Sustainability
Building a more sustainable business.
Establishing a Sustainability Foundation
Flagstar’s environmental sustainability program meets the needs of our customers, while reducing the impact of our business on the environment. We consider today’s business climate a call to action as we continue our deep commitment to environmental sustainability. As a result, we are taking the steps in what will be a multi-year transformation of how we do business.
In 2022, to further our commitment to sustainability, we hired a vice president and an analyst to focus efforts on environmental sustainability. In addition, we launched a company-wide employee Green Team to harness the power of the organization to focus on identifying and supporting environmental initiatives.
Flagstar’s sustainability foundation is built upon three pillars. The three pillars of the strategy each have climate and environmental related elements.
- Reducing the environmental impact of our business
- Creating a company culture committed to sustainability
- Developing sustainable products and services to meet customer needs
Flagstar cares about our environmental footprint. Quantifying our environmental footprint is an important first step in working to set our reduction goals as well as planning and implementing appropriate projects to improve our overall sustainability.
Flagstar uses ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® for benchmarking, data collection, assessment of property performance, and guidance for implementation of energy, water, waste, and GHG reduction strategies.
In 2022, we increased Legacy Flagstar’s data coverage to 154 applicable properties in ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® which is over 97% of our legacy Flagstar portfolio benchmarked. We were able to garner this information through strong relationships between our sustainability and facilities teams as well as colleagues at our branches and corporate offices.
To ensure the proper collection, storage, and ability to share our environmental and larger ESG data, in 2022 we began to create and leverage an Environmental / ESG Management System (EMS). We are planning to augment and leverage the EMS in 2023 to further our focus on Environmental / ESG data.
Greenhouse gas emissions
In 2022, Flagstar developed its inventory of our Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions using 2019 as a baseline and in accordance with the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard. Flagstar’s GHG Inventory collects and reports Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions for its entire portfolio of properties, estimating usage data for the small percentage of properties where it is not feasible to collect. The environmental sustainability data reported is only reflective of legacy Flagstar's (prior to merger and December 1, 2022) leased and owned properties within our operational control boundary and does not yet include data related to our recent merger of New York Community Bank and the acquisition of Signature Bank. One category of Scope 3 emissions, business travel, is also reported and other Scope 3 categories are being considered for inclusion at a later date. Flagstar's commitment to environmental sustainability is demonstrated in our GHG reduction from 2019 to 2022, where Flagstar has reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 31%. Business travel associated emissions were reduced by 47%. The GHG inventory consists of the following emissions sources:
Scope 1 — Direct GHG emission sources
- Stationary fuel combustion
o Facility heating
o Emergency equipment
- Mobile fuel combustion
o Company-owned/leased vehicles
- Fugitives
o GHG based A/C systems
Scope 2 — Indirect GHG emission sources
- Purchased electricity
o At present, Scope 2 location-based and market-based emissions are the same. We will make updates as we investigate and enter into power purchase agreements.
Scope 3 — Indirect GHG emission sources in the complete value chain
- Business travel
o This includes the emissions from the transportation of employees for business-related activities in vehicles owned or operated by third parties, such as aircrafts, trains, buses, passenger cars, and business travelers staying in hotels.
o Flagstar is developing and deploying virtual collaboration tools to reduce employee travel.
Flagstar Bank will use the GHG Inventory to:
- Demonstrate environmental leadership
- Identify opportunities to mitigate direct and indirect GHG emissions
- Use data to identify current and future trends and benchmark progress
- Assist the Board and staff in decision-making
- Work with our facilities team to set Scope 1 and 2 emissions reduction targets and identify the appropriate emissions reduction activities
Our GHG Inventory and associated metrics are summarized below (MT = metric tonnes)
Absolute GHG Emissions (MT CO2e) |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Scope 1 |
2,617 |
2,908 |
2,340 |
2,382 |
|
Scope 2 (location-based) |
13,855 |
11,326 |
9,779 |
8,925 |
|
Scope 3 |
1,165 |
221 |
254 |
620 |
Please see the Total Consumption data table for detailed performance information.
Scope 1 & 2 Intensity (MT CO2e / 1,000 SQ FT) |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Scope 1 & 2 GHG Emissions |
16,472 |
14,235 |
12,118 |
11,306 |
|
1,000 SQ FT |
1,526 |
1,598 |
1,242 |
1,191 |
|
Scope 1 & 2 GHG Emissions / 1,000 SQ FT |
10.8 |
8.9 |
9.8 |
9.5 |
Please see the Total Consumption data table for detailed performance information.
