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Your Organisation
Your Pledges

In the menus below you can pick from a whole host of different topics. Click on each topic to reveal the specific actions you can commit to. You can pick as few or as many as you like, and you can always come back later to make new ones!

Environmental Policy & Management Systems

PledgeDone
Raise awareness of environmental business issues amongst staff
e.g. designate a "green champion", establish a staff suggestion scheme, sign up to Green Intelligence
Adopt an Environmental Policy to capture our goals
ensure it is endorsed by senior management
Publish our Environmental Policy to make it available to our staff, customers, stakeholders and suppliers
put it on your website!
Establish an Environmental Management System (EMS) to implement and monitor progress against our Environmental Policy
this could be an informal system or one following a universal standard
Obtain formal certification for our EMS
e.g. BS8555, ISO14001, EMAS

Utilities Management

PledgeDone
Check that our energy and water bills are correct and we are on the best deal for our needs
e.g. check bills against meter readings and switch to a better rate
Regularly monitor our use of utilities to help identify savings
e.g. install sub meters wherever possible, get half hourly data from supplier and analyse against activity
Switch to an alternative supplier
e.g. choose one that generