The Bullfrog Buzz - 2022

In this issue:

In this issue:

Celebrate our newest solar source | p. 4

Celebrate our newest wind source in Alberta | p. 4

Hear from sustainability leaders who are greening their supply chains | p. 6

Explore the state of corporate sustainability in Canada | p. 6

Coming soon: EV charging for homes and businesses | p. 8

Hear from circular economy entrepreneurs | p. 8

Join our bullfrogpowered scavenger hunt | back cover

What’s a net-zero target, and are you ready to set one? | p. 12

the bullfrog buzz•1

Each frog on this cover represents 100,000 tonnes of carbon emissions displaced by the bullfrogpowered community. Can you find all 20?

Bullfrog in the community

Celebrating the 2 million tonnes of CO2 that we’ve avoided

We’re delighted to share that together, bullfrogpowered businesses and households have displaced more than 2 million tonnes of carbon emissions. You’re part of a community that’s making real change by incentivizing new, large-scale renewable facilities and providing early-stage funding for local sustainability projects.

We have extra assurance that we’ve passed the 2 million tonne milestone thanks to our green energy audit, performed annually by Deloitte. As the pressure to meet our climate targets intensifies, it’s more important than ever for us to provide transparent and effective ways for you to shrink your carbon footprint. You can trust that your green energy purchase is having a positive impact on our energy systems and our communities.

But don’t just take our word for it! Turn to page 4 to see the brand-new wind farm that bullfrogpowered customers supported this year. On page 6, you’ll find advice from businesses that are pushing the environmental envelope. Flip to page 8 to hear from entrepreneurs who are ditching wasteful business practices with help from Bullfrog’s community projects grant.

The accomplishments in this issue of the Bullfrog Buzz belong to all of us. Thank you for choosing green energy and joining us in our mission to build a renewably powered future.

Testing Lake Ontario’s water quality with Swim Drink Fish

Suha Jethalal, President, Bullfrog Power

Planting native trees at Sunnybrook Hospital with Trees for Life

Let the winds of change blow

In March 2022, Bullfrog signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) to support the construction of the Rattlesnake Ridge Wind Farm. By June 2022, the facility was operational and a source of your green electricity. The wind farm, set just west of Medicine Hat, Alberta, has 26 turbines and an impressive 130 MW capacity.

Bullfrog will offtake 30,000 MWh per year, or enough green electricity to bullfrogpower about 3,800 homes. RBC and Shopify also signed PPAs with Berkshire Hathaway Energy Canada to offtake 30,000 MWh each per year.

Companies use PPAs to facilitate renewable growth and address their carbon footprint. They achieve this by providing price certainty to developers for renewable energy from a project that hasn’t been built yet. This price guarantee helps developers secure financing for their new wind or solar project.

In 2020, we signed a PPA alongside RBC to bring a new, grid-scale solar project to Alberta. Less than a year later, in June 2021, we were celebrating the first MWh of green electricity that the Burdett and Yellow Lake Solar Farm put onto the grid! This solar farm and the Rattlesnake Ridge Wind Farm are proof that PPAs are a powerful way for organizations to accelerate renewable development.

This is an exciting time for Canada’s energy systems, and we’re proud to be supporting new wind and solar projects in one of the country’s most carbon-heavy grids. We thank all the bullfrogpowered businesses and individuals who continue to make projects like this possible!

Is

your organization

The state of corporate sustainability in Canada

Bullfrogpowered business leaders weigh in on today’s sustainability challenges

How many of Canada’s top 150 publicly traded companies have set sustainability targets?1

1According to PwC’s 2022 Canadian ESG reporting insights

75% disclosed a sustainability plan

35% set a net-zero target 30% shared timeframes for sustainability targets 20% Have externally assured reporting

A sustainability plan brings authenticity to our value statements and accountability to our business practices. By committing to meaningful targets for a sustainable deathcare practice, we’re able to reduce operational expenses, boost our sales, retain quality employees, and attract investors. — KORU Cremation Burial Ceremony

