Our Plan to Improve Habitats
Biodiversity
Our focus on biodiversity, aiming to protect and improve the habitats where we operate and build, is an integral component of our sustainability program. While our data center campuses are mostly occupied by buildings, we find creative opportunities to use the surrounding land to support a diversity of resilient biological networks, as well as our digital ones. As governments and companies throughout the world turn their attention to the biodiversity crisis, standardized metrics and frameworks for assessing habitat impact are under development. In the meantime, we approach our biodiversity strategy through the same hierarchy of control that we use to approach other aspects of our environmental portfolio: reduce impact, restore onsite habitat, and restore offsite habitat.
Site Selection to Minimize Harm
Our approach for new data centers includes efforts to reduce our impact on the environment by selecting sites where our facilities will not create negative impacts on prime wildlife habitats. Then, new landscape designs find ways to improve habitats on or near our sites using native plants and sustainable management practices.
Onsite Habitat Improvement
Our sustainability target is to improve habitat at each of our facilities, focusing on pollinator- and bird-friendly gardens to support local biodiversity. We prefer landscape management practices that conserve water, avoid unnecessary disturbance and chemical use, and strive for a natural aesthetic. There are three components in our biodiversity approach. First, we have immediate control over reducing our biodiversity impact within the physical footprint of our facilities. Prioritizing site selection in zones designated for industrial development ensures that we avoid areas of high habitat quality. Second, once our data centers are built, we can use the available green space to restore habitat within landscaping with locally appropriate native species with a landscape design that encourages benefits to wildlife. Third, we seek offsite opportunities to improve habitats near our facilities by working with local nonprofits that have conservation expertise.
Offsite Habitat Improvement
CyrusOne’s sustainability approach includes improving biodiversity in areas near data centers when on-site improvement opportunities are not available. Our approach includes working collaboratively with local non-profit organizations and communities to enhance biodiversity in local areas.
