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Climate and Energy

TJX aims to achieve net zero GHG emissions by 2040 and source 100% renewable energy by 2030 in operations
TJX aims to achieve net zero GHG emissions by 2040 and source 100% renewable energy by 2030 in operationsTJX aims to achieve United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 13 and Goal 7
TJX aims to achieve United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 13 and Goal 7
TJX aims to achieve net zero GHG emissions by 2040 and source 100% renewable energy by 2030 in operations

FY22 Highlights

28%

absolute reduction in global GHG emissions from our direct operations from FY17 (50% of our target achieved)

25%

of our electricity in our global direct operations came from renewable energy sources

We work across our global business operations to measure, manage, and mitigate our climate impacts. In April 2022, we announced expanded commitments to reduce the climate impacts of our direct operations, meaning our stores, home offices, distribution (or processing) centers, and certain vehicles. Our global targets include:

  • By 2030:
  • We expect to reach a 55% absolute reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from our direct operations (Scope 1 and Scope 2) by Fiscal 2030 (against a Fiscal 2017 baseline)
  • We intend to source 100% renewable energy1 in our operations
  • By 2040:
  • We have a goal to achieve net zero GHG emissions in our operations (Scope 1 and Scope 2)

These commitments were developed using industry guidance, research, and models that are aligned with the United Nations’ Paris Agreement guidelines and support an emissions growth path aimed at limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

As we work toward our net zero goal, we have identified emissions reduction strategies and tactics that could reduce our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions in line with our commitment. Initially, we plan to focus on reducing emissions in our facilities and fleet through increased efficiency and switching to renewable energy. Some of our initiatives include:

  • We plan to accelerate investments in some energy efficient technologies, such as HVAC and LED lighting.
  • To reduce our Scope 1 emissions (which include natural gas and diesel) over the longer term, we are monitoring the development and deployment of alternative fuel/electric vehicles and new HVAC technologies (such as heat pumps) that could allow us to operate our stores, offices, DCs, and vehicles with zero GHG emissions.
  • We plan to increase our sourcing of renewable energy across our global operations and are procuring renewables in a variety of ways, such as onsite solar Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs), green tariffs, and unbundled renewable energy certificate (REC) contracts.

As our climate and energy strategies continue to evolve, we plan to continue to identify efforts that are impactful to our stakeholders, the environment, and that are feasible to implement within our business model.

FY22 Highlights

28%

absolute reduction in global GHG emissions from our direct operations from FY17 (50% of our target achieved)

25%

of our electricity in our global direct operations came from renewable energy sources

  • FY22 Climate and Energy Metrics

    Progress on global goals:

    • We expect to reach a 55% absolute reduction in GHG emissions from our direct operations (Scope 1 and Scope 2) by Fiscal 2030 (against a Fiscal 2017 baseline):
    • 28% reduction since Fiscal 2017
    • We intend to source 100% renewable energy1 in our operations by 2030
    • 25% of energy sourced in our global direct operations came from renewable sources

    GHG Emissions:

    • We experienced a 7.1% increase in our absolute market-based GHG emissions in Fiscal 2022 relative to Fiscal 2021 due to a return to normal operations after COVID-19 related temporary store closures reduced our GHG emissions in Fiscal 2021.

    Renewable Energy:

    • In Fiscal 2022, we sourced over 435 million kilowatt hours of renewable energy in total, generated from a variety of technologies. Together, our renewable and low-carbon energy sourcing strategy in Fiscal 2022 enabled us to reduce our Scope 2 market-based GHG inventory by more than 196,000 metric tons of CO2e, or by about 30% over the prior year.
    • In comparison to Fiscal 2021, TJX renewable and low-carbon energy sourcing increased by about 14% in Fiscal 2022.
    • TJX purchased 54,600 megawatt hours more renewable and low-carbon energy, including renewable energy certificates (RECs), onsite solar power purchase agreements (PPAs), and utility-supplied renewable energy in Fiscal 2022 than in Fiscal 2021. We estimate that this incremental increase in renewable purchases decreased metric tons of CO2e by 9.3%, approximately 50,200 metric tons of CO2e year over year.

