MIDLAND, Mich. – October 10, 2019 – In support of the Official Carbon Partnership between Dow (NYSE: DOW) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Dow is teaming up with Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. to replant 200 acres of native bald cypress trees severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in the Pointe-aux-Chenes Wildlife Management Area of Montegut, Louisiana.
Dow’s commitment to this private-public collaboration with Restore the Earth Foundation—a U.S.-based non-profit organization dedicated to restoring the Earth’s essential forest and wetland ecosystems—is estimated to generate 40,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions reductions over a 40-year period. In addition to the carbon reduction benefits, the project serves as a line of defense to help protect more than 200,000 residents from future storms, while improving water quality and enhancing wildlife habitat. This project is also anticipated to generate $11 million in environmental, social and economic value in the region, as estimated by Restore the Earth’s EcoMetrics Model and outlined in the Cypress Reforestation Social Return on Investment Report.
“This partnership is unique in providing ecosystem services that demonstrate the value of natural capital to accelerate adoption of green infrastructure solutions,” said Mary Draves, corporate vice president and chief sustainability officer, Dow. “Together with Restore the Earth, our collective goal is to inspire actions that can reduce carbon emissions and support restoration of one of our most valuable assets – nature’s forests.”
The collaboration with Restore the Earth Foundation aligns with Dow’s “Valuing Nature” journey. Dow’s 2025 Valuing Nature Goal aims to deliver $1 billion in net present value from projects that are good for business and better for nature.
The area under restoration, also known as “North America’s Amazon,” is a critical ecosystem rich in biological diversity and is the third largest watershed on Earth. Over the past 100 years, 80% of the southern portion, which includes the Mississippi River Basin, has been degraded or destroyed by human and industrial development. With the help of supporters such as Dow, Restore the Earth Foundation plans to plant 100 million trees across one million acres in the lower Mississippi River Basin in an effort to rebuild the area by the end of 2030.
“Climate change is a real threat to civilization with consequences already felt by people across the globe,” said Dr. Nicoletta Piccolrovazzi, circular economy market director for Dow and global technology & sustainability director for Dow Olympic & Sports Solutions. “North America’s Amazon plays an essential role in mitigating climate change worldwide. Backed by the Dow-IOC Official Carbon Partnership, our commitment with Restore the Earth goes beyond business as usual, serving as a uniting force to help bring more stakeholders into collaboration and accelerate adoption of ‘green infrastructure’ in operations around the globe.”
“Restore the Earth’s landscape-scale reforestation is a holistic approach that integrates environmental, social and economic concerns within the restoration framework,” said P.J. Marshall, co-founder and executive director, Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. “It is a proven, impactful and simple solution to climate change. It also helps ensure healthy ecosystems, biodiversity, habitat and community resiliency are enhanced in a self-sustaining system. It takes the long-term perspective of generations, decades and centuries, providing for overall well-being, livelihood, identity and culture.”
This agreement with Restore the Earth Foundation is one of several projects under Dow’s Collaborative Blueprint for unlocking carbon reductions. The Blueprint underpins the Dow-IOC Official Carbon Partnership, initiated in 2017, to balance the operational carbon footprint of the IOC, and encourages organizations outside and within the Olympic movement to adopt programs for reducing carbon emissions while catalyzing change across value chains. The impact of the partnership goes beyond balancing the IOC footprint and creates a legacy of low carbon technologies and climate action focused collaborations.
To discover additional information on Dow’s sustainability programs and the Dow-IOC Carbon Partnership, visit corporate.dow.com/en-us/about/partnerships/sports/sustainability. For more information about Restore the Earth Foundation, visit http://restoretheearth.org/.
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) combines one of the broadest technology sets in the industry with asset integration, focused innovation and global scale to achieve profitable growth and become the most innovative, customer centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company. Dow’s portfolio of performance materials, industrial intermediates and plastics businesses delivers a broad range of differentiated science-based products and solutions for our customers in high-growth segments, such as packaging, infrastructure and consumer care. Dow operates 113 manufacturing sites in 31 countries and employs approximately 37,000 people. Dow delivered pro forma sales of approximately $50 billion in 2018. References to Dow or the Company mean Dow Inc. and its subsidiaries. For more information, please visit www.dow.com or follow @DowNewsroom on Twitter.
About Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc.
Restore the Earth Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not for profit with a mission of restoring the Earth’s essential forest and wetland ecosystems. Restore the Earth knows that it is possible to go beyond just protecting our environment—it is possible to restore it. And when you restore the environment at landscape scale, it creates incredible value for ecosystems, biodiversity, habitat, communities, business and the Earth.
Restore the Earth works together with partners to bring solid solutions to deliver successful restoration to meet strategic objectives. Its strong public/private partnerships support its longstanding and proven track record of successfully restoring natural systems on a large scale, creating environmental, social and economic value.
Restore the Earth Foundation’s innovative EcoMetrics Model, accurately accounts for, in monetized terms, the environmental, social and economic co-benefits/value created by restoration. An EcoMetrics report is accredited by international standards, third party verified and ready for audit. EcoMetrics allows Restore the Earth funding partners to report back to stakeholders on the ROI and SROI of investment in environmental restoration with complete confidence. For more information, please visit http://restoretheearth.org/ or follow @REF_Restores on Twitter.