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FirstCarbon Solutions Opens Kenya Office to Support Sustainability Efforts across Africa

New Nairobi location will meet the pressing need for cost-effective environmental best practices in developing African nations. NAIROBI, KENYA and IRVINE, CALIFORNIA – (October 28, 2013) – In conjunction with its participation in the Global South-South Development Expo (GSSD) 2013, FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer and industry leader in environmental sustainability business solutions, today announced the opening of a new office in Nairobi, Kenya. The new location provides services and strategic support to organizations across Africa facing unique sustainability challenges. The FirstCarbon Solutions (FCS) global team will offer a variety of services through its new Nairobi location, including environmental planning, resource management, environmental and energy management, supply chain and life cycle assessments, and program management and infrastructure support. Hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme, the GSSD Expo’s overarching theme, “Building Inclusive Green Economies: South-South Cooperation for Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication” is aligned with FCS’ sustainability goals worldwide. FCS will be showcasing its environmental projects and results with public and private organizations around the globe. “Sustainable growth in emerging African economies is crucial to creating a healthier future for the region,” said James Donovan, CEO, FirstCarbon Solutions. “Leveraging our technical expertise in professional services, software and business process outsourcing, FCS is committed to providing customized end-to-end solutions to allow African businesses and governmental organizations alike to make real progress, reduce costs, improve operational efficiencies and optimize resources.” With solutions that are well proven in other parts of the world, FCS provides the means by which sustainable change can be achieved in the developing world. The GSSD will be held at the United Nations Office at Nairobi from 28 October to 01 November, 2013.

About FirstCarbon Solutions

FCS advances sustainable practices around the world and helps organizations responsibly grow and operate their businesses. Seamlessly delivering fully integrated, cost-effective consulting, data management and software solutions, FCS helps clients save time, reduce costs, optimize resource use, and drive operational efficiencies in a world where sustainability matters. With more than 30 years of environmental and sustainability consulting experience, FCS meets its clients’ ever-evolving environmental and compliance needs in energy, air and carbon management; environmental assessments and planning; supply and life cycle assessments; permitting and compliance; software and data processing. FirstCarbon Solutions is a member of ADEC Innovations, a global provider of onshore managed services and offshore outsourcing solutions for governments and businesses worldwide. For additional information, visit ADEC Innovations website.
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FirstCarbon Solutions Expands Regulatory Compliance Services

Leader In Environmental and Sustainability Business Solutions Improves Services to Support Complex, Multijurisdictional Projects and Helps Organizations Cost-Effectively Navigate Regulatory Landscape IRVINE, CA (July 31, 2013) – In an effort to help organizations overcome the challenges of sustainability in an increasingly regulated environment, FirstCarbon Solutions (FCS), a pioneer and industry leader in environmental and sustainability business solutions, today announced it is expanding its regulatory compliance services. As part of the expansion, FCS is now able to assist both public and private organizations in developing strategies, ensuring compliance with natural resource regulations, and implementing associated policies, guidelines, executive orders, and state and local permitting requirements. As a result of this service expansion, FCS’s nationwide team of expert professionals is able to manage large-scale projects that require environmental planning, permitting or compliance services. These services include, but are not limited to, comprehensive natural community assessments, wetland delineation and mitigation, water quality assessment and testing, vegetation mapping/identification/restoration, wildlife surveys, cultural resource assessments, and construction monitoring. Regulatory issues can be both confusing and time consuming, and the continuous changes in guidance, case law or administration make the process even more complex. As a company at the forefront of sustainability and environmental solutions, FCS provides services to help organizations navigate the regulatory landscape. Facing a complex, overlapping set of regulations that may have conflicting obligations and restrictions, project proponents need to wade through seemingly arbitrary compliance mandates across federal, state, and local permitting requirements, including the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act, Coastal Zone Management Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act. For long linear projects such as power transmission, oil & gas, water, or transportation projects, even compliance with statewide regulations may vary depending on the regional or district office of the regulatory authority. “At FCS, we are thoroughly familiar with the regulations, the process and the regulatory agencies,” said Robert A. Francisco, President, FCS. “With our regulatory compliance service expansion, we will now be able to participate in even more complex, linear and/or regional projects that cross multiple jurisdictions.” As the only company to have in-depth, broad environmental and sustainability expertise combined with extensive data processing capabilities that can be rapidly mobilized to augment or free up internal resources, FCS enables organizations to focus on their core activities and more strategic initiatives. According to Francisco, FCS’s regulatory specialists help organizations navigate through the often-complicated compliance process as accurately and efficiently as possible, balancing the need for local development while making a difference by protecting the natural environment. “Our compliance experts are the eyes and ears of public and private organizations, ensuring that today’s executives understand the current environment and where trends are taking us,” he said. “We can help directly link a company’s compliance programs to profitability and business efficiency; providing a clear picture of an organization’s environmental performance can be used not only for reporting but also for optimizing operations and resource efficiency to reduce costs and risks.” A member of ADEC Innovations, a global enterprise with more than 5,000 employees and operations in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, FCS’ regulatory specialists have decades of experience within government and industry. They routinely work with clients and regulatory agencies to minimize permitting timeframes and hurdles to streamline the approval process, frequently interfacing with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service, state and local departments of environmental protection, environmental conservation, and natural resources. About FirstCarbon Solutions FCS advances sustainable practices around the world and helps organizations responsibly grow and operate their businesses. Seamlessly delivering fully integrated, cost-effective consulting, data management and software solutions, FCS helps clients save time, reduce costs, optimize resource use, and drive operational efficiencies in a world where sustainability matters. With more than 30 years of environmental and sustainability consulting experience, FCS meets its clients’ ever-evolving environmental and compliance needs in energy, air and carbon management; environmental assessments and planning; supply and life cycle assessments; permitting and compliance; software and data processing. FirstCarbon Solutions is a member of ADEC Innovations, a global provider of onshore managed services and offshore outsourcing solutions for governments and businesses worldwide. For additional information, visit ADEC Innovations website.
 
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FirstCarbon Solutions and Compass Group Launch Carbon FOODPrint Toolkit to Redefine Sustainability within Foodservice Operations

Unique Web-Based Tool Design Helps Chef and Managers IRVINE, CA and CHARLOTTE, NC (March 27, 2013)– FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer and industry leader in environmental sustainability business solutions, and Compass Group, the world’s leading food and support services company, announced the launch of the software tool being used to support Compass Group’s Carbon FOODprint™ toolkit. This unique, web-based tool, powered by FirstCarbon Solutions, is designed to help Compass Group’s food operations staff lower their environmental impact and operational costs. Early Carbon FOODPrint adopters to date include well-known companies, such as SAP, and colleges, including Auburn University and Green Mountain College. An easy-to-use toolkit, Carbon FOODPrint allows chefs and managers to create customized strategies to reduce their operations’ carbon footprints by decreasing waste disposal, and energy and water use. Foodservice managers can make up to 185 strategic choices in four key areas, including menu engineering, kitchen services, site equipment and facilities. Developed by FirstCarbon Solutions and hosted as part of its Sustainability Workbench platform, the web-based software application is an integral part of the Carbon FOODprint toolkit. This online technology allows cafes to benchmark and measure the improvements made throughout the café, which can be shared with clients for annual reports, sustainability indexes, and disclosure to public programs such as the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP). To develop the strategic planning portion of the Carbon FOODprint toolkit, Compass Group partnered with key players who could provide specific contributions in their area of expertise, such as the Green Restaurant Association, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Food Service TechnologyCenter (supported by Pacific Gas & Electric). In “Phase 2” of this project, Compass Group teamed with FirstCarbon Solutions, to enhance the toolkit with sustainability metrics in a robust and user-friendly software platform, with cutting-edge dashboard applications for food service industry clients. Marc Zammit, Vice President of Sustainability Initiatives at Compass Group, said the web-based tool was created in response to his clients’ growing interest in having a strategic planning tool to measure, manage, and lower their operation costs and food service carbon footprint. “With Carbon FOODPrint, we now have an opportunity to provide our clients with cost effective solutions to lower the environmental impact of their food services,” Zammit said. “Commercial food service is a resource intense operation, and our onsite teams will use this scalable toolkit to make their operation more sustainable by minimizing carbon impact, while at the same time implementing best practices that lower operational costsin the areas of menuing, energy, water and waste. Supported by FirstCarbon Solutions software, managers will now have the information they need to make the best choices for their business, their clients and the environment.” As part of the design and collaboration with Compass Group, FirstCarbon Solutions collected thousands of pieces of data on the production, packaging, and transport of individually purchased food items, serving materials, and cleaning chemicals required to manage a foodservice operation “from cradle to customer.” The Toolkit couples this information with site-specific operational data from individual cafes to provide up-to-date dashboards on the carbon, energy, water, and wastes associated with all aspect of a food service operation (facilities, kitchen operations, kitchen services, and menu engineering). “Compass Group’s Carbon FOODprint proves the point that sustainability and profitability are not mutually exclusive,” said Robert Francisco, President, FirstCarbon Solutions. “With this innovative technology developed by FirstCarbon Solutions, Compass Group will help redefine sustainability within foodservice operations by providing cafes unprecedented visibility into the impact their operations have on the environment and helping teams create behavioral changes that will have long-term impacts and improvements.” Chet Chaffee, FirstCarbon Solutions Director of Supply Chain and Life Cycle Assessment added, “The software platform that FirstCarbon Solutions Group developed in support of the Carbon FOODPrint toolkit benchmarks the carbon, energy, water and waste footprints of each participating unit, and provides insights on where to make changes to maximize sustainable efficiencies across the operation. To my knowledge, such a comprehensive, systematic and technically sound program, that considers all these aspects of food operations, has never been tackled before.” Carbon FOODprint toolkit is currently generally available to all 9,900 Compass Group cafes in the United States. About Compass Group, North America Based in Charlotte NC, Compass Group North America is the leading foodservice management and support services company with $12 billion USD (£7.5 billion) in revenues in 2012. With over 500,000 associates worldwide, its parent company, UK-based Compass Group PLC had revenues of £16.9 billion in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2012. About FirstCarbon Solutions FCS advances sustainable practices around the world and helps organizations responsibly grow and operate their businesses. Seamlessly delivering fully integrated, cost-effective consulting, data management and software solutions, FCS helps clients save time, reduce costs, optimize resource use, and drive operational efficiencies in a world where sustainability matters. With more than 30 years of environmental and sustainability consulting experience, FCS meets its clients’ ever-evolving environmental and compliance needs in energy, air and carbon management; environmental assessments and planning; supply and life cycle assessments; permitting and compliance; software and data processing. FirstCarbon Solutions is a member of ADEC Innovations, a global provider of onshore managed services and offshore outsourcing solutions for governments and businesses worldwide. For additional information, visit ADEC Innovations.

Press Contacts:

For FirstCarbon Solutions:
Steve Fiore SS|PR Ph: +1-847-415-9329 Email: sfiore@sspr.comFor Compass Group:
Veronica Ospina Compass Group North America 704/328-4291 Email: veronica.ospina@compass-usa.com
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FirstCarbon Solutions Selected To Prepare Environmental Studies For L.A.’s Groundbreaking Hollywood Central Park Project

FirstCarbon Solutions Selected To Prepare Environmental Studies For L.A.’s Groundbreaking Hollywood Central Park Project LOS ANGELES and IRVINE, CA (February 27, 2013) — FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer and industry leader in environmental sustainability solutions for business, and the Friends of Hollywood Central Park (FHCP), a non-profit organization dedicated to building the Hollywood Central Park, today announced that FirstCarbon Solutions has been selected to prepare the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and other necessary studies for the groundbreaking and transformative Hollywood Central Park (HCP) project. Supporting one of the most dense and green space-starved neighborhoods in Los Angeles, HCP is a planned 44-acre street level urban park built over a one-mile stretch of the Hollywood Freeway (US 101). The Park began as an idea more than 28 years ago. In 2006, it progressed from a Hollywood Chamber of Commerce initiative to a Hollywood Community coalition and finally to Friends of the Hollywood Central Park, a nonprofit organization. FHCP is dedicated to raising funds to create a new urban park in Hollywood by covering a portion of the Hollywood Freeway (US 101) as it travels below grade between Hollywood and Santa Monica Boulevards. Funding for the EIR was made possible by a generous $1.2 million donation from the Aileen Getty Foundation. Additionally, the City of Los Angeles contributed $825,000. In November 2012, an RFP (request for proposal) was issued to interested parties. Five firms submitted proposals which were evaluated by FHCP community Board members, legal counsel and Caltrans consultants. In-person interviews were conducted in December, 2012, and on January 10, 2013, the selection of FirstCarbon Solutions was announced at For Love of Hollywood Gala benefiting the Hollywood Central Park. FHCP President Laurie Goldman said FirstCarbon Solutions was selected because of the firm’s strong technical qualifications and its shared passion and understanding of the needs of the Hollywood community. “Hollywood is a bold community and constructing the Hollywood Central Park is a bold move,” Goldman said. “With this one project, Los Angeles will address the economy, the environment, the health of its residents and their quality of life. Los Angeles will become the leader in sustainable cities and livable communities. We are proud to have the forward-thinking FirstCarbon Solutions as our partner to lead the project’s EIR process,” Goldman continued. In cooperation with Los Angeles Bureau of Engineering, the EIR lead agency, FirstCarbon Solutions will deliver high-quality environmental services and support the timely implementation of the HCP project through preparation of the required California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) documentation on behalf of FHCP. As part of the EIR and other necessary studies, the FirstCarbon Solutions team will provide a whole host of technical analyses in conformance with CEQA and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requirements. These include community impact assessments, traffic/circulation studies, noise and vibration assessments, air quality studies, as well as conducting geotechnical and hazards/hazardous materials investigations. Reuniting communities separated for more than 50 years, the Hollywood Central Park is a creative place making infrastructure project that contributes toward the livability of Hollywood and the Los Angeles region by transforming US 101 into a lively, beautiful, sustainable place with the promotion of healthier lifestyles, environmental justice and long term economic security at its core. “Building a Hollywood Central Park over the 101 Freeway is a visionary idea that would create open space in one of L.A.’s most dense neighborhoods. The Park will be a destination for the local community and shine as a global model of innovation in urban living,” said LA City Council Member Eric Garcetti. “It’s wonderful that Friends of the Hollywood Central Park selected FirstCarbon Solutions and are moving us closer to making this vision a reality.” With its global headquarters in Irvine, California, FirstCarbon Solutions recently opened a new Los Angeles office at 11601 Wilshire Boulevard to expand its ability to offer fully integrated environmental sustainability solutions to its growing base of clients and prospects in the region. The environmental and sustainability consulting firm has provided environmental support for many L.A.-based agencies, including The L.A. Department of Water and Power, the L.A. World Airports and the L.A. Parks and Recreation Department. In addition, FirstCarbon Solutions was recently selected as an On-Call Consultant Member for the City of Los Angeles Department of Public Works Bureau of Engineering. “Consistent with our founding principle that sustainability matters, FirstCarbon Solutions is thrilled to help implement the vision Edward V. Hunt had over 28 years ago – that Hollywood needed a park to bring neighborhoods together but didn’t have the adequate space. Reclaiming the airspace above the Hollywood Freeway trench for use as an urban park is an innovative and efficient alternative to purchasing land,” said Robert A. Francisco, President, FirstCarbon Solutions. As a member of ADEC Innovations, a global enterprise with more than 5,000 employees and operations in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, FirstCarbon Solutions is the only company to have in-depth, broad environmental and sustainability expertise combined with extensive back office processing and software capabilities that can be rapidly mobilized to augment or free up internal resources, allowing organizations to focus on their core activities and more strategic initiatives. About Friends of the Hollywood Central Park FHCP is a non-profit organization dedicated to building the Hollywood Central Park, a 44-acre street urban level park over the Hollywood Freeway as it travels below grade through the heart of Hollywood. The Hollywood Central Park is a landmark infrastructure project that will reunite diverse and dense communities separated for more than 50 years by the Hollywood Freeway, strengthen the economy through job creation and increased tourism dollars, provide healthy communities and provide children with open green space in which to grow and thrive. The Hollywood Central Park will transform Hollywood’s disadvantaged communities into thriving economic engines and is an investment in our children, our community and our future. For more information visit http://hollywoodcentralpark.org. About FirstCarbon Solutions FCS advances sustainable practices around the world and helps organizations responsibly grow and operate their businesses. Seamlessly delivering fully integrated, cost-effective consulting, data management and software solutions, FCS helps clients save time, reduce costs, optimize resource use, and drive operational efficiencies in a world where sustainability matters. With more than 30 years of environmental and sustainability consulting experience, FCS meets its clients’ ever-evolving environmental and compliance needs in energy, air and carbon management; environmental assessments and planning; supply and life cycle assessments; permitting and compliance; software and data processing. FirstCarbon Solutions is a member of ADEC Innovations, a global provider of onshore managed services and offshore outsourcing solutions for governments and businesses worldwide. For additional information, visit FirstCarbon Solutions website.
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FirstCarbon Solutions and the Carbon Disclosure Project Partner to Complete Supplier Scoring for CDP Supply Chain 2011/12

