| GOVERNING BODY AND MANAGEMENT |
PART VI, LINE 1B - THE NRDC BOARD OF TRUSTEES IS COMPRISED OF 35 INDEPENDENT VOTING BOARD MEMBERS. BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBER JOHN ADAMS IS NOT INDEPENDENT BY VIRTUE OF RECEIVING COMPENSATION FROM THE ORGANIZATION. |
| FORM 990, PART VI, LINE 2 |
BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS, FREDERICK A.O. SCHWARZ, JR. AND FREDERICA PERERA, HAVE A FAMILY RELATIONSHIP. BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBER, SARAH COGAN AND OFFICER MARIPAT ALPUCHE HAVE A BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP. BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS, ERIC WEPSIC AND MAX STONE HAVE A BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP. BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBERS, DANIEL R. TISHMAN AND KATHLEEN WELCH HAVE A BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP. |
| FORM 990, PART VI, LINES 7A & B |
LINE 7A - NRDC'S MEMBERS ARE ENTITLED, AS PART OF THEIR MEMBERSHIP, TO ELECT INDIVIDUALS TO THE NRDC BOARD OF TRUSTEES. LINE 7B - THE NRDC BOARD OF TRUSTEES ACTS AUTONOMOUSLY. NEVERTHELESS, NRDC'S MEMBERS HAVE CERTAIN APPROVAL RIGHTS PURSUANT TO THE NEW YORK NOT-FOR-PROFIT CORPORATION LAW, INCLUDING, APPROVAL OVER ANY AMENDMENTS TO NRDC'S CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION. |
| 990 REVIEW PROCESS |
FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 11 THE FORM 990 WAS PREPARED BY A NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED ACCOUNTING FIRM IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE ORGANIZATION'S SENIOR MANAGEMENT. A COPY OF THE DRAFT FORM 990 WAS PRESENTED TO THE AUDIT COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES FOR DISCUSSION AND COMMENT. ONCE THE AUDIT COMMITTEE APPROVED THE FORM 990 FOR FILING, A COPY WAS CIRCULATED TO THE FULL BOARD OF TRUSTEES. EACH BOARD MEMBER WAS PROVIDED OPPORTUNITY TO COMMENT ON THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THE FORM 990 PRIOR TO ITS FILING WITH THE INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE. |
| CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY ENFORCEMENT AND MONITORING |
FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 12 EACH OFFICER, TRUSTEE, AND KEY EMPLOYEE OF THE ORGANIZATION IS REQUIRED TO ANNUALLY DISCLOSE ANY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST THAT ARISE BY VIRTUE OF EMPLOYMENT, BOARD SERVICE, OR POSITION WITH THE ORGANIZATION. THE ORGANIZATION MONITORS COMPLIANCE WITH ITS CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY THROUGH AN ANNUAL QUESTIONNAIRE/DISCLOSURE STATEMENT THAT IS DISTRIBUTED TO THESE INDIVIDUALS. POTENTIAL CONFLICTS ARE INVESTIGATED IMMEDIATELY. |
| PROCESS FOR DETERMINING COMPENSATION |
FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION B, LINE 15A & 15B THE ORGANIZATION UNDERTAKES A THOROUGH PROCESS TO ENSURE THAT THE EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION IT PAYS TO ITS TOP MANAGEMENT OFFICIAL AND ALL OF ITS OFFICERS AND KEY EMPLOYEES IS REASONABLE, GIVEN THE MARKET IN WHICH THE ORGANIZATION OPERATES. IN RELEVANT PART, THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES HAS ESTABLISHED A COMPENSATION COMMITTEE OF INDEPENDENT TRUSTEES THAT HAVE NO PERSONAL INTEREST IN THE PROPOSED COMPENSATION. THE COMPENSATION COMMITTEE CONTRACTS WITH A COMPENSATION CONSULTANT TO COMPLETE A MARKET ASSESSMENT AND COMPETITIVE POSITION ANALYSIS FOR THE ORGANIZATION'S TOP EXECUTIVES. THE COMPENSATION CONSULTANT UTILIZES COMPARABILITY AND BENCHMARKING SURVEYS TO ENSURE THAT THE ORGANIZATION COMPENSATES ITS EXECUTIVES COMMENSURATE WITH THE MARKET. BASED ON ITS REVIEW OF THE ANALYSES PROVIDED BY THE COMPENSATION CONSULTANT AND OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION, THE COMPENSATION COMMITTEE MAKES RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES. COMPENSATION DECISIONS AND REPORTS ARE CONTEMPORANEOUSLY DOCUMENTED IN THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AT WHICH SUCH DECISIONS ARE MADE. |
| DISCLOSURE |
FORM 990, PART VI, SECTION C, LINE 19 THE ORGANIZATION MAKES ITS FORM 990 AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC BY RETAINING A COPY AT ITS PLACE OF BUSINESS. THE FORM 990 AND AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS ARE LIKEWISE PUBLISHED ON NRDC'S WEBSITE AT WWW.NRDC.ORG. THE ORGANIZATION'S GOVERNING DOCUMENTS AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY MAY BE PROVIDED AT MANAGEMENT'S DISCRETION, IF REQUESTED. |
| form 990, part xi reconciliation of net assets |
OTHER CHANGES IN NET ASSETS OR FUND BALANCES PENSION RELATED ACTIVITY OTHER THAN NET PERIODIC EXPENSE ($1,508,065) CHANGE IN VALUE OF INTEREST RATE SWAP AGREEMENTS ($689,884) CHANGE IN VALUE OF SPLIT-INTEREST AGREEMENTS $499,216 TOTAL OTHER CHANGES IN NET ASSETS ($1,698,733) |
| PROGRAM SERVICE ACCOMPLISHMENTS |
PART III, LINE 4 This fiscal year, NRDC has continued its work to protect human health and the environment in the U.S. and abroad. NRDC has three key programmatic areas: 1. Averting the most dangerous impacts of climate change, 2. Advocating for the health of people and thriving communities, and 3. Conserving nature and protecting wildlife; each programs highlights are covered below in order of spending. The summary BELOW also highlights work of NRDCs International program. PART III LINE 4A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES: $50,017,212 NRDC works to change systems that affect people directly AND INDIRECTLY-in DRINKING WATER AND WASTEWATER, IN FOOD PRODUCTION AND WASTE, in consumer products, and in infrastructure and communities that need financial support in the face of serious climate impacts. This work includes a wide range of efforts including addressing toxic chemicals and pesticides in our environment in food, air, water, and products; advocating for communities that have historically and presently continue to bear disproportionate impacts of harm from climate change and environmental policies; and promoting resilience and health for all, on the local, state, and regional levels. Here are some key milestones and highlights in this program this past year: NRDC continued to push for better water systems and safe drinking water for communities nationwide. For example, we won rulings requiring regulation of certain stormwater discharges that contribute to water quality violations in specified California and Maryland watersheds. NRDC also supported a measure that will raise $300 billion annually to fund storm water projects in Los Angeles, with a focus on disadvantaged communities across that county. NRDCs work to ensure safe drinking water continued in Newark, NJ, where the city began to offer free water filters to its residents following NRDCs advocacy. In Flint, Michigan, NRDC worked to enforce the terms of the settlement that require that service lines be properly replaced. NRDC ALSO WORKED TO RAISE AWARENESS CONCERNING PFAS CHEMICALS-UBIQUITOUS TOXIC chemicals found in materials such as firefighting foam, fire-retardant furniture, and Teflon cookware. NRDC also continues its work to address risks from dangerous pesticides, chemicals, and drugs in food, air, and products. Following NRDCs work to reduce antibiotic overuse in livestock, McDonalds, the worlds largest single buyer of beef, announced a new policy to commit to reducing the use of medically important antibiotics by its beef suppliers; this follows NRDCs collaboration with McDonalds beginning in 2018 to make its policy as strong as possible. Similarly, KFC announced that it completed its transition to serving only chicken raised without medically important antibiotics in all of its U.S. restaurants, which is the result of a 2017 pledge to increase responsible use of antibiotics in chicken production from the fast food company. Following NRDCs and coalition partners advocacy, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned seven cancer-causing chemicals used for artificial flavoring in food and beverages. In addition, a federal court, ruling in NRDCs favor, required the government to act on NRDCs petition to address chlorpyrifos, a pesticide linked to learning disabilities in children, as well as other health harms. NRDC also achieved progress this past fiscal year in securing better health and protections for communities, especially those most impacted by climate change and insufficient environmental protections. For example, NRDC worked to support passage of the Climate and Community Protection Act in New York State, and the State will move toward net zero emissions while helping to achieve equity for historically marginalized communities that have borne the disproportionate impacts of climate change. Other NRDC projects focused on continuing to create healthy environments and resilient communities while confronting present and future climate impacts. These initiatives include NRDCs partnership with the American Cities Climate Challenge, which in FY19 began work in the first of its selected cities that will be awarded with technical help to accelerate the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions while promoting resilience, sustainability, and equity in communities. In addition, nrdc and its partners in the Strong, Prosperous, and Resilient Climate Challenge helped to secure a $1 billion housing commitment from Google to build affordable homes to mitigate the companys impacts on the areas housing market. NRDCs Energy Efficiency for All project, which focuses on bringing energy efficiency to affordable housing, reached a milestone of making 100,000 affordable apartments across the U.S. energy efficient, and provided national survey results that indicated that a majority of Americans support equitable energy efficiency measures. NRDC made significant strides in its work to protect and prepare communities for the anticipated effects of climate change, particularly storms and flooding. Following our work to improve climate resiliency, Congress passed the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, which increases FEMA funding for disaster preparation and allows funds to be used to improve resilience. NRDC also provided the public with important information related to flooding, such as a time-series animation illustrating the location of every flood insurance claim in the U.S. |
