Cascade Energy Website Privacy Policy

Cascade Energy, Inc.® (“Cascade,” “we,” or “us”) is committed to your ability to make informed privacy decisions.  We strive to provide you with a clear understanding about the personal information we collect, maintain, and use, and are committed to protecting your privacy through our compliance with this Privacy Policy (this “Policy”).

This Policy outlines our general privacy practices and explains what personal information we collect from you, how we use your personal information, and how you may contact us.  We collect personal information from you (directly and/or automatically) when you:

• visit, register with, access, use, or otherwise engage with (collectively, “interact”) the Websites at cascadeenergy.com, www.energysensei.com, www.secure.energysensei.com, www.aquafficiency.com, sdsmartindustrials.com and/or www.ag-star.com (collectively, our “Websites”);
• interact with Energy Sensei®, our web-based software-as-a-service energy management and collaboration platform at secure.energysensei.com (“Energy Sensei”), the usage of which is subject to the Energy Sensei® Software as a Service License Agreement;
• inquire about or engage our energy consulting services;
• email, text, call, or otherwise communicate with us;
• submit an application for employment with us (“Applicants”) through our careers and job applicant portal powered by Dayforce US Inc. (“Dayforce”), or otherwise go through the process of becoming employed with us (“Employees”);

Our Websites, together with Energy Sensei and our consulting services, are collectively referred to herein as our “Services”.

This Policy does not apply to information collected by any such third party (including our affiliates and subsidiaries), including through any application or content (including advertising) that may link to or be accessible from or through our Websites (such as for example, the data a third party may collect when you click on a hyperlink on our Websites, if that hyperlink takes you to a third-party Websites).  However, if we combine information collected by a third party (such as information gathered from your Linked In profile), we will use such information in accordance with this Policy.

Please read this Policy carefully to understand our policies and practices regarding your information and how we will treat it.  If you do not agree with our policies and practices, your choice is not to use our Services or otherwise interact with Cascade.

By interacting with our Services, you agree to this Policy.  This Policy may change from time to time (see Changes to Our Privacy Policy).  Your continued use of our Services after we make changes is deemed to be acceptance of those changes, so please check this Policy periodically for updates.

Children Under the Age of 18

Our Services are not intended for children under 18 years of age.  No one under age 18 is permitted to provide any information to or on our Websites.  We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 18.  If you are under 18, do not use or provide any information on our Websites.  Do not, through any of its features, provide any information about yourself to us, including your name, address, telephone number, email address, or any screen name or user name you may use.  If we learn we have collected or received personal information from a child under 18, we will delete that information.  If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under 18, please contact us at CEPrivacyOfficer@cascadeenergy.com.

Users Residing Outside of the U.S.

Visitors of our Websites that reside outside of the United States of America (the “U.S.”) do so at the own initiative and are responsible for compliance with applicable local laws.  Please be aware that any information you provide to us will be transferred to servers located in the U.S.  By using our Websites or providing us with your information, you understand, acknowledge, and consent to this Privacy Policy and to the collection, storage, and processing of your information in the U.S.

Information We Collect & How We Collect It

We collect information from and about you, including information:

• By which you may be personally identified, such as your name, postal address, email address, phone number, Internet protocol (“IP”) address, or other personally-identifiable information (collectively referred to herein as “personal information”).
  • For Applicants and Employees, personally identifiable information may also include identification, and, at your discretion, your gender, race and ethnicity, veteran status, and/or disability status.
• That is about you but individually does not identify you, such as your job title, employer, company name; and/or
  • For Applicants and Employees, this information includes the highest level of education you have completed, whether you have a legal right to work in the United States (the “S.”), whether you would require visa sponsorship to continue working in the U.S., and your relative location.
• About your internet connection, the equipment you use to access our Websites, and other usage details.

We collect information from and about you:

• When you directly provide it to us, such as when you fill in forms on our Websites, create an account with us, or contact us directly (whether by phone, email, or through our Websites’ contact form). This includes information provided at the time of applying for employment with the company (or otherwise provided during the hiring process), scheduling and purchasing services we provide (including Energy Sensei and our consulting services), responding to surveys we may ask you to complete for research purposes, requesting further information from us, and/or negotiating a services contract or other transaction with us.  We may also ask you for information when you report a problem with our Services.
• Automatically from you when you interact with our Websites or Energy Sensei, such as your usage details, IP addresses, your search queries on our Websites and information collected through, cookies and other analytic tracking technologies (see Automatic Information Collection).
• From third parties, for example, our business partners, service providers.

Energy Sensei

Users of Energy Sensei contract with Cascade for software-as-a-solution services that monitor energy use and carbon capture by industrial, commercial, and agricultural facilities (“Clients”).  Energy Sensei collects information through Clients’ direct uploads, automated logging with ICS devices, and otherwise through our Clients’ use of Energy Sensei (“Energy Sensei Data”).  Accounts are individualized and permissions-based.  We collect Energy Sensei Data:

• To model the effects of energy-related processes and projects in accordance with our Clients’ specific service needs.
• To assist in the review and analysis of a client’s energy use, energy savings, and potential eligibility for program incentives.
• To test and apply new product or system versions, patches, updates and upgrades.
• To monitor and test system use and performance, and resolve bugs and other issues reported to us.
• To assist Clients in participating in energy management programs, including those sponsored but a third party utility company (“Utilities”).
• To meet legal requirements and/or business due diligence requirements, such as in the case of a judicial or administrative order, applicable law, rule, regulation, or in the event of a valid business due diligence reason such as an insurance review or audit.

We may share Energy Sensei Data with Utilities (in order to review and verify energy use, energy savings, and potential eligibility for program incentives) and/or third party services providers who assist in providing Energy Sensei (including maintenance and issue resolution).

Users of Energy Sensei have the ability to provide information that is published or displayed (hereinafter, “posted”) on Energy Sensei to other users or third parties with access to a particular project or facility.  Information posted this way is collectively referred to herein as “User Contributions.”  User Contributions are posted on and transmitted to others at your own risk.  Although we limit access to certain pages and you may set certain privacy settings for such information through your account, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable.  Additionally, we cannot control the actions of other users with whom your User Contributions may be shared with.  Therefore, we cannot and do not guarantee that your User Contributions will not be viewed by unauthorized persons.

Information We Collect Through Automatic Data Collection Technologies

Regardless of the device you use to navigate through and interact with our Websites (including Energy Sensei), we may use automatic data collection technologies to collect certain administrative and traffic information including: source IP address, time of access, date of access, web page(s) visited, type of browser used, access times, and referring Websites addresses (“Anonymous Usage Information”). Our servers may keep Anonymous Usage Information in an activity log that does not identify you individually.   We use this information in aggregated form to provide statistical information about how users collectively interact with our Websites to our partners and other third parties.

We may also collect information about your specific equipment, browsing actions, and patterns (“Specific Usage Data”), including:

• Details of your visits, including traffic data, location data, logs, and other communication data and the resources that you access and use on our Websites.
• Information about your computer and internet connection, including your IP address, operating system, and browser type.

Most of Specific Usage Data we collect does not identify you individually; however, in some circumstances, we may maintain it or associate it with personal information we collect in other ways or receive from third parties to improve and deliver better and more personalized Services, including by enabling us to:

• Estimate our audience size and usage patterns.
• Store information about your preferences, allowing us to customize our Websites according to your individual interests.
• Speed up your searches.
• Recognize you when you return to our Websites.

If we associate Anonymous Usage Information or Specific Usage Data with you as a specific person, we will treat it as personal information.

The technologies we use for this automatic data collection may include:

• Cookies (or browser cookies).  A cookie is a small file placed on the hard drive of your computer.  You may refuse to accept browser cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser.  However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of our Websites.  Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you direct your browser to our Websites.
• Web Beacons.  Pages of our Websites may contain small electronic files known as web beacons (also referred to as clear gifs, pixel tags, and single-pixel gifs) that permit us to, for example, count users who have visited those pages and for other related Websites statistics (for example, recording the popularity of certain content and verifying system and server integrity).
• Embedded Scripts.  Embedded scripts are code snippets or scripts that are integrated into websites’ and web applications’ HTML or other markup languages.  We use embedded scripts in connection with Energy Sensei to collect information about your interactions with Energy Sensei to enhance functionality and user experience.
• Click Tracking.  Click tracking is an analytical feature that measures and reports where users click or tap on our Websites.  Every time you click on our Websites, we record the event and log your user session for future analysis.  We use this information only to improve our Services.  Click tracking only collects the IP address assigned to you on the date when you visit our Services, rather than your name or other identifying information.
• Analytics.  We collect analytics information from Google Analytics, WordPress, and Amazon Web Services (“AWS”).  This includes information such as how often users visit our Websites, what pages they visit when they do so, what other Websites they used prior to coming to our Websites, and users’ IP addresses.  We use the information we get from analytics tools only to improve our Services, and do not combine the information collected with personally identifiable information.

The automatic data collection technologies we use are may be served by third parties.  These third parties may use other tracking technologies like web beacons, click tracking, etc., to collect information about you when you use our Websites.  These third parties may use cookies alone or in conjunction with web beacons or other tracking technologies to collect information about you when you use our Websites.  The information they collect may be associated with your personal information or they may collect information, including personal information, about your online activities over time and across different Websites and other online services.  They may use this information to provide you with interest-based (behavioral) advertising or other targeted content.

We do not control these third parties’ tracking technologies or how they may be used.  If you have any questions about an advertisement or other targeted content, you should contact the responsible provider directly.  For information about how you can opt out of receiving targeted advertising from many providers, see Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information.

We use the following third-party tools in connection with our Websites:

• Google Analytics. Google Analytics plants a permanent cookie on your web browser to identify you as a unique user the next time you visit our Websites.  The cookie cannot be used by anyone but Google.  We do not control Google’s tracking technologies or how Google may use them.  Google’s ability to use and share information collected by Google Analytics about your visits to our Websites is restricted by Google Analytics’ Terms of Use and Google’s Privacy Policy.  If you have any questions about how Google Analytics uses your information, please contract Google directly.  For more information on how to opt-out of Google Analytics, see Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information.
• WordPress Plug-In Services. We use the following WordPress plug-ins to improve our Websites, including for site maintenance, search engine optimization, security (antivirus, malware, anti-spam, etc.) and to connect our Websites to Google Analytics.
  • Rank Math SEO Plugin. We use the Rank Math SEO plugin to collect data about our Websites’ visitors including your IP address, operating system, browser ID, history, and activity to analyze visitor behavior.  Rank Math calculates metrics like bounce rate, page views, and sessions to help us understand how you use our Websites. According to the Rank Math Plugin Tracking Policy, Rank Math does not retain information about our users’ interactions with the plugin.  For more information about Rank Math’s data practices, please see the Rank Math Privacy Policy at https://rankmath.com/privacy-policy/.  Please note that the Rank Math SEO plugin remains in place even if you have deactivated cookies.
  • RocketCDN Plugin. WP Media is the provider of the RocketCDN plugin, which we use to direct data transfer between your browser and our Websites through RocketCDN’s network.  RocketCDN monitors the traffic flow between your browser and our Websites and acts as a shield against potentially harmful internet traffic.  In this process, RocketCDN may utilize cookies, but these are exclusively employed for the purposes outlined here.  Utilizing Rocket CDN aids in enhancing the website’s loading speeds.  For more information about WP Media’s data practices, please see the WP Media Privacy Policy at https://wp-rocket.me/privacy-policy/.
• We use AWS to host Energy Sensei.  Some of all of you information may be stored on AWS systems.  AWS will only process your personal information in accordance with our instructions and we will only request processing by AWS that is in conformity with this Policy.  Please note that AWS’s default analytics services uses performance cookies to collect anonymous statistics so we can understand how customers use Energy Sensei and make improvements.  Essential cookies cannot be deactivated, but you can click “customize cookies” to decline performance cookies.  We do not control AWS’s analytics tools or how AWS may use them.  AWS’s use of such information is governed by its Data Privacy practices at https://aws.amazon.com/privacy/.

Please note that in many instances, these third-party analytics tools do not collect information by which you may be personally identified.  Please reach out to each service provider directly for more information on whether its particular analytics tool(s) collects personal information, if any, and whether, if so, it is de-identified or anonymized.

How We Use Your Information

We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal information:

• To present our Websites, Energy Sensei, and their contents to you.
• To allow you to participate in interactive features on Energy Sensei.
• To provide you with information, products, or services that you request from us or that we think might interest you if you have no opted-out of such promotional correspondence (see Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information).
• To improve our outreach efforts and delivery of our Services.
• To analyze how we can improve our websites and customize your experiences.
• To carry out our obligations and enforce our rights arising from any contracts entered into between you and us, including for billing and collection.
• To provide you with notices about your account, such password change notices.
• To notify you about changes to our Services.
• To contact you in regard to your use of our Websites.
• For data aggregation related to design or software development purposes.
• For internal business purposes related to providing you with our goods and services.
• To fulfill any other purpose for which you provide it.
• In any other way we may describe when you provide the information.
• For any other purpose with your consent.

We may also use your information to contact you about our own goods and services that may be of interest to you.  If you do not want us to use your information in this way, please see Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information.

Disclosure of Your Information

Under our core value of Learn Constantly, we believe in making contributions to our field including by contributing aggregated or de-identified information about our users for research, market insights, and policy developments in the field of energy efficiency. We may disclose such information that does not identify any individual without restriction.

We do not sell or otherwise trade the personal information we collect.  However, we may disclose personal information that we collect or you provide as described in this Policy to the following third-parties to help deliver the quality and level of service you expect:

• To our affiliates, partners, parent or subsidiary organizations.
• To contractors, service providers, and other third parties we use to support and improve our internal operations and accountability processes, or whose work compliments or supplements our Services.  In most cases, we have contractually required these third parties to keep personal information confidential and use it only for the purposes of providing their goods and services to us.  Where relevant, we have provided links to these parties’ data policies and practices.  These third parties include:
  • Atlassian Pty Ltd and Atlassian US, Inc. (“Atlassian”), which we use for software development team management and communication  through the use of Atlassian’s Jira Software.  More information about Atlassian’s data policies and practices can be found online at https://www.atlassian.com/legal/privacy-policy#what-this-policy-covers.
  • Data analytics providers and internet cookie data recipients, like Google Analytics, AWS, and WordPress (see Information We Collect Through Automatic Data Collection Technologies).
  • Dayforce, which we use for our careers and hob applicant portal.  More information on Dayforce’s data policies and practices can be found online at https://www.dayforce.com/privacy.
  • Government entities, if required to do so by any court order, law, or legal process or because it must be shared with an entity that regulates, funds, or makes an energy efficiency offering available to you or otherwise assists in receiving benefits and/or services available to you in connection with an energy efficiency offering.
  • HappyFox, Inc. (“HappyFox”), which we use to provide customer support through HappyFox’s ticketing software platform.
  • The Monnit Corporation (“Monnit”), which we use to remotely monitor and collect some clients’ energy usage.
  • Operation systems and platforms to facilitate integration, automation, real-time decision-making, and improved overall efficiency in providing our goods and services.
  • The Rocket Science Group LLC d/b/a Mailchimp, an Intuit, Inc. company (“Mailchimp”), which we use for emailing and marketing tasks such as sending you our newsletter.  More information about Mailchimp’s data policies and practices can be found online at https://www.intuit.com/privacy/statement/.
  • Subcontractors and affiliates to provide consulting services to our clients.
  • Subcontractors who provide Websites design and operation services.
  • Tableau Software, LLC, a Salesforce Company (“Tableau”), which we use for graphic modeling of energy products through Tableau’s data visualization and business intelligence platform.

We may also share your personal information:

• To a buyer or other successor in the event of a merger, divestiture, restructuring, reorganization, dissolution, or other sale or transfer of some or all of the Company’s assets, whether as a going concern or as part of bankruptcy, liquidation, or similar proceeding, in which personal information held by the Company about our Websites users is among the assets transferred.
• To enforce or apply our Energy Sensei Terms & Conditions and other agreements, including for billing and collection purposes.
• To fulfill the purpose for which you provide it.
• For any other purpose disclosed by us when you provide the information.
• For another purpose, with your consent.
• If we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property, or safety of the Company, our clients, or others.

Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information

We strive to provide you with choices regarding the personal information you provide to us.  We have created mechanisms to provide you with the following control over your information:

• Tracking Technologies and Advertising.  You can set your browser to refuse all or some browser cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent.  If you disable or refuse cookies, please note that some parts of our Websites or Energy Sensei may then be inaccessible or not function properly.  Other ways to opt-out of specific data collection technologies that we utilize include:
  • Google Analytics.  Google has a browser add-on for opting out of Google Analytics which can be found here: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout.
  • Do Not Track Signals.  Some internet browsers include the ability to transmit “Do Not Track” signals.  Since uniform standards for “Do Not Track” signals have not yet been adopted, our Websites does not process or respond to “Do Not Track” signals.
• Promotional Offers from the Company.  If you do not wish to have your email address/contact information used us to promote our own products or services, you can opt-out by sending us an email stating your request to CEPrivacyOfficer@cascadeenergy.com or support@energysensei.com.  If we have sent you a promotional email, you may click unsubscribe in the email or send us a return email asking to be omitted from future email distributions.  This opt-out does not apply to information provided to us as a result of a purchase, product service experience, or other transaction.

We do not control third parties’ collection or use of your information to serve interest-based advertising.  However, these third parties may provide you with ways to choose not to have your information collected or used in this way.  You can opt out of receiving targeted ads from members of the Network Advertising Initiative (“NAI”) on the NAI’s Websites at https://thenai.org/opt-out/.

Accessing and Correcting Your Information

You can review and change some of your personal information by logging into your Energy Sensei account.  You may also send us an email at CEPrivacyOfficer@cascadeenergy.com to request access to, correct, or delete any personal information that you have provided to us.  We cannot delete your personal information except by also deleting your user account.  We may not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect.

If you delete your User Contributions from Energy Sensei, copies of your User Contributions may remain viewable in cached and archived pages or might have been copied or stored by other users.  Proper access and use of information provided on our Websites and Energy Sensei, including User Contributions, is governed by our license agreement at www.secure.energysensei.com/document/tc.

Residents of certain states, such as California, Nevada, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, and Utah may have additional personal information rights and choices.  Please see Your State Privacy Rights for more information.

Your State Privacy Rights

State consumer privacy laws may provide their residents with additional rights regarding our use of their personal information.  To learn more about California residents’ privacy rights, visit our California Residents Privacy Notice page. 

California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Montana, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia provide (now or in the future) their state residents with rights, the scope of which may vary by state, to:

• Confirm whether we process their personal information.
• Access and delete certain personal information.
• Correct inaccuracies in their personal information, taking into account the information’s nature processing purpose (excluding Iowa and Utah).
• Data portability.
• Opt-out of personal data processing for:
  • targeted advertising (excluding Iowa);
  • sales; or
  • profiling in furtherance of decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects (excluding Iowa and Utah).
• Either limit (opt-out of) or require consent to process sensitive personal data.

Please know that we do not currently trigger many state-specific privacy rights.  We do not sell your personal information, nor do we process it for targeted advertising or profiling.  To exercise any of these rights, or to appeal a decision regarding a consumer rights request, please send us an email at CEPrivacyOfficer@cascadeenergy.com.

Nevada provides its residents with a limited right to opt-out of certain personal information sales.  However, we do not currently sell data triggering that statute’s opt-out requirements.

Data Security

We have implemented measures designed to secure your personal information from accidental loss and unauthorized access, use, alteration, and disclosure.  All information you provide to us is stored on our secure servers behind firewalls.  Any personal information we transmit and/or store is encrypted and protected by physical, technological, and administrative security measures.

The safety and security of your information also depends on you.  Where you have a password for access to certain services, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential.  We ask you not to share your password with anyone.  We urge you to be careful about giving out information in public areas, as it may be viewed by authorized persons.

Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure.  Although we do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your personal information transmitted to or from our Websites.  Any transmission of personal information is at your own risk.  We are not responsible for circumvention of any privacy settings or security measures contained on our Websites.

Changes to Our Privacy Policy

It is our policy to post any changes we make to this Policy on this page.  If we make material changes to how we treat our users’ personal information, we will notify by email to the primary email address specified in your Energy Sensei account and/or through a banner notice on our Websites’ home page.  The date this Policy was last revised is identified at the top of the page.  You are responsible for ensuring we have an up-to-date active and deliverable email address for you (if you have an account with us), and for periodically visiting this Policy to check for any changes.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this Policy, or need to access this Policy in an alternative format due to having a disability, please email us at CEPrivacyOfficer@cascadeenergy.com.

 

Last Updated: May 8, 2024