Since the adoption of our Sustainability Policy in 2020, we have worked collaboratively with our people and the Arvida board to identify how sustainability will shape the work we do at Arvida. This includes developing a Supplier Code of Conduct that we are working towards introducing across our supply chain.
Growing Well
For us, this means creating market leading retirement communities in New Zealand that offer care options for our residents. To achieve this will sustainability in mind, we will focus on making heathier and more sustainable homes.
Engaging Well
Living Well
Nurturing Well
Climate Related Disclosure Report
We published our first Climate Related Disclosures Report in line the Aotearoa New Zealand Climate Standards as part of our Annual Report.
Download CRD ReportClimate change
We are taking action on climate change by reducing our carbon footprint.
Arvida is responding to the challenge of climate change by committing to reduce our emissions and mitigating and adapting against our exposure to climate-related risks. Our Climate Related Disclosure Report sets out the key physical and transition risks. It sets out the key physical and transition risks and opportunities we have identified and how we are adjusting to them.
Our carbon footprint
Our greenhouse gas emissions inventory is prepared in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and ISO14064-1:2018 and independently audited annually.
Ernst & Young completed a limited assurance engagement of Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions for the year ended 31 March 2023. Toitū Envirocare provided an assurance over prior years' emissions reporting.
Our targets
From a 2020 base year, we target the following reductions in our primary emissions:
- 20% reduction by 2025 on a IFRS revenue intensity basis
- 50% reduction by 2030 on a IFRS revenue intensity basis
All our emissions reduction targets relate to primary emissions. Primary emissions include all Scope 1 and 2 emissions and selected Scope 3 emissions (namely, business travel, waste and transmissions and distribution losses). Our Annual Report includes details of some of the initiatives implemented to reduce emissions. Our initiatives include swapping over 5,862 lights to LEDs at 10 of our communities and installing 3 solar arrays at our communities. The systems have so far produced 797 MWh of electricity and have reduced our emissions by over 80 tCO2e. We have also started to replace some gas infrastructure at some of our communities with alternatives. This includes a heat pump to heat a pool at our community in New Plymouth – Molly Ryan.
Tracking towards net zero
On an absolute basis, our primary emissions decreased by 772 tonnes when compared to 2023 and increased by 909 tonnes against the base year. The decrease in emissions was mainly as a result of a change in the emissions factor for electricity and gas reduction initiatives.
Maturing our emissions profile
We report all our emissions associated with our supply chain in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. This includes all emissions associated with our construction and development and all purchases of goods and services. We are proud to have reported our full Scope 3 emissions before our industry peers and before we were required to under the mandatory reporting regime.
Our emissions reduction plan
An emissions reduction model has been developed with the intention of obtaining improved visibility on the relative merits and impacts of alternative sustainability initiatives in reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions. The model has allowed the most effective emission reduction targets to be identified.
The model indicated an investment of around $5.2m is currently required to achieve emissions reductions of 40%.
Testing our strategy and business resilience
Here at Arvida, we believe it’s important to test our strategy and our business resilience by considering uncertainties and how our business may be impacted by; and react to; a changing social and economic environment. That’s why we took the opportunity to participate in the Building and Construction Sector Scenarios led by the New Zealand Green Building Council and then jointly led the Health Sector Scenarios with TeWhatu Ora. We used these two sector scenarios to develop three of our own scenarios, Ambitious and Orderly, Delayed and Disorderly and Hot House World. Together the Executive team have considered each of these scenarios how they might impact Arvida’s business model and what opportunities might arise from them.