“TAS wants to help lead our industry towards greater sustainability and equity, and part of that is sharing our successes and failures. Our 2021 Impact Framework details what we intend to do, and our Annual Impact Reports transparently share how we’re doing. This has opened a lot of doors for us by identifying impact-aligned organizations who have the same ambitions and want to collaborate with us.” — TAS

How robust are the emissions reduction targets from TSX-listed companies?2

15% provided detailed plans for achieving their targets

62% provided some details

“Purolator has set 2030 goals and published a high-level roadmap on how we plan to achieve them. Through open communication, we believe we can achieve greater alignment with customers and communities. Internally, it fosters a deeper understanding of our strategic direction and facilitates the adoption of sustainability objectives across the organization.” — Purolator

23% provided limited or no details

2According to the Institute for Sustainable Finance’s 2021 report on Assessing Current Canadian Corporate Performance on GHG Emissions, Disclosure, and Target Setting

What barriers are companies facing globally?3

“We will only be successful when everyone sees sustainability as part of their job. This year, we added ESG points to our VPs’ job descriptions, recognizing that it will be easier to implement strategies that are mutually beneficial to the company and the planet.” — Deciem

Stakeholder alignment

Strategic oversight

47% say executive team’s sustainability knowledge and skills need improvement

35% think more accountability is needed for delivering against ESG targets

58% say their leadership team disagrees on how to balance short-term priorities with sustainable growth

51% believe shortterm earnings pressure from investors hinders investments in sustainability

Like most businesses, we have escalating operating costs and earnings pressure that threaten to distract from sustainability. But when it comes to the planet, we either pay now or pay later. I would rather keep a sense of urgency and find ways to shift now. — Devour Catering

Effective reporting

“Analyzing our performance and assessing strategic planning within the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) framework helps measure both the local and global context of PortsToronto’s efforts to combat climate change, and allows us to identify areas in which we can improve.” — PortsToronto

47% agree that sophisticated tech and data governance structures are needed to improve underlying ESG data quality

44% think independent, third-party assurance is needed to establish investor trust in ESG reporting

3Responses from 400 senior executives in the L.E.K Consulting Global Corporate Sustainability Survey 2022

Circular economy entrepreneurs

To an increasing number of cleantech entrepreneurs, the circular economy is a guiding principle that can improve our quality of life, increase profits, and address climate change.

We spoke to five ventures from Earth Tech, an accelerator led by our partners at Social Innovation Canada, about how they’re finding value in preventing waste and modelling new ways of doing business. Bullfrog supports Earth Tech through our community projects grant.

Anastasia Kiku is Co-Founder and COO of Reusables.com, a packaging-as-service platform that helps food businesses eliminate waste while preserving convenience.

Karl Neubert is Director and VP of Marketing at Renewable Resource Recovery Corp. (R3C), a licenser of disruptive technology to replace fossil fuels for heating and cooling.

Osayuki Osazuwa is Co-Founder and CEO of Jeosal Materials, a developer of economically viable and ecologically sustainable recycling solutions.

Erika Reyes is Founder and CEO of Inwit Solutions Inc., a venture that inspires Torontonians to take climate action by enjoying waste-free takeout.

Ben Wiper is Founder and CEO of 3F Waste Recovery, a startup that produces high-value ingredients from fish, farm, and forest by-products.

What’s a circular economy?

Most businesses today use a linear model that can be described as “take, make, and waste.” A circular approach to doing business involves taking fewer resources from the environment, making more useful, longer-lasting products, and wasting nothing.

For Erika Reyes, the circular economy is the answer to climate change. “The circular economy is about redesigning our society around a philosophy of taking only what we need today without compromising the needs of future generations.”

Shifting our cultural mindset away from linear, wasteful practices and towards circular models is a massive undertaking, but the benefits are well worth it. In addition to preserving natural resources and combating climate change, the economy stands to benefit from circular business models.

Research by Accenture reveals that the circular economy could generate USD 4.5 trillion of additional economic output by 2030, and as much as USD 25 trillion by 2050. Those who are stuck in their ways will miss out on the innovation opportunities that come with circular practices.

There are many ways to close the loop

Many practices can contribute to a circular economy, including sourcing used, recycled, or unwanted materials, designing quality products with longer lifespans, sharing or refurbishing existing products, and ensuring that all materials can return to natural cycles or the supply chain.

