1CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Compiledby

AnnTartre,BusinessOutreachConsultant,ClimateEducationPartners

SpecialThankstoContributorsatHunterIndustries

ToddPolderman,DirectorofMarketing;BryceCarnehl,CorporateSocialResponsibilityManager;AnnHunter-Welborn,PastChairoftheBoardofDirectorshttp://corporate.hunterindustries.com/sustainability

Foundedin1981,HunterIndustries isaglobalmanufacturerandproviderofproductsandservicesforthe landscape irrigation, agricultural, and lighting industries, as well as a provider of custommanufacturing services.Headquartered innorthern SanDiegoCounty,Hunterhasmanufacturing anddistribution facilities in San Marcos and Tijuana, Mexico. Hunter occupies a 20 acre campus in SanMarcos,andemploysalmost2,000individualsinitsSanMarcosandTijuanafacilitiescombined.Hunterisaprivatelyheld,primarilybusiness-to-businesscompanyknownfor its innovationandproductsthatuseaslittlewaterandenergyaspossible.ClimatechangehasadirecteffectonHunterIndustries.Thecompanyrequiresadequatewatersupplyand healthy watersheds for its own operations and the vitality of its irrigation business around theglobe.Hottertemperatures,whereHunterfacilitiesarelocatedinSanMarcosandTijuana,requiremorecoolingofbuildingsaswellasmitigationagainstotherriskssuchasincreasedfrequencyandintensityofwildfires. More frequent and serious droughts, floods, changes in precipitation and temperatureextremes,allcausedbyclimatechange,impacttheuseofthecompany’sproducts,butHunterremainsawareandprepared.Asaleaderintheirrigationindustry,Hunterwasthefirstcompanyinitssectortodiscloseitsenergyandgreenhouse gas emissions (GHG) publicly. In 2012, Hunter set ambitious goals for energy, GHGemissions,wateruseandwastereduction.Thecompanycontinuestostrivetoachievethesegoals.

2CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Achievements Energy Withincreasingdemandforenergyandtheaddedthreatofclimatechange,thecompanysetagoalofreducingitscarbonfootprintby30%bytheyear2018.

Whenremodelingexistingbuildingsorconstructingnewones,Hunterincludesenergyefficientfeatures.New HVAC systems, insulation, dual pane glasswindows and daylight harvesting skylights havebeen installed inolderbuildings,whileneweroneshave been built to LEED standards. In 2013,remodelingof theengineeringbuildings resulted inreduced gas (13,800 therms)and electricity(310,300 kWh)consumption while reducing CO2emissionsbyalmost430,000pounds.

HunterpartneredwithagreenengineeringandconsultingfirmtoperformanASHRAELevel2auditoftheSanMarcoscampus.ALevel2auditincludedawalk-throughoffacilitiesandoperationsfollowedbydetailedcalculationstoidentifyinefficiencies.Usingtheefficiencyanalysis,theconsultantsprovidesite-specificoperatingcostandresourcesavingmeasuressuchaslightingretrofits.Forexample,in2015and2016,HuntertookadvantageofSDG&E’sincentiveandrebateprogramstoinstallLEDlightinginitsSanMarcoscampus.

In addition, Hunter has installed over 2,000 solar panels that produce over 700,000 kWh of energy,enoughenergytoprovide10%ofthepowerneededtooperatetheSanMarcoscampus.Overall, as measured by its chosen measure of CO2E/build dollar, Hunter lowered the energy andgreenhousegasintensityofitsproductsby16%between2012-2015.Water H2OFutures,anenvironmentaldesignfirm,completedanextensivewateruseassessmentforHunterin2010.Basedontheassessmentresults,Hunterembarkedonmultiplewaterreductionprojectswithagoaltouse25%lesswaterby2018.

Projects included restoring a portion of thecompany’scampusparkbacktonativehabitatanduseofanon- sitewell inSanMarcosasaway toreduce the need for costly, energy intensiveimportedwater from northern California and theColorado River. By using water from their well,Hunter calculated they offset 20 Metric Tons ofGHGemissionsinoneyearbecausewaterwasnottransportedfromdistantsources.

3CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Hunter’s state-of-the-art Tijuana facilityhas a5,000gallongraywater system.All sinks, showers, andtesttanksarepipedtoatreatmenttank,sowatercanbereusedtoirrigatethesurroundinglandscape.HunterisexploringgraywaterrecyclingattheSanMarcoscampusaswell.

4CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Waste Hunterisclosinginonitsgoaltobeazerowasteentity.Asof theendof2016, thecompanydiverted85%of itswastefrom landfill. The companywas able to reducewaste, andrelated GHGs, by conducting waste audits. These auditsshowedthatmostwastenotbeingrecycledwaswastesuchasfoodandpaperwhichcangiveoffpotentGHGemissionsinlandfills.Employeerecyclingcentersweresetup,andthecompany also placed coffee grounds collection buckets atHuntercoffeestations.Employeescollectthegroundstousein their gardens or compost piles. In one year, Hunterwasable to repurpose almost 12,000 lbs. of coffee grounds asorganicfertilizerinsteadofsendingthemtothelandfill.

Challenges Peak Energy Loads-SummercoincideswithHunter'shighenergy seasonwhenmanufacturing isat itspeakandHVACunits are running at maximum capacity due to hotterambientair temperatures.Withadded threat to theenergyavailability in the San Diego region and the compoundingeffects of climate change, the facilities department andothers are working on an energy reduction awareness andactionplan.

Company growth and acquisitions- Hunter has been experiencing significant growth in recentyears, including acquiring several other companies, which increases the company’s social andenvironmental impact in various ways. Acquired companies do not necessarily have sustainability orGHG reduction goals in place. As Hunter grows, it is faced with the common challenge of how toincorporatenewentitiesandhowtosetandachievegoalstolessen their environmental impact while producing moreproducts.Data collection and management- The process oftracking and reporting on GHG emissions is no small featgiventhemultiplesourcesofemissionsacrossthecompany,andnumberofindividualsresponsibleforpiecesofthedata.This challengewill only getmore complex as the companyexpands.Leveraging sustainability to drive competitive advantage- Hunter is an industry leader inproducinghighlyenergyandwaterefficientproducts.Hunterwasthefirstinitsindustrytostarttrackingand reporting on environmental impacts. However, stakeholder engagement work has shown thatmany of its stakeholders, including customers and distributors, are not yet aware of Hunter’ssustainability efforts. Once stakeholders are made aware, these efforts may provide Hunter with acompetitiveadvantageagainst itscompetitors,but thatopportunityhasnotyetbeen leveraged to itsfullpotential.

5CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Insights and Lessons Learned

1) Setting goals and targets spurs action and innovation

Metrics drive employee engagement as well as help communicate accomplishments that in turnpromotemoreaction.BecauseHunterbelievesclimatechangeisadirectrisktobusinessandthequalityoflifeforitsemployeesandcustomers,thecompanyidentifiedinitiativestoreduceGHGemissions.

Havingaclearandpublictargethasalsoinspiredemployeestofindnewwaysofdoingbusinessthataremore resource efficient and spawn innovation. For example, Hunter’s planning and manufacturingteamsminimizedproductiononweekendswhileincreasingproductivity,whichhelpedlowerenergyuseby6.2%andincreasedmanufacturingoutputby2%inoneyear.

2) Employee Education and Engagement To help drive itsmanagement approach to sustainability and embed it through thewhole company,Hunter created the Focus 3P team (People, Planet, Profit),which consists of volunteers from variousdepartments company-wide. The groupmeets on a regular basis to develop and guide sustainabilityactions.

To formalize sustainability benchmarks at Hunter,the Focus 3P group created six strategic visions forkey sustainability issues: Landfill Waste, CorporateResponsibility, Employee Satisfaction, ClimateChange, Technology, and Globalization. Every yearthegroupchoosestoadvanceoneormoreprojectsin each of these six areas and tracks resultsaccordingly, sharing themwith thewhole companysoallemployeeswhohavecontributedcanshareinthe success and be inspired to come forth withadditionalprojects. The3P team,workingwith theCSRMalsoensuresremindersaboutwastereductionandrecyclingandothersustainabilityeffortsareplayedonbreak/lunchroommonitors.

