South Carolina Sustainability Scorecard


The South Carolina Scorecard is a strategic initiative designed to collect and present statewide data across four key categories: Energy, Circularity, Water and Conservation.

Developed through Sustain SC’s Metrics and Reporting Accelerator, the Scorecard provides actionable insights for business leaders, policy makers and community stakeholders to make informed decisions that align economic development with environmental responsibility.

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  • “In today’s competitive landscape, sustainability is more than a value-add, it’s a business imperative. The Sustain SC Scorecard gives us a powerful new tool to showcase South Carolina’s strengths in energy, circularity, water and conservation. For economic developers, this kind of data-driven insight is critical to attracting forward-thinking companies that want to grow responsibly. It helps us tell a compelling story about why South Carolina is not just a great place to do business, but a smart place to invest for the future.”

    - John Lummus, President & CEO, Upstate Alliance

South Carolina’s Business Landscape

The Darla Moore School of Business conducted a study of the 54 largest employers in South Carolina as categorized by the South Carolina Department of Commerce to determine how many have publicly available sustainability goals and net-zero commitments 

86%

of companies announced by the SC Department of Commerce in 2025 have publicly available sustainability goals

80%

of the largest corporate employers* in SC have published a sustainability report in the last two years

67%

of the largest corporate employers* in SC havemade a public Net-Zero Commitments


Energy

Clean Energy Share


62%

of SC energy generated is derived from clean energy sources*

South Carolina’s clean energy share is higher than surrounding states

47% in Georgia

47% in North Carolina

50% in Tennessee

Energy Generation Mix


Energy Consumption


BTu total in 2023

1,604 T

BTu per-capita in 2023

307 M

Energy Consumption by Sector



Circularity

Recycling + Waste


21.2%

2024 SC Recycling Rate

$6.63B

of Capital Investment in the SC Recycling Industry since 2021

2024 MSW Disposal Rate (lbs/person/day)

3.8 lbs

2024 MSW Generation Rate (lbs/person/day)

4.8 lbs

% of MSW Commodities Recycled by Weight



Water

Water Use + Infrastructure


Gallons of Water Used Annually in SC

5.9T

In Stormwater Infrastructure grants awarded in 2024  

$197M

Water Use by Sector



Conservation

Land Protection


of SC Land is protected

18.5%

3.4 M

Acres Protected

South Carolina’s percentage of protected land is higher than surrounding states

3% in Georgia

5% in Tennessee

13.6% in North Carolina

Risk Reduction Through Conservation


2.2 MILLION

Acres identified as priority conservation zones for flood risk reduction in 2024 

$18 MILLION

invested in land conservation projects for flood resilience since 2020

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FULL REPORT
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

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