Environmental
We are committed to being a net lease leader in environmental sustainability over the long term.
Our Commitment
As a net lease REIT, most of our properties are leased on a triple-net basis whereby tenants are responsible for day-to-day operations, including energy usage and sustainability practices. Despite our lack of direct control, we strive to lead the net lease industry in environmental sustainability by taking a proactive and transparent approach to quantifying and reducing our global carbon footprint.
Sustainability Objectives
Implementing Technology
We are focused on implementing technology to build and deploy scalable systems to collect and analyze tenant emissions data, which allow us to quantify our global GHG emissions and set carbon reduction targets.
Tenant Engagement
W. P. Carey has always taken a proactive approach to managing our portfolio, with our Asset Management department structured around tenant relationships. As a result, the team develops long-term relationships with tenant management teams, providing a direct and ongoing dialogue about the tenant’s business, including sustainability.
Sustainability Projects
Our sustainability projects fall within three key areas: renewable energy opportunities, building energy retrofits, and opportunities and green-building certifications. We believe that improving the quality and sustainability of our assets increases renewal probabilities, deepens tenant relationships and increases the overall value of our portfolio.
Our Portfolio
6.1M
sq. ft. of green-certified buildings¹ ²
35%
of portfolio (by sq. ft.) under a green lease² ³
60%+
of tenants enrolled in electricity usage data reporting³ ⁴
¹ For a building to be considered “green-certified” under our investment criteria, it must at a minimum be certified by LEED, BREEAM or a similarly recognized organization or certification process. LEED™—an acronym for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design™—and its related logo are trademarks owned by the U.S. Green Building Council and are used with permission. Learn more at www.usgbc.org/LEED. BREEAM is a registered trademark of BRE (the Building Research Establishment Ltd. Community Trade Mark E5778551). The BREEAM marks, logos and symbols are the Copyright of BRE and are reproduced by permission.
² Portfolio information reflects pro rata ownership of real estate assets (excluding operating properties) as of June 30, 2025.
³ As a percentage of square footage.
⁴ Data as of December 31, 2024.
Emissions Reduction Target
Established a near-term reduction target for our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions
- Target: 34% reduction in absolute Scope 1 and 2 market-based greenhouse gas emissions by 2028 from a 2023 base year⁵
- Aligned with the Paris Agreement and the Science Based Targets initiative ("SBTi")
⁵ We expect to achieve our target primarily through the purchase of unbundled, verifiable renewable energy certificates (RECs) or international equivalents, in conjunction with RECs generated from projects within our portfolio.
Scope 1 and 2 Emissions
- 2024 Scope 1 and 2 market-based emissions⁶ year-over-year change: -63%
- 2024 Scope 1 and 2 market-based emissions⁶ like-for-like change: -70%
- 2024 Energy intensity⁶ ⁷ year-over-year change: -5%
- 2024 Energy intensity⁶ ⁷ like-for-like change: -6%
⁶ Emissions and energy data were recalculated to reflect 2023 re-baseline following significant portfolio changes, per our baseline recalculation policy, which is aligned with the GHG Protocol.
⁷ Square footage in intensity metrics is adjusted to account for the period the asset was included in Scope 1 and 2.
Case Studies
Healthcare Products Distributor
$17 million sale-leaseback and follow-on rooftop solar system with tenant PPA.
Global IT Services Company
213,0000-square-foot Class A industrial warehouse completed, W. P. Carey's first carbon-neutral construction.