3) Connecting to Climate Education Partners and Other Resources Hunter has sought out and takes advantage of various vendors and programs to help it achieve itssustainabilityandclimategoals.IthasusedSDG&E’sincentiveandrebateprogramsforlightingretrofits,and energy andwater audit vendors to help identify specific projects to pursue. Hunter also invited

ü Increase solar power generation 35%by 2020 -Estimatedsavings:560,000kWhand164MetricTonsofCO2e

ü Retrofit all applicable lighting to LEDby 2020 –Estimatedsavings:700,000kWhand230MetricTonsofCO2E

ü Install new chiller for headquarters, HVACsystemreplacementsandprocesswatersavings

ü Lightharvestingonavailableroofsü Correctautomationairleaksü Purchaserenewableenergyü ConsiderpurchasingGHGoffsets

6CLIMATEEDUCATIONPARTNERS:CASESTUDYONHUNTERINDUSTRIESSEPTEMBER2017

Climate Education Partners to hold a seminar at the company’s headquarters to discuss top climateissues in theSanDiegoregionalongwithHunter leadershipandtheFocus3Pteam.Thepointwastoeducateemployeesandhelpthemidentifythebiggestimpactclimatechangewillhaveonthecompany.

Looking Forward

Leveraging Competitive Advantage- Hunter’s water and energy efficient products may see anincreaseindemandasawatersuppliesgloballybecomescarcer,temperaturesincrease,andthefocusonconservationgrows.Volatilityandpotentialofprice increases in theenergymarketmayalsodriveincreased demand. Hunter believes it is in the company’s best interest to create products for theircustomersthatmaximizewaterandenergysavingsaswellashelpcustomersbecomemoreresilienttothechangingclimate.

Product Design-Hunterismakingeveryefforttoreducewasteinitsmanufacturingprocesses,andtoincludemorerecycledmaterialsinitsproducts.Itisalsolookingatproductendoflifeissues,includingtryingtodesignproductssothattheycanbedisassembledatendoflifeandcomponentscanbereusedor recycled. In addition to saving onmaterials and preventing plastic pollution in the environment,theseeffortswillreduceenergyuseandemissionsinthesourcingandmanufacturingprocesses.

Landscape Master Plan- Hunter’s campus landscape isover20acresandrequireswater,gasoline,labor,andotherresources tomaintain. Considering environmental impacts,Hunter has undergone a campus wide landscape masterplanningprocessthataimstoreplacetraditionallandscapeswith drought tolerant/climate appropriate landscape.Climate appropriate landscapes greatly decrease the

necessityforsupplemental irrigation,whichispumpedhundredsofmilesfromtheColoradoRiverandSacramento Delta Basin,which decreases thewater-energy footprint. Climate appropriate landscapealsorequireslessmaintenancewhichmeanslessgas-poweredmaintenanceequipmentbeingusedandless green waste being produced that is then transported off site. Hunter intends for the campuslandscape tobecomeaneducationaland training tool foremployees, customersandotherswhovisitthecampusregularly.

Industry Leadership-Givenitshistoryofinnovation,Hunterisuniquelypositionedtopromoteenvironmentallyresponsibleprogramswithitscustomersandstakeholders.Aspresidentofthe Irrigation Association in 2017, Greg Hunter, HunterIndustries CEO, has been promoting water conservationproducts across the industry. They have also teamed withproduct distributors to introduce pilot programs to recycleusedirrigationequipmenttoreducetheimpactonlandfills.

ClimateEducationPartners(CEP)isacollaborativeteamofmultidisciplinaryexpertsdevelopinganewmodelforeducatinghigh-profiledecision-makers,communityleadersandthegeneralpublicintheSanDiegoregionaboutclimatechange.ThisreportwasfundedwithfinancialsupportfromTheNationalScienceFoundationunderawardDUE-1239797.Anyopinions,findingsandconclusionsorrecommendationsexpressedinthismaterialarethoseoftheauthor(s)anddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsoftheNationalScienceFoundation.