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About Equitrans Midstream

Sustainability Governance

At Equitrans, we believe that sustainability starts at the top with our Board of Directors and continues through to our employees, who carry out their everyday processes and practices. We are dedicated to the pursuit of continuous improvement in our environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance and have made good progress in building a culture focused on sustainability and further integrating sustainability into our governance, business strategy, and decision-making throughout the organization.

 

Our Approach to Sustainability Governance

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Role of the highest governance body in overseeing the management of impacts

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Delegation of responsibility for managing impacts

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Role of the highest governance body in sustainability reporting

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Embedding policy commitments

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Management of material topics

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We are committed to creating positive, long-term value and emphasizing sustainable performance, as expected by our stakeholders. Consistent with our commitment, we embrace working to conduct business in a socially responsible and ethical manner, including managing our impact on the economy, the environment, and our communities. Since becoming a standalone midstream company in 2018, we have built a corporate culture that takes into account sustainable operations, encourages improvements where appropriate, and fosters honest and proactive communication with our stakeholders. Our goal is to be a positive contributor as we transition to a lower-carbon economy, engaging in sustainable business practices and creating long-term value for our shareholders, employees, customers, and communities.

As we strive to enhance the efficiency and management of our ESG reporting, we have initiated work on two Companywide initiatives. In 2022, we began developing an internal ESG operating model to enhance our data collection, data management, and auditing/assurance framework, as related to the data disclosed in our CSR and other ESG reports. This process includes mapping the flow of data from the source to the final disclosure, identifying data owners, and creating or enhancing data controls, as needed. Given the importance of GHG emissions to our stakeholders, we are implementing further improvements to our control environments for the information used to calculate Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions.

In addition to implementing the ESG operating model, Equitrans is working to better align our ESG reporting with the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) framework. Building upon the TCFD-readiness assessment completed in 2022, Equitrans is now in the process of conducting two TCFD risk scenario analyses — physical risk and transition risk. To demonstrate the importance of this project, Equitrans included a “Sustainability-TCFD” metric in the Company’s 2023 Short-Term Incentive Plan (STIP). This metric includes three individual STIP targets as follows: completing one TCFD risk scenario analysis; completing a second TCFD risk analysis; completing two TCFD risk analyses and preparing a publishable TCFD report for the Board.

Board Oversight

Our Board of Directors, acting through its committees, oversees Equitrans’ policies, programs, and strategies regarding corporate social responsibility and sustainability, including ESG matters and related risks and opportunities. In April 2022, the Board revised the name of the Health, Safety, Security and Environmental Committee to the Health, Safety, Sustainability and Environmental (HSSE) Committee, to highlight the Company’s focus on and importance of sustainability, as well as the Committee’s role in providing oversight of a large number of sustainability matters. The HSSE Committee is chaired by one of our independent directors and provides oversight with respect to our approach to health, safety, sustainability, and environmental policies, programs, and initiatives. The Board reviews key ESG policies and commitments, such as our Climate Policy published in 2021, and regularly receives, directly or through Board committees, updates from management regarding our sustainability program and pertinent ESG topics. As part of exercising oversight responsibility, Board members also actively oversee our ESG performance, provide insight on management and process improvements, and review our annual Corporate Sustainability Report. Read more about our Board’s structure and oversight responsibilities on the Corporate Governance page of this report.

At Equitrans, we believe that sustainability starts at the top with our Board of Directors and continues through to our employees, who carry out their everyday processes and practices.

 

Chief Sustainability Officer and Executive Oversight

At Equitrans, the Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) position is responsible for the development, oversight, and management of our sustainability program, including the identification, assessment, and management, as appropriate and in combination with other members of the management team, of related risks and opportunities and the establishment of related policies, standards, and statements. Additionally, the CSO is responsible for furthering the Company’s ESG reporting efforts. Accordingly, the CSO collaborates with employees across the Company to ensure continual development and implementation of Equitrans’ sustainability program and accurate and timely provision of relevant information to stakeholders. Further, the CSO provides updates to our Board of Directors quarterly, at a minimum. In managing our most critical ESG and sustainability topics, our CSO directly oversees our internal, management-level ESG Steering Committee, and related cross-functional working groups.

ESG Steering Committee and Working Groups

Equitrans established a management-level ESG Steering Committee and various ESG working groups to help implement and manage the day-to-day efforts and actions related to our most material ESG and sustainability topics. The CSO and ESG Steering Committee outline initiatives to maintain and improve our sustainability program, and the ESG working groups develop plans to implement the initiatives. During implementation, the ESG Steering Committee is responsible for providing oversight and allocating appropriate resources to the ESG working groups.

In January 2023, the committee structure was enhanced by adding a new Supply Chain working group and incorporating the leads for two working groups (Workforce and Governance) directly on the ESG Steering Committee, in place of maintaining these separate working groups. This change is intended to further enhance the operations of the ESG Steering Committee as it works to focus on the most impactful initiatives in 2023 and beyond. Based on the Equitrans’ materiality assessment and/or importance to the Company, five of the working groups were developed to align with our primary ESG and sustainability focus areas. The sixth ESG working group is a Research and Development committee that evaluates new technologies that may enable Equitrans to further incorporate aspects of sustainability into our operations.

The organizational chart showing Equitrans' sustainability governance structure has the Chief Sustainability Officer at the top of the chart, the management level ESG Steering Committee next in the structure, and the ESG working groups as the base of the structure. The ESG working groups include the Climate Working Group, the Environmental Compliance Working Group, the Social Impact and Community Working Group, the Water Management Working Group, the Supply Chain Working Group, and the Research and Development Committee.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Statement

 

Equitrans designed a graphic to show that the company's core values align with the eight United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that Equitrans has chosen to focus on. Equitrans' core values of Safety, Integrity, Collaboration, Transparency, and Excellence align with the Gender Equality, Clean Water and Sanitization, Affordable and Clean Energy, Life on Land, Climate Action, Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure, Decent Work and Economic Growth, and Good Health and Well Being Sustainable Development Goals.In 2015, all United Nations Member States adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which outlines priorities for people and the planet to prosper. The key framework for this agenda is the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and associated targets that represent the actions to pursue social, economic, and environmental sustainability.

As an energy infrastructure company, we understand that we play a vital role in meeting energy demand, which supports growth and development, in a sustainable manner. Equitrans’ Core Values set the foundation for our Sustainability Framework, which utilizes five pillars (Safety Leadership, Environmental Stewardship, Corporate Governance, Stakeholder Engagement, and Economic Benefits) to define our approach to sustainability for our stakeholders.

In 2021, we formally announced our intent to align our business and operations with relevant SDGs through our United Nations Sustainability Development Goals Statement, which includes our commitment to environmental integrity, protection of environmental resources, and climate change mitigation. Equitrans continues to demonstrate a robust governance structure for implementing our sustainability program, which incorporates our vision to focus on relevant SDGs. While all of the UN’s 17 SDGs are important on a macro-level, we have identified eight SDGs that align with our objectives and the practical aspects of our business, operations, and geographic footprint. Moving forward, we will continue to evaluate the full breadth of all relevant SDGs, with an expectation to enhance and expand our alignment as applicable. We will prepare biennial progress summaries that outline actions taken to align our operations with the select SDGs. Our first progress summary was published in 2021, covering both 2019 and 2020 operations, and our second summary is expected during 2023.

In 2022, 95% of funding through our corporate local giving program and 100% of the funds distributed through the Equitrans Midstream Foundation aligned with one or more SDGs.

In 2022, we began incorporating the SDGs into our annual Stakeholder Engagement and Community Investment Plan. Specifically, each potential corporate local giving and/or sponsorship opportunity was evaluated to determine if the organization or specific initiative would align with one or more of the 17 United Nations SDGs or the associated targets and indicators. In 2022, 95% of the funds donated through our corporate local giving and sponsorship program aligned with at least one SDG. Further, 100% of the funds distributed through the Equitrans Midstream Foundation aligned with one or more SDGs. Additional information about our corporate local giving and sponsorship program and the Equitrans Midstream Foundation can be found in the Community Engagement section of this report. 

Highlight Stories

Enhancing Methane Monitoring

In January 2023, Equitrans announced its status as a founding member of the newly formed Appalachian Methane Initiative (AMI), a coalition of regional natural gas operators committed to further enhancing methane monitoring throughout the Appalachia Basin and facilitating additional methane emissions reduction in the region. The AMI coalition was formed ‘for the purpose of establishing and effectuating a methane monitoring, reporting, and mitigation network throughout the geographic area known as the Appalachian Basin.’

AMI’s efforts are intended to promote greater efficiency in the identification and remedy of potential fugitive methane emissions from operations in the Appalachian Basin through coordinated satellite and aerial surveys on a geographic-basis as opposed to an operator-specific basis and taking into account advanced methane monitoring and reporting frameworks. Additionally, the coalition will seek to coordinate and share best practices in mitigating methane emissions from natural gas operations, including production and midstream, and collaborate on activities and monitor results through transparent, publicly available reporting. 

For much of 2023, AMI is focusing on developing and implementing a pilot monitoring program to cover select areas of interest within the Basin’s major operating footprints, with the goal of working to develop and implement a full-Basin monitoring plan in 2024.

As part of AMI’s official launch, a news release was issued by the coalition’s founding members. We believe our membership in AMI will support our ongoing methane reduction efforts and complement our many ESG initiatives, and we look forward to working with other coalition members on advancing AMI’s initiatives.

Inspiring the World to Reuse

As we broaden our sustainability investments, we are especially proud of our partnership with Fill It Forward, an organization whose mission is “to inspire the world to reuse” by focusing on the elimination of single-use waste, such as plastic bottles and bags. In 2021, Equitrans partnered with Fill it Forward as a means of engaging and educating employees, while at the same time elevating our many ESG (environmental, social, and governance) initiatives.

In late 2021, we launched our Fill It Forward campaign with a custom holiday gift box for employees that included reusable tote bags and bottles with individual ‘scan tags’ that acted as a re-use tracker. When the tags were scanned, the data was automatically uploaded to Equitrans’ custom group on the Fill It Forward app and was used for tracking our collective impact, such as waste diverted, emissions saved, and how much ocean pollution was prevented.

Along with helping to eliminate waste, there was a charitable component to our Fill It Forward campaign. Each employee scan unlocked a $1 donation for every reuse, which contributed funds to our chosen charitable organization — DigDeep’s Appalachia Water Project. The funds collected were used to provide clean drinking water through the installation of meter-to-home water lines for families in southern West Virginia who currently have unsafe, limited, or no water at all. Our goal was to generate 10,000 scans and raise $10,000 for the Appalachia Water Project, and we were thrilled to have reached our goal roughly six months into the campaign. In addition, as part of Equitrans’ annual holiday giving initiatives, we made a separate donation of $20,000 to the Appalachia Water Project.

Thanks to the efforts of our employees — Equitrans was the proud recipient of Fill It Forward’s Changemaker Award for 2022. This unique ESG-focused campaign was a means of engaging and educating employees, while also elevating our sustainability efforts. Together with Fill It Forward, we believe that the simple act of reusing is the first step towards creating a sustainable mindset for all generations — and as an added benefit — being able to connect families with access to safe water will ensure the health and success of communities for years to come.

Equitrans Midstream’s Impact
 
19,968.42
lbs of emissions saved

 
617.58
lbs of waste diverted from landfill

 
11,734.02
kwH of power saved

 
123.52
lbs of ocean pollution prevented
20,586
total reuses

Source: Statistics calculated by Fill It Forward, as of year-end 2022

Employee Generosity — Giving Back To Our Communities

Equitrans Midstream is committed to making a difference in our communities, and the United Way is just one way we can join together to support those in need. For our 2022 campaign, we selected the United Way of Washington County as our primary United Way affiliate, which aligns with our Company headquarters’ location. Employees also had the opportunity to donate to the United Way of their choice by selecting from other United Way affiliates located in our primary operating states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, or West Virginia.

To jump start our 2022 United Way campaign, we held a basket raffle during our all-employee meeting and holiday celebration in Morgantown, WV. Employee teams donated 27 individual baskets, with raffle ticket sales raising more than $11,000 in donations. This was matched dollar-for-dollar by our Corporate Local Giving Program, jump-starting our 2022 campaign with a contribution of more than $22,000 to the United Way.

Through our official United Way campaign, which is conducted annually via individual, online donations, Equitrans employees pledged roughly $57,000 in individual contributions, which was matched dollar-for-dollar through the Equitrans Midstream Foundation for a total of approximately $114,000. Additional donations were made outside of our formal campaign, and, based on totals provided by the United Way of Washington County — Equitrans’ contributions totaled more than $169,000 in 2022 — making us the top contributor in their Chairman’s Award for Top 5 Workplace Giving Campaign Partners program.

Equitrans also received the agency’s Campaign Excellence Award, which is presented to a workplace giving campaign partner that puts forth extra effort in running their annual workplace giving campaign. In addition to our traditional campaign, this award was due in part to the hosting of our special to basket raffle event, which engaged all employees and included matching funds by the Equitrans Midstream Foundation and the Company’s Corporate Local Giving Program.

The United Way of Washington County’s mission is to unite people, resources, and organization to improve lives in Washington County. Through Equitrans’ support, the various programs at United Way will be funded to serve the most pressing needs in vulnerable populations within our local operating areas. Our donation is a powerful force for change, and we thank our employees for their generosity and support!

