2018 REGISTRATION DOCUMENT AND ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT

2018 Registration document and annual fi nancial report - BNP PARIBAS556

7 A COMMITTED BANK: INFORMATION CONCERNING THE ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, CIVIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY OF BNP PARIBAS

Our environmental responsibility: combating climate change

REDUCING WASTE AND RECYCLING WHENEVER POSSIBLE In the context of its actions to promote the circular economy (see Partnering with our clients in the transition to a low-carbon economy, Commitment 10), the Group committed to making progress each year on the amount of waste recycled by employees, mostly paper, and on the quality of data in this respect. More reliable information concluded that a total of 28,180 tonnes of waste generated by the Group was collected, or 139kg/FTE. 36.6% of the total volume of waste is recycled, or the equivalent of 51kg per employee.

Since 2011, the Group also has an IT equipment processing policy (PC, servers, screens, etc.) which makes it possible to manage the associated environmental and social risks. Its goal is to give them a second life (donations or resale) whenever possible, while ensuring their traceability. Dismantling is only considered as a last resort, with a focus placed on maximising the recycling rate.

COMBATING LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY AND MANAGING WATER CONSUMPTION BNP Paribas helps to combat the loss of biodiversity in several ways:

■ by taking measures to protect biodiversity. For example, in 1985, BNP Paribas Fortis bought the Virelles pond (125 hectares) and transferred its management to three associations with a long-term lease of 99 years. Today, the pond has a nature centre, a bird-watching centre and a hospital for birds and mammals;

■ by opting for responsibly-sourced paper in its paper purchases, BNP Paribas helps to protect forest ecosystems and their biodiversity.

Controlling impacts on ecosystems also involves controlling water consumption, which was 19.05 m3/FTE in 2018. This is achieved through the installation of meters to identify leaks, equipment to optimise fl ows in sanitary facilities, and the installation of presence-detector sensors that automatically turn off taps.

COMMITMENT 12: ADVANCE AWARENESS AND SHARING OF BEST ENVIRONMENTAL PRACTICES

In addition to its commitments to support its customers in the energy transition, BNP Paribas contributes to boosting and spreading knowledge as well as good environmental practices with civil society.

SUPPORT RESEARCH AND DEVELOP KNOWLEDGE ON CLIMATE CHANGE The BNP Paribas Foundation supports scientifi c research programmes in the fields of climate change and biodiversity. Two philanthropy programmes in particular benefi t from these actions .

Launched by the BNP Paribas Foundation in 2010, Climate Initiative has already fi nancially supported 8 projects for EUR 12 million involving 18 international research teams. Issues being researched include the collection of new data on past climates in Antarctica and the carbon sequestration capacity of cultivated soils in Africa.

A total of 324 researchers, professors and engineers have benefi ted from this programme since 2010 and the programme has raised the climate change awareness of around 300,000 people.

C limate change is also a major factor in biodiversity erosion, as demonstrated by 11 of the 18 projects supported by the Foundation since 2010. With this in mind, at the end of 2018, the Foundation decided to change the name of the programme to Climate & Biodiversity Initiative . In 2019, a new call for projects will be launched to support scientifi c research on climate and biodiversity.

In 2018, BNP Paribas maintained its commitment to the One Planet Fellowship programme. With a 5-year grant of USD 15 million, this philanthropy programme is equally funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates and the BNP Paribas Foundations. Its goal is to support 600 African and European researchers working on the adaptation to climate change in Africa.