Reusables.com and Inwit’s products focus on the ‘sharing’ aspect of the circular economy by distributing reusable containers among food businesses and consumers. “Having this shared model allows us to invest in quality assets and create a premium takeout experience which is not viable for food businesses doing it individually,” noted Anastasia Kiku. Premium takeout containers are good examples of how circular principles can lead to better customer experiences and increased brand loyalty.

R3C and 3F Waste Recovery are devoted to adding value to outputs that would otherwise be considered waste. For example, 3F uses Atlantic cod by-products to produce pet treats, collagen powder, and more.

R3C’s technology helps building owners capture energy from their water pipes, store it, and then recover it when the building needs that heat. “Users of our system can both consume and produce their own thermal energy without fossil fuels,” Karl Neubert said. “This self-sufficiency eliminates the transportation and burning of fossil fuels and creates a new revenue stream for infrastructure owners.”

Jeosal Materials is working on the ‘recycling’ aspect of a closedloop system. They recycle fibre-reinforced plastics from sources like decommissioned wind turbine blades and derelict marine vessels. By diverting these materials from landfill, they provide recovered fibres and resin powder for applications like water treatment, energy storage, and composite products.

are closing the loop on waste

Embracing circularity isn’t without its challenges. Anastasia noted that the current, linear system is cheap because it doesn’t account for environmental impacts and the costs that result. To level the playing field, she calls for systems that incentivise keeping materials in use for longer.

Ben laments that regulations and policies aren’t ready for waste to become a commodity. He believes that a lack of awareness about circular principles is holding many companies, governments, and investors back. Osayuki agreed that we need better government regulations. He pointed to Europe, which has implemented strict regulations against landfilling and deadlines to attain certain levels of circularity.

Inwit’s containers are made from 75% recycled stainless steel and can be reused up to 10,000 times.

“The circular economy model is a win for the environment, which is beneficial to everyone,” said Osayuki Osazuwa. “Using recycled materials instead of virgin glass fibres can reduce carbon emissions by 378 kg per tonne of composite waste.”

As these startups know, the circular economy has as many benefits as there are approaches. Improved product quality and user experience, new revenue streams, and reduced environmental impact are just some of the advantages that are drawing in entrepreneurs.

Karl and Erika have also found that lack of awareness can be a barrier to success. “In a society where our waste disappears magically and effortlessly, it may seem inconvenient to return your containers. However, at a macro level, generating waste causes many unseen issues, such as plastic pollution, health impacts, and land use for waste management,” Erika said. Both Karl and Erika devote significant time and resources to educating the public about circular principles.

Despite these challenges, the five entrepreneurs agreed that circular practices are within our grasp – as long as we can shift our mindset. Today we use phrases like “throw away” and “generate waste” as the default for end-of-life products. The circular economy invites us to recognize that there is no “end” in end-of-life, and that waste from one product can be the foundation for something valuable and new.

Glass fibres are extracted

The turbine blades are shredded

A decommissioned wind turbine is sent to Jeosal Materials for recycling

Resin powder is recovered

Recovered fibres are used to produce thermoplastic composites or virgin fibres for new applications

Resin powder is used for water and wastewater treatment, gas separation, and battery materials

bullfrog

How can we veer off the straight and narrow?

green index

Vanguard

5,000–40,000 MWh or 35,000–280,000 GJ or equivalent combination*

Ambassador 500–4,999 MWh or 3,500–34,999 GJ or equivalent combination

TM

Steward

100–499 MWh or 700–3,499 GJ or equivalent combination

• Egg Farmers of Canada

• Nature’s Way

• Morguard

• Rocky Mountain Soap Co.

• Geotab

• Royal Printers

• George Brown College

• Flow Alkaline Spring Water

• Warren’s Waterless Printing

• Sanagan’s Meat Locker

• KingSett Captial

• TPH – The Printing House

• Davis

• Alphawave IP

• Jazz Cabbage Gardens

• BLES Biochemicals

• The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company

• Muldoon’s Craft Roasted Coffee

• OMISTA Credit Union

• Rocket.Ink

• Greengate Garden Centres

• Value Village

• Righteous Gelato

• GoJava

• Ecotrend Ecologics

• The Wooly Pub

• VersaCold Logistics Services

• Lac-Mac

• Just Us! Coffee Roasters

• UofG Central Student Association

• Stantec

• Dialysis Management Clinics

• Community Foundations of Canada

• Eight Ounce Coffee

• JASCO Applied Sciences

• DoubleTree by Hilton

• Laurentian Bank

• PFB Corporation

• Blackbird Baking Co.

• Provincial Credit Union

• DIALOG

• Wild Rock Outfitters

• Bridgemark

• RioCan

• Uponor

• David Suzuki Foundation

• Eatmore Sprouts & Greens Ltd.

• Upper Canada College

• Colliers

• McMillan LLP

• IATSE Local 873

• Beck Taxi

• Diamond Integrated Marketing

• Kallo Developments

• Horizon Grocery + Wellness

• VelocityEHS

• Hain Celestial Canada

• Sydney Credit Union

• Morgan Meighen & Associates Limited

• Urbanspace Property Group

• St Gabriel’s Passionist Parish

• Muttley Crue Grooming & Daycare

• Dominion City Brewing Co.

• ergoCentric Seating Systems

• KORU Cremation | Burial | Ceremony

• Red Bloom Salon

*Green Index tiers are based on annual purchase volume of green energy. Calculated as of October 31, 2022.

• Neuron Mobility Ltd.

• Mitsubishi Motor Sales of Canada, Inc.

• MakeWay Foundation

• ENOVIS

• First Capital

• Brookstreet Hotel

• Greenpeace Canada

• Optimum Health Vitamins

• Creative Therapy Consultants

• Mills Office Productivity

• Ocean Brands

• NetX

• Holy Spirit Lutheran Church

• The Turn Lab

• Quadrangle Architects

• InvestorCom

• Pazzo Pizzeria

• Diva International Inc.

• dds Automated Machinery Design Inc.

• Orium

• Earnest Ice Cream

• Volvo Cars of Canada

• Malty National

• Terramera

• Colour Innovations

• Cask Global Canning Solutions

• Benevity

• SITURA INC

• Hilton Vancouver Downtown

• Bousfields

• West Kelowna RCMP detachment

• Peel Scrap Metal Recycling

• Toronto Zoo

• Jugo Juice

• Amity Insulation Group Inc.

• Allvision

• Nations Translation Group

• Urban Strategies Inc.

• The Animal Clinic

• Calstone Inc

• The Pembina Institute

• i2i fulfillment

• Dalvay by the Sea

• Marketing Kitchen

• Caffe Beano

• Rain or Shine Ice Cream

• Garrison Brewing

• West Canadian Digital Imaging

• Eco-Max

• Canadian Green Building Council

• pb+j

• Ottawa Community Foundation

• Teachers Plus Credit Union

• Moya Financial Credit Union

• Nature Canada

• Kasian Architecture

• Clearstone Engineering

• Nova Scotia Community College

• Toronto Foundation

• Bartlett Lodge

• DTAH

• Manderley Turf

To view a full list of bullfrogpowered organizations and the details of their green energy commitments, visit bullfrogpower.com/greenindex

the bullfrog buzz•

About Bullfrog

Bullfrog Power, Spark Power’s sustainability division, is Canada’s leading green energy provider. Bullfrog empowers thousands of businesses and individuals to take action on climate change. Our solutions include power purchase agreementand

Bullfrog Power is Canada’s leading green energy provider. Bullfrog empowers thousands of businesses and individuals to take action on climate change. Our solutions include power purchase agreements, green electricity, green natural gas, and green fuel.

The Bullfrog Buzz is printed by Warren’s Waterless Printing Inc. on FSC-certified paper, which comes from well-managed forests, controlled sources, and recycled wood or fibre. The waterless printing process eliminates vast quantities of wastewater. Copyright © 2022, Bullfrog Power Inc. All

The Bullfrog Buzz is printed by Warren’s Waterless Printing Inc. on FSC-certified paper, which comes from well-managed forests, controlled sources, and recycled wood or fibre. The waterless printing process eliminates vast quantities of wastewater.