    Emissions Reductions:

    • Together, in Fiscal 2022, energy management and renewable and low-carbon efforts resulted in a reduction of over 202,000 metric tons of CO2e from our operations saving an estimated $3.2 million.

    (Comparison data above includes Scope 1 and Scope 2 global GHG emissions calculated for Fiscal 2021 and Fiscal 2022 respectively)

  • Reducing Emissions: In Our Direct Operations

    Energy Efficiency

    Operations teams in each of our geographies are actively working to manage our energy consumption and costs, analyze and improve our operational performance, and test potential technologies in the facilities we operate to help us drive progress against our operational goals. Specifically, our tactics include:

    • Implementing light-emitting diode (LED) technologies
    • Retrofitting lighting and HVAC systems in existing stores and distribution centers in certain geographies
    • Exploring and leveraging utility level incentives and programs

    We are also exploring new technologies to optimize access and use of our energy data as well as evaluating battery energy storage and demand-control ventilation for HVAC, which may be applicable across certain facility types.

    Renewable and Low-Carbon Energy

    We source low-carbon and renewable energy to further reduce our GHG emissions from electricity consumption. Some examples of our current sourcing strategies include:

    • Wholesale power purchase agreements
    • On-site power purchase agreements
    • Electricity supply contracts
    • Renewable energy credits

    On-site Solar

    In the U.S., distribution centers in Arizona, Connecticut, and Nevada and select stores in New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and California have installed solar panels, resulting in an estimated $640,000 savings each year. These projects are on buildings we own or where market conditions and landlord partnerships enable projects.

    Offsetting

    In certain geographies, we leverage carbon offsets2 to offset emissions resulting from our direct operations and business travel.

    For example, TJX Canada has been carbon neutral for its Scope 1 and 2 and reported Scope 3 (business travel and waste) emissions from operations for its fourth consecutive year. The team reduced energy usage and purchased renewable energy credits as well as carbon offsets to support this strategy. In Fiscal 2022, from a combination of projects focused on forest conservation and small-scale hydro-electric generation in countries where we actively source merchandise, TJX Canada offset emissions associated with its operations, business travel, and waste, totaling 21,000 metric tons CO2e.

    Transportation and Fuel

    Although TJX does not generally own or lease the vehicles that transport our merchandise, we do include some emissions in our operational footprint (Scope 1) from limited sources, including those where we directly manage our logistics and distribution, such as in the U.K. and Ireland outbound store deliveries as well as fleet vehicles. Together with our partners, we work to increase fuel efficiency and reduce costs, with the goal of decreasing the impact of our vehicles on the environment. Our key strategies for reducing these emissions include:

    In the U.S. we:

    • Utilize hybrid cars for a small portion of our fleet vehicles.

    In the U.K. and Ireland, we:

    • Incorporate a "sustainability" clause in our new logistics agreements, which covers both trucking and store delivery vehicles and commits both parties to achieving key environmental goals aligned with TJX targets.
    • Have increased the use of both our longer-semi trailers and our Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) tractor units, resulting in carbon emissions reductions of approximately 156 metric tons per year.
    • Support ongoing initiatives including the implementation of fleet analytics and tire pressure monitoring to deliver incremental fuel efficiency.
    • Regularly review our delivery schedules to reduce miles traveled, implementing measures such as reducing empty running, combining store deliveries, and maximizing vehicle sizes.

    See Reducing Emissions: In Our Value Chain for more details on our transportation and logistics efforts.

    Building Green

    We have constructed new buildings and incorporated environmentally sustainable features when feasible. For example, our newly constructed distribution centers and processing centers are built to include the addition of onsite solar arrays where possible. Furthermore, when we move into existing properties, as part of the renovation process, our design teams typically consider ways to improve energy efficiency and water conservation and to develop recycling infrastructure where feasible. See a global list of environmentally sustainable building projects. See below for more information on our new European headquarters.

  • Reducing Emissions: In Our Value Chain

    Our focus has historically been on the climate-related impact of our direct operations where we have the most control over our facilities energy and fuel usage (Scope 1 and Scope 2). In addition, we have begun to evaluate how our commitment to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 emissions might be extended to certain Scope 3 emissions sources as well. Through a high-level screening of all 15 Scope 3 emissions categories, we have begun to develop a preliminary understanding of which of those categories of Scope 3 emissions are relevant to our business. We are also making progress in collecting publicly available information about the climate strategies, reduction targets, and emissions data for some of our largest vendors. These efforts are intended to help us evaluate our ability to collect data and measure certain sources of emissions from Scope 3 categories.