Flagstar strives to proactively manage costs while reducing its carbon footprint. It does this through negotiation of energy rates with local and national energy companies for its branches and corporate offices.
Energy efficiency efforts:
- Benchmarking performance
- Executing LED retrofit program
- Use of automation, such as automated HVAC controls
- Negotiating energy rates and evaluating sources
- Upgrading insulation at multiple bank branches and headquarters
LED retrofit program
Flagstar utilizes an LED Retrofit Program to upgrade its branches and corporate facilities with LED lighting. By working with supplier and partner Expert Lighting Group, lighting was updated to LED in over 60 branch locations in 2022 which has resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars of annual energy and maintenance savings as well as an ROI of close to 30%. Through this program Flagstar has garnered a lighting energy reduction of 79% and a total energy savings over 10 years of over 10 million kWh, and continues to look to expand the program.
Building automation program
TCS Ubiquity automated HVAC controls were installed in over 60 branch locations. This system allows the HVAC systems to be monitored and history of run time to be tracked. This system also allows temperature setback schedules to be set to reduce energy when the buildings are unoccupied, including holidays and weekends.
ENERGY Partnerships
As part of our ongoing work to integrate sustainable practices into our business and facilities, we’ve partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Better Buildings Alliance and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ENERGY STAR® program. These partnerships will allow Flagstar to network with other organizations to push even further beyond our initial steps toward energy efficiency and sustainable procurement.
Sustainable Buildings
In 2022, Flagstar certified its first green properties under the ENERGY STAR® certified buildings program, reaching premier status as part of ENERGY STAR's® Certification Nation special recognition program. Flagstar continues to work to certify its properties, and expects further progress going forward.
The following table represents Flagstar's energy usage.
Energy Intensity (KBTU / SQ FT) |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
KBTU |
142,607,825 |
132,227,639 |
107,346,721 |
101,811,100 |
|
SQ FT |
1,525,760 |
1,597,521 |
1,241,684 |
1,191,012 |
|
KBTU / SQ FT |
93.5 |
82.8 |
86.5 |
85.5 |
Please see the Total Consumption data table for detailed performance information.
As good stewards of the environment, we work to conserve natural resources, including water. Our water use is primarily composed of domestic water and irrigation.
Water improvement efforts:
- Benchmarking usage and monitoring usage trends
- Utilizing low-flow and high-efficiency fixtures and equipment within our portfolio of branches and corporate facilities
- Providing non-bottled water options within our facilities
- Added brand standard for all new branches to include dual water filters
The following table summarizes Flagstar's water consumption.
Water Intensity (Gallons / 1,000 SQ FT) |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Water Consumption (Gallons) |
33,140 |
30,854 |
33,978 |
28,954 |
|
1,000 SQ FT |
1,526 |
1,598 |
1,242 |
1,191 |
|
Gallons / 1,000 SQ FT |
21.7 |
19.3 |
27.4 |
24.3 |
Please see the Total Consumption data table for detailed performance information.
Flagstar strives to reduce its waste and increase its recycling. We have started working on the combined collection of our waste data so that we can leverage accurate information to monitor our progress and establish goals in the future.
Waste reduction efforts:
- Initiating combined collection of waste and recycling data
- Recycling items within our branches and corporate facilities such as cans, water bottles, toner cartridges, and paper (in 2022, Flagstar recycled over 638 US Short Tons of shredded paper)
- Purchasing eco labeled (e.g., Eco-aware or Eco-ID) supplies (supplies include items such as office supplies, ink/toner, cleaning supplies, breakroom supplies, promotional products; excludes printed materials and IT related equipment) representing over 15% of Flagstar’s overall total spend on supplies
- Initiating paperless projects, such as paperless services in our branches and digital business strategies
Please see the Total Consumption data table for detailed performance information.
Sustainable Products and Services
In 2022, Flagstar took steps to develop sustainable products and services to meet the needs of our customers and transform how we do business.
Flagstar established a commercial lending vertical to lend to Environmental Services and Renewable Power companies, nationally. Flagstar closed on two transactions, one of which was for a $40 million Co-Lead Arranger position to a large Waste Management Company in the Seattle Area. The other was for a $15 million exposure position to a large Landfill (with access by railcar) Operator located in Alabama.
Flagstar also continues to finance various green projects. In 2022, this included:
- $17 million for hydrogen fuel cells used to sustainably power a large retailer’s operations
- Nearly $34 million for power servers that use bio-fuels or natural gas to generate electricity
- Over $350 million of equipment to an engineering, construction, and maintenance company that built $3.8 billion in renewable energy infrastructure projects during 2022
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