Productivity … Redesigned

As the world continues to adapt and evolve, companies are re-evaluating their management approach and taking into consideration the individual needs and circumstances of their employees to create work-life harmonization. With the implementation of person-centric leadership practices, Equitrans took the opportunity to redesign how we operate, improving performance and engagement and increasing our ability to compete for talent.

In early 2020, Equitrans began to recognize the benefits of a flexible workplace model. We initiated a deeper dive into the concept by soliciting survey feedback from office-based employees regarding their preferred ‘workplace persona’ preferences (anchor, flex, and remote). Today, we have fully embraced a ‘person-centric’ work environment, which takes into account the physical, cognitive, and emotional needs of employees and encourages them to find the best integration between their work and personal lives. With this approach, work is no longer about where an employee is located, but about the actual work an employee does. Importantly, employees are evaluated on work produced, without consideration to where or how they worked.

Rather than conforming to legacy practices or location constraints, Equitrans’ person-centric work model is defined by flexible work experiences, intentional collaboration, and empathy-based management. For our field-based employees, who are primarily required to work onsite, we rolled out flexible work guidelines to demonstrate our commitment to our person-centric work approach. Upon implementation of this new work model, roughly 44% of employees are working remotely, 25% split their time between working remotely and at an Equitrans location, 31% work from an Equitrans location full-time, and less than 1% work part-time.

We expect our person-centric model will continue to improve employees’ satisfaction and retention, as well as help to expand our talent pool. Since implementing our workplace personas, the number of employees working in other U.S. locations has increased, and we have been able to improve gender diversity. As part of our new work model, we periodically conduct employee surveys and focus groups to obtain feedback, using the results to adjust our workplace practices, as needed.

Office-Centric vs Person-Centric Work Design
Office-Centric Person-Centric

Provide consistent work experiences to deliver equality of experience

Provide flexible work experiences to deliver equality of opportunity

Enable serendipitous collaboration to deliver innovation by chance

Enable intentional collaboration to deliver innovation by design

Drive visibility-based management to deliver performance by inputs

Drive empathy-based management to deliver performance by outcome

Managing and Protecting Pipeline Integrity

Identification and management of landslide risk is a vital aspect of Equitrans’ daily work activities; however, the risk of a landslide is not limited to the midstream industry. Landslides can occur in any type of terrain, including both hills and valleys, and can be associated with any type of ongoing construction or pre-existing land disturbance. Natural factors such as rainfall and surface runoff water can amplify their frequency or severity; and left unmanaged, landslides have the potential to impact our environment. For Equitrans, this impact may include creating unnecessary strain on our underground pipelines, which are typically located in a variety of terrains as compared to our non-linear assets. To avoid unsafe situations and protect the integrity of our pipeline network, our engineering team uses a multi-faceted approach to aggressively identify and manage areas at risk for potential landslides. 

To identify potential land movement near our assets, Equitrans’ engineers utilize aerial patrols, drones with photogrammetry change detection, and routine on-site inspections — or, if required, a combination of these methods may be used. In each case, we monitor our pipeline rights-of-way looking for any indication of unstable soil, such as discoloration, downed trees, or other data that could indicate a change in topography. Following a thorough evaluation of each asset location or suspected slide area by our engineering and compliance teams, we assign a priority ranking to indicate the potential for further movement and any risk to the environment or to the integrity of the pipeline.

As a final step, Equitrans pairs the geographic location data of known and suspected landslides with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) information. This analysis is done on a daily basis and allows Equitrans to identify rainfall events that could affect the stability of existing slide-prone areas and to rapidly respond and investigate when conditions change on the ground. In accordance with a defined framework that accounts for slide priority and rain severity, personnel may be deployed to conduct visual, on-site inspections. Beyond rainfall data, we also monitor temperature data to understand freeze thaw cycles and similarly deploy personnel to evaluate sites under changing conditions. Through continued use of these evaluation tools — aerial inspections, drone imaging, and manual site inspections — Equitrans remains committed to environmental and operational safety through its robust process to identify and manage potential landslides.

In addition, Equitrans launched a Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) pilot program in 2020 to aid in the enhanced detection of potential landslides along our pipeline rights-of-way. Today, we conduct semi-annual LiDAR flights across thousands of miles of pipeline. The adoption of LiDAR technology and utilization of our enhanced construction standards are collectively designed to improve Equitrans’ ability to mitigate landslide risk for the safety of our employees and communities, and for the benefit of our customers, investors, and the environment. 

