Sempra

Sempra is a U.S. energy infrastructure company with LNG, electric utility, natural gas utility, and energy infrastructure assets. The company conducts global water-risk assessments across its facilities portfolio. Water use is heavily weighted toward its LNG operations, with power generation and employee-occupied facilities accounting for less. Because many facilities are located near water-scarce areas, its water stewardship efforts focus on alternative water sources, water recycling, reclaimed water, water-risk screening, and minimizing freshwater use. Water use was recently reduced at the Cameron LNG facility through the use of seawater in the nature-optimized ECA LNG regasification terminal (ECA Energy, 2022; Tacher, 2022).

Sempra's primary and most distinctive approach to managing water risk involves greater use of lower-quality alternative water sources. Most of the LNG plant's salt and brackish water, as well as the seawater used at ECA LNG, is also used for power plants and fully returned to its source after temperature monitoring. Furthermore, the company uses WRI Aqueduct in facility-specific water-risk screening, incorporates climate-related water risks into construction and business-resumption planning, employs measures such as dry cooling, xeriscaping, and water-efficient fixtures, uses reclaimed water, and minimizes or avoids areas where valuable riparian habitat may otherwise be impacted.

Note: The SASB figures cover power-plant operations only, so they should not be treated as equivalent to Sempra’s companywide water totals.