Universal Geomatics Solutions Corp. (UGS) is commissioning the planting of 2,209 trees by Tree Canada through its National Greening Program to compensate for the emissions of the company’s truck, ATV and snowmobile fleet, from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2020.

The company called this action the capstone to the first year of its Environmental Sustainability Program (ESP).

UGS engaged the services of GHG Accounting Services Ltd., a firm which provides specialized greenhouse gas accounting, decarbonization and sustainability consulting, to assess the company’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory for 2020.

The total GHG emissions from UGS operations in 2020 was 448 t CO2e, of which 54 per cent (243 t CO2e) was emitted by its truck, ATV and snowmobile fleet.

The company is looking into solutions to reduce the total carbon emissions of its operations, however, when it comes to ensuring its field crews get safely in and out of remote work sites, current vehicle technologies for the fleet are limited.

Given the beneficial impact of trees on the environment, UGS determined it was able to reallocate certain overhead expenditures, to be better served at this time, in planting trees to compensate for its 2020 fleet emissions.

“Over the past few years, market conditions and the needs of industry have inspired UGS to reimagine the way it does business,” said the company, which is majority female-owned.

“UGS has ramped up its focus on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) in order to ensure it has a sustainable and thriving business model well into the future. The company’s ESP is a critical element for sustainability at UGS, as the program aims to minimize UGS’ carbon footprint, reduce its overall costs, and reallocate certain overhead expenditures in more impactful ways.”