We are excited to bring you the Texan by Nature 20 (TxN 20) for its third year! The TxN 20 is an effort to recognize the best work in conservation coming from businesses operating and based in Texas. It’s an opportunity to showcase innovation, commitment, and best practices from a variety of industries.
To select the 2021 TxN 20, the TxN Team evaluated submissions as well as conducted independent research across 2,000+ of Texas’ publicly traded and private companies within 12 industry sectors. All companies were evaluated on a 17-point scoring system to narrow down the list of the top 60 companies in Texas. A selection committee of top industry leaders was formed to evaluate the top 60 companies and select the final honorees for the TxN 20.
Texas knows how to harness energy, providing more than one-fifth of U.S. domestically produced energy. In 2020, Texas accounted for 43% of the nation’s crude oil production, 26% of its marketed natural gas production, and produced about 28% of all U.S. wind-powered electricity. While maintaining production leadership, energy leaders are actively developing innovative new technologies that protect and conserve natural resources. From recycling and conserving water to renewable energy usage to carbon sequestration to incorporating conservation recommendations as standard practice, the energy industry is working to reduce impact while powering the world.
Learn more about the 2021 TxN 20 honorees from the energy industry and see a list of industry highlights.
2021 Honoree: Shell Oil Company
Shell is a multinational energy and petrochemical company that views conservation and sustainability as not an ‘either / or’ option when it comes to conducting business. They have invested approximately $90 million in nature-based projects to benefit ecosystems by increasing biodiversity, water quality, and reducing emissions. Their efforts in Texas and Louisiana include funding the The Gulf Coast Initiative, a project with Ducks Unlimited, where funding from Shell has directly conserved 20,720 acres.
2021 Honoree: Vistra Corp.
For the second consecutive year, Vistra Corp., a Texas-based power generation company, is a TxN 20 Honoree. Vistra expects to invest, on average, $500 million of equity per year on renewable generating assets and retail businesses as they continue to transition away from carbon-heavy generating resources. In addition to investing in renewable energy, Vistra has reclaimed 86,000+ acres, planted 42+ million native trees, and created or enhanced 7,000+ acres of wetlands, ponds, and stream channels on their restored land.
Read the full honoree Q&A write-ups and read the 2021 press release
Industry Highlights
In addition to this year’s TxN 20 honorees, learn more about best practices in conservation and sustainability coming from companies across the energy industry.
- NRG Energy partnered with Texan by Nature in 2021 to build a community garden for communities around Jewett, Texas. This 10-acre garden will function to alleviate food insecurity in this area. NRG broke ground on a one-acre plot to start in May of 2021, which is expected to yield approximately 10,000 pounds of fresh produce for the community every year.
- Lightsource bp focuses on developing energy solutions through solar power. They are leaders in their industry, focusing on reducing emissions, prioritizing biodiversity, and minimizing waste through their renewable energy efforts. Lightsource bp’s solar farms, Elm Ranch and Briar Creek function to provide clean energy, offset over 400,000 metric tonnes of carbon annually, and recently, their ranches will support solar grazing. These ranches will sustain sheep grazing, which will contribute to increasing the overall biodiversity of the land.
- Apache Corporation invested over $250,000 in the McDonald Observatory to support the Dark Skies Initiative. Their support helped develop industry and community educational tools and increased staffing to provide education and assessment of local industry performance on dark skies lighting. Additionally, these funds were put towards creating a permanent exhibit on dark sky preservation. Apache Corporation is TxN Certified for their implementation of dark skies friendly lighting across their operations.
- Invenergy works with residents and farmers to promote solar projects that regenerate soils, diversify farm operations, and promote overall environmental health. For example, the presence of sheep on their La Jacinta Energy Center project improves soil nutrition and arability, which helps regenerate pollinator species and maintain vegetation.
- Enbridge prioritizes sustainability as they commit to reaching net zero emissions by 2050. Additionally, Enbridge is a leader in energy transition, as they constructed a 10.5 acre solar generation facility in Alberta named Alberta Solar One. This renewable energy facility will offset approximately 13,300 tonnes of carbon annually.
- NextEra Energy Resources prioritizes investments in renewable energies which now account for more than one-third of their generating capacity. To make renewable energy even greener, NextEra Energy avoided 16 billion gallons of water usage in 2020 through water-free wind and PV solar energy. Additionally, in 2020, NextEra Energy sourced 75% of the water in their generating facilities through saltwater sources, which are not subject to drought.
- EOG Resources partnered with Texan by Nature on a pollinator project that restored 350+ acres of pollinator habitat within privately-owned pipeline ROW and pad sites operated by EOG Resources in the Eagle Ford Shale. This project creates food plots for monarchs, birds, and other wildlife as well.
- Marathon Petroleum’s San Antonio office participated in the Lights Out Texas initiative in order to protect migratory birds by decreasing light emissions at night. Additionally, Marathon Petroleum finds great importance in engaging their employees in sustainable efforts through their Habitat Enhancement, Awareness and Recycle Team (HEART). This group transformed unused company property at their Galveston Bay Refinery into viable wildlife habitats, benefitting local wildlife while creating environmental education opportunities for employees and the community.