    Transportation and Fuel

    Our logistics teams worldwide seek out strategies and technology solutions that can help us increase the efficiency of our logistics and transportation operations and reduce fuel used to transport our merchandise throughout our distribution network. We strive to conserve fuel, reduce travel time, and decrease the number of trucks on the road. We use a variety of strategies and technologies to support this initiative, for example, using modeling software to improve the efficiency of our store delivery network, increasing utilization of trailer space, and testing new alternative fuel vehicles.

    In the U.S., we have opened service centers that are smaller than distribution centers in addition to using intermodal.3 These service centers are located closer to store clusters and designed to improve the efficiency of our store delivery process. We also utilize these service centers to co-locate our Asset Recovery and Recycling Centers (ARRCs) and maximize our delivery trucks’ utilization by backhauling re-usable and recyclable materials. Learn more about our ARRCs on the Waste Management page.

    Other efforts include:

    • We engage directly with our logistics partners and indirectly through third parties (such as U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) SmartWay Transport Partnership and Natural Resource Canada’s FleetSmart program) to identify opportunities to reduce fuel consumption and increase fuel efficiencies.
    • In 2021, 99% of TJX's U.S. freight and logistics ton-mileage was with SmartWay-certified carriers. To achieve this result, TJX collaborated with carriers to encourage their participation in this program. TJX requires that all new U.S. carriers are SmartWay-certified.
    • Where feasible, we use rail and intermodal for shipping merchandise, which is generally more fuel efficient and produces fewer emissions than trucking. We estimate that in Fiscal 2022, intermodal shipping resulted in 450,000 fewer metric tons of CO2e emissions than shipping the same volume by truck only.

    In the U.K. and Ireland, we work to reduce and conserve fuels in our owned fleet vehicles, and our agreement with our carrier for our trucking and store delivery trucks has a “sustainability” clause relating to achievement of key environmental goals.

  • Third-Party Verification and Assurance of Emissions Data
    • In Fiscal 2022, 100% of our global Scope 1 and 98% of our global Scope 2, location-based emissions data are third-party verified. (See page 97 of our 2022 Global Corporate Responsibility Report)
    • Our Scope 1 and Scope 2 U.S. and Canada GHG inventory data is third-party verified (using AICPA (AT105) standards). This initiative has resulted in TJX obtaining third-party verification for approximately 84% of our global Scope 1 emissions (onsite fuels, refrigerants, and transport fuels) and an estimated 88% of our global Scope 2 emissions (electricity and steam calculated using location-based emissions factors) for our Fiscal 2022 reporting period.
    • In Europe, our carbon footprint has been assessed by the Carbon Trust since 2006. Additionally, since 2009, we have achieved the Carbon Trust Standard certificate, recognizing our year-on-year efforts to reduce our environmental impact in the U.K., and since 2013, the certification has included our entire Scope 1 and 2 European operations.
    • Additionally, we also third-party verify about 54% of our Scope 3 reported business travel emissions data.


Building our European “Forever Home”


As we planned and constructed our new European headquarters in England, Corporate Responsibility was an aspect of our decision making, and we were proud that we achieved an “Excellent” BREEAM certification (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method, an environmental assessment method and rating system for buildings) for the design based on the building’s environmental sustainability credentials. Here are some of the ways we infused sustainability into our campus:

  • We chose updated fixtures in our bathrooms to help use less water.
  • We installed beehives on the roof as well as native landscaping and green walls to support improving biodiversity in the local area.
  • LED lighting has been installed throughout campus and can adjust on and off and by level automatically.
  • Enhanced waste sortation program.

1Purchased electricity only.
2Carbon offsets are certificates that can be traded. The certificate represents a reduction in GHG emissions created by a project, for example, planting acres of trees. Companies can purchase these certificates to “offset” GHG emissions in their operations.
3Transportation involving more than one form of carrier during a single journey.

Updated September 2022.