Renewable Electricity and Scope 2 Emissions

With the publication of the Company’s Climate Policy in 2021, Equitrans established targets that include a 50% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 methane emissions by 2030 and a 50% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040. Since this time, Equitrans has aggressively focused on reducing its direct Scope 1 emissions, which included the replacement of pneumatic devices and the installation of vent gas recovery units during 2022. These activities are expected to directly contribute to a reduction in methane emissions from operations. Additional information and details on the Company’s reduction efforts can be found in the GHG Emissions and Climate Change section of this report.

Equitrans is also working to reduce its indirect Scope 2 emissions, which are emissions related to purchased utilities, such as electric generation and heat. One method of aiding in the overall reduction of indirect Scope 2 emissions is through the purchase of certified renewable energy credits or RECs. Each REC is a certificate that corresponds to the environmental attributes of electricity that is generated from a zero-emissions renewable source and delivered to the electricity grid.

For the year-ended 2022, Equitrans purchased and retired 35,000 Green-e Energy certified RECs for its operations. These purchased RECs represent 35,000 megawatt hours (MWh) of generated renewable energy, which in this case was from wind energy generated in Oklahoma and delivered to the corresponding regional electric grid. By purchasing and retiring these RECs, Equitrans is taking credit for the renewable energy generated and ensuring that it is not accounted for elsewhere in the country. By purchasing these certified RECs, Equitrans was able to account for 100% of its purchased electricity through the supply of zero-carbon renewable energy, as related to its indirect Scope 2 GHG emissions.  

Proactive Project Outreach

Equitrans Midstream relies on proactive community engagement and feedback to foster a culture of trust, inclusivity, and transparency, and we view our projects and operations through a lens of responsibility and accountability. In keeping with this belief, environmental justice is an important component of our stakeholder outreach activities. Our Environmental Justice Policy lays the foundation of our commitment to provide for the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people in any public process involving our operations, regardless of race, color, national origin, or income. 

It is often said that actions speak louder than words, which was the case for the outreach team working on our Ohio Valley Connector Expansion (OVCX) project. As a critical component of the project’s pre-planning phase, our team contracted the services of an outside vendor that specialized in the identification of environmental justice communities located near the project. After consulting with the FERC, the EPA, and our contracted environmental justice specialists, Equitrans extended the OVCX project’s landowner contact radius an additional 0.5 mile to maximize the outreach efforts and ensure all stakeholders were personally aware of and involved with the project details.

In addition to our land team contacting property owners and community members within the expanded radius, the OVCX outreach team conducted multiple pop-up educational meetings and community open houses; solicited pre-paid comment and suggestion cards; distributed various informational mailings; and remained engaged with the community every step of the way by responding to questions and feedback. To better understand the needs and challenges faced by those living near the proposed project, we also met with local organizations and elected officials, as well as other key decision makers. These additional, proactive measures taken by our OVCX outreach team went above and beyond regulatory requirements to ensure consistent communication and transparency throughout the project’s lifecycle.  

Our Bees Are All The Buzzzzz

At Equitrans, there is a clear tone that begins at the top — sustainability is critically important to the world we live in and is also essential to the future growth of our Company. In 2023, E-Train celebrated Earth Day with the kickoff of a two-year sustainability partnership with Alvéole. Alvéole focuses on bee-friendly communities for greener cities by installing honey bee hives at business locations across the world to foster environmental awareness and educate communities on the importance of creating sustainable bee populations. In fact, according to the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, honey bees help to produce one-third of our food supply by pollinating $15 billion worth of crops in the U.S. each year, including more than 130 types of fruits, nuts, and vegetables. 

Through our new partnership with Alvéole, E-Train is hosting and supporting two honey bee hives at each of our Canonsburg, St. Clairsville, and Waynesburg offices. The hives were installed in late spring, and the bees have begun to collect nectar and pollinate thousands of flowers and plants. With the help of our assigned Alvéole beekeeper, the hives will become established, and the bees will re-emerge every spring to pollinate flora to grow food and produce E-Train’s own locally sourced honey.

Equitrans and Alvéole also established “MyHive” microsites for each of E-Train’s office locations. The MyHive sites are located on Equitrans’ intranet, and employees can access the sites at any time to find educational honey bee information and receive updates on our hives. As an added benefit, Alvéole beekeepers will conduct various on-site informational events for employees, such as beeswax candle making and honey extraction sessions. 

As we continue to safely and responsibly operate our network of natural gas pipelines, water lines, and compressor stations, it’s important to remember that the decisions we make today have a lasting and positive impact on future generations. On Earth Day and every day, we must hold ourselves to a higher standard by embracing our responsibility to operate in a manner that minimizes impacts on our natural resources and — above all else — we must keep safety our top priority, always.

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