Focused on achieving carbon transparency for organizations and suppliers for which sustainability has become a business imperative; voluntary carbon and climate change action reporting gaining traction among global organizations.
DEPOSIT, N.Y. & LONDON, October 18, 2011 — FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer and industry leader in environmental business intelligence today announced a partnership with the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) in which FirstCarbon Solutions will score all company submissions to CDP Supply Chain, a program which works with global corporations to understand the impacts of climate change across the supply chain. CDP, an independent not-for-profit organization, provides a transformative global system for organizations to measure, disclose, manage and share climate change information. With consumers, shareholders and other stakeholders demanding carbon reporting transparency, businesses are actively examining the green credentials of their existing and potential suppliers. More than 50 brands, including Vodafone, Pepsico and Walmart, participate in CDP Supply Chain. FirstCarbon Solutions will score disclosures from nearly 1,300 suppliers in the coming months to determine the quality of disclosure and the level of climate change performance. As CDP Supply Chain’s scoring partner, FirstCarbon Solutions will be tasked with taking information provided by participating suppliers and creating a disclosure score and, for the first time, a CDP Supply Chain performance score. These scores help the CDP Supply Chain members and their suppliers benchmark performance and seek year-on-year improvements. FirstCarbon Solutions’ depth of experience in carbon accounting, life cycle assessment and carbon trading makes the company an ideal partner for this project. Frances Way, programs director, CDP said, “We selected FirstCarbon Solutions as a scoring partner because of its leadership position in both data management and sustainability. The scored data will provide tangible insights for our members in assessing which suppliers are performing well on climate change and those that are lagging behind.” “Organizations are actively setting targets and making performance improvements to reduce their carbon footprint. And as greater importance is placed on mandatory and consistent reporting of carbon emissions, a standard scoring system is the only way to provide the transparency required for effective carbon management along the entire supply chain,” said Charles Hansard, director of business development Europe, FirstCarbon Solutions. “Supported by FirstCarbon Solutions’ proven data management and carbon accounting capabilities, CDP Supply Chain offers a practical scoring system that enables industry benchmarking and removes existing complexities pertaining to supplier carbon data collection.” About Carbon Disclosure Project CDP is an independent not-for-profit organization holding the largest database of primary corporate climate change information in the world. Some 3,000 organizations and cities across the world’s largest economies now measure and disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate change strategies through CDP, in order that they can set reduction targets and make performance improvements. This data is made available for integration into local government, business and policy decision making. For more information visit https://www.cdp.net/en. About FirstCarbon Solutions FirstCarbon Solutions is the only end-to-end sustainability provider, combining services, software and business process outsourcing into cost-effective solutions. Unlike companies that specialize solely in environmental software or consulting services, FirstCarbon Solutions allows organizations to completely outsource sustainability management. FirstCarbon Solutions is a subsidiary of ADEC Solutions (www.adec-solutions.com), a global enterprise with over 5,000 employees and operations in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. For more information on FirstCarbon Solutions, please visit http://www.firstcarbonsolutions.com.
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FirstCarbon Solutions Deliver Rebate Processing Support for California Energy Commission Cash for Appliances Program

FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer in environmental management optimization, today announced that it is providing data management support for California Energy Commission’s Cash for Appliances rebate program. WEST CHESTER, Pa., May 11, 2010 — FirstCarbon Solutions, a pioneer in environmental management optimization, today announced that it is providing data management support for California Energy Commission’s Cash for Appliances rebate program. FirstCarbon Solutions is overseeing customer call center support, evaluating rebate applications, and working to process and approve applications in a timely and cost-effective manner. Applications will then be distributed to Energy Commission for payment processing and issuing. Since April 22, California consumers have been able to trade in appliances such as old refrigerators, clothes washing machines, and room air conditioners for new energy efficient models. The Cash for Appliances rebate program will offer rebate incentives from the $35.2 million in federal stimulus funding California received from the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA).FirstCarbon Solutions was selected as a result of a competitive bid solicitation based on the overall quality of service and efficiency the company delivers to its customers. The Energy Commission will benefit from a cost-effective program that decreases operating costs for the State of California while conserving budget-constrained resources and keeping the majority of funds within the state. “Processing data for sustainability programmes poses many challenges for organisations,” said Dailey Tipton, vice president, sales and marketing, FirstCarbon Solutions. “Whether it’s a customer rebate program from a state energy office or a company trying to create an accurate and verifiable carbon footprint, success begins with effectively managing data. The Energy Commission’s effort to improve California’s long-term energy efficiency goals is the latest example of the kinds of sustainability initiatives FirstCarbon Solutions can support.” FirstCarbon Solutions combines environmental consulting and GHG emissions management software to allow organisations to optimise their sustainability initiatives. For regulated industries struggling with how to assure compliance with new environmental reporting requirements, FirstCarbon Solutions provides the an end-to-end environmental management solution that helps companies quickly identify and collect the necessary data and accurately calculate a carbon footprint without draining an organisation’s internal resources. For organisations not yet subject to carbon regulation, but where carbon has a material impact on business operations, FirstCarbon Solutions quantifies the cost of carbon and transforms that cost into business opportunity. The California Cash for Appliances website – www.cash4appliances.org – explains the rebate program and offers information such as the forms that consumers are required to fill out once the new efficient appliance is purchased. This will help consumers find eligible appliances and fill out forms correctly, delivering and installing energy efficient appliances and recycling old models to California certified recyclers. The website also lists the partner retailers who have signed on to the program, including “Platinum Partner” stores, which offer a full-service to consumers.

About FirstCarbon Solutions

FirstCarbon Solutions advances sustainable practices around the world and helps organizations responsibly grow and operate their businesses. Seamlessly delivering fully integrated, cost-effective consulting, data management and software solutions, FCS helps clients save time, reduce costs, optimize resource use, and drive operational efficiencies in a world where sustainability matters. With more than 30 years of environmental and sustainability consulting experience, FCS meets its clients’ ever-evolving environmental and compliance needs in energy, air and carbon management; environmental assessments and planning; supply and life cycle assessments; permitting and compliance; software and data processing. FirstCarbon Solutions is a member of ADEC Innovations, a global provider of onshore managed services and offshore outsourcing solutions for governments and businesses worldwide.