| PART III LINE 4B |
CLEAN ENERGY FUTURE: $42,234,135 NRDCs Clean Energy Future work aims to support reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to a level consistent with a 1.5-degree Celsius increase pathway by 2050, in accordance with 2018 guidance issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. In FY19, our work broadly comprised of advancing clean energy, and defending the climate and environment. NRDC focused much of its efforts on driving change on clean energy from the ground up in MYRAID WAYS-FROM PARTNERING WITH BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITIES TO EXPAND OR reform clean energy infrastructure to working with state and local governments to speed up the transition off of fossil fuels. At the same time, we continued to focus on defending the climate and environment protections at all levels. Some top climate and energy accomplishments include: Advancing Clean Energy In addition to New York States passage of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, the strongest state climate change legislation adopted in the nation to date, other states also took big leaps in clean energy and a just transition for workers. For example, New Mexico adopted a law that sets renewable energy standards for the state to ultimately be 100 percent carbon free by 2045, and established a pathway toward cleaner energy, such as workforce training. NRDC also worked to support bipartisan efforts to promote electric vehicle infrastructure in Colorado, and the creation of a Just Transition Office, which will help workers shift to a renewable energy economy. A key development in NRDCs Clean Energy Future work this past year was regional expansion and commitment to clean energy. The multi-state Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) added the state of Virginia, which finalized its rule to reduce carbon pollution from power plants by at least 30 percent by 2030. Virginia also became the 13th state to join the Transportation Climate Initiative (TCI), which aims to reduce carbon emissions from the transportation sector. NRDC continued to collaborate with state governments and partners across the country to change energy infrastructure in multiple ways, such as advancing electric vehicle infrastructure and systems in states such as California, New Mexico, Minnesota, and Michigan; reducing climate pollution from power sectors in Pennsylvania; and reducing climate pollution from buildings in states such as New York and California. On more local levels, NRDC continued to serve as a core strategic partner to the American Cities Climate Challenge, which announced the first round of participating cities, Seattle and Atlanta. The cities will receive technical assistance and support packages valued up to $2.5 million per city to help accelerate their carbon reduction goals, from improving energy efficiency for buildings to boosting climate resilience. Defending the Climate and Environment NRDC also worked to reduce damage to the climate and environment as well as protect existing safeguards in FY19, by, for example, defending in court methane standards for new and modified gas sources. Other NRDC efforts to defend the climate included ongoing work to uphold clean car and fuel economy standards and defend the Clean Power Plan. |
| PART III LINE 4C |
WILDLIFE AND WILDLANDS: $29,377,858 NRDC protects wildlife and unspoiled lands from inappropriate and unlawful industrial development, commercial exploitation, pollution, and climate change. We partner with ranchers, farmers, energy companies, and the government to promote solutions that help wild predators coexist with livestock and people. We push for international agreements that protect polar bears, elephants, rhinos, and other animals from being killed for trade. And we fight to keep reckless oil and gas drilling out of wild areas, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Boreal forest. Some top FY19 accomplishments and highlights in this category include: In our efforts to protect wildlife, NRDC worked to prevent keystone species and other ecologically important species from becoming extinct. To accomplish this goal strategically, NRDC worked first and foremost to protect the Endangered Species Act (ESA) through public education and outreach. NRDC also participated in a range of international and national work, such as attending the 70th Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of the Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in Sochi, Russian Federation, where we joined with other coalition partners to advance protections for endangered species such as elephants, rhinos, tigers, sharks, and pangolin. In other species-specific work, NRDC led advocacy efforts around policy to protect the critically endangered right whale and to support right whale conservation. In addition, NRDC continued its quest to save the vaquita porpoise, a cetacean on the brink of extinction, successfully advocating against lifting an embargo on imports from certain gillnet fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. NRDC persevered with its work to protect public lands and wild spaces from fossil fuel infrastructure development, including advocating for protections for the Tongass National Forest and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. NRDC also worked in FY19 to protect both oceans and smaller bodies of water such as rivers and streams that promote ecological health for wildlife and people. Following our advocacy and communications efforts to protect oceans and wildlife, the Interior Department announced that it would delay its offshore drilling plan indefinitely. NRDC also defended, alongside the federal government, protections for the Northeast Canyons and Seamounts National Monument. We also worked to ensure that the Clean Water Rule remained in force to the extent permitted by law. |
| PART III LINE 4D |
INTERNATIONAL: $20,285,487 From China to India to the Americas, NRDCs international work leverages our scientific, economic, and policy expertise to advance key environmental programs that will help build a better future across the globe. Our top highlights from this past fiscal year are as follows: NRDC continued its efforts to reduce fossil fuels production and consumption as well as advance clean energy in China, a country in which we have on-the-ground partnerships with various stakeholders in industry, nonprofit organizations, and communities. Our work ranged from reports on incentivizing electric vehicle infrastructure development; to hosting meetings on power sector reform; to convening workshops and conferences on managing coal dispersal and air pollution; and hosting seminars to reduce shipping emissions in the country, which handles 30 percent of the worlds cargo containers. In India, NRDC has advanced adaptation efforts in dealing with the oncoming effects of climate change such as extreme heat, through extensive partnerships with government and local stakeholders. For example, NRDC and partners produced research confirming that South Asias first Heat Action Plan, developed by NRDC in 2013, is working; death rates on the hottest days are down 27 percent, and an estimated 1,190 deaths were avoided annually since the plans launch. Further, the state of Telengana released its draft Cool Roofs policy, which has an ambitious target of covering 116 square miles of cool roofs by 2030. This policy builds on a pilot program created by NRDC to reduce indoor temperatures in homes in a cost-effective way. Our work in Canada took a different but equally powerful approach of using our strengths in advocacy and public education to protect against global warming. One example is our continued legal efforts to ensure that the Trans Mountain and Keystone XL pipelines are not approved without full legal compliance, and to protect Canadas boreal forest, which stores at least 12 percent of the worlds carbon in its soils, through OUR DETAILED "THE ISSUE WITH TISSUE" REPORT ON THE DAMAGING EFFECTS OF tissue products made from virgin wood, and our continuing campaign to get a major producer to stop using virgin wood for its products. |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:CREATIVE DESIGN/ART/FILM TOTAL FEES:2103056 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:ADMINISTRATIVE CONSULTING TOTAL FEES:517130 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:COMMUNICATIONS CONSULTING TOTAL FEES:48543 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:MEMBERSHIP CONSULTING TOTAL FEES:1028004 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:CLEAN ENERGY TOTAL FEES:5332635 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:INTERNATIONAL TOTAL FEES:5962221 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:WILDLIFE & WETLANDS TOTAL FEES:2902623 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES TOTAL FEES:5949938 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:CONSULTING REIMBURSEMENT TOTAL FEES:537379 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:INSTITUTIONAL CONSULTING TOTAL FEES:871396 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:EDITORIAL TOTAL FEES:1098 |
| FORM 990 PART IX LINE 11G |
DESCRIPTION:MISCELLANEOUS PROFESSIONAL FEE TOTAL FEES:297339 |
Attach to Form 990 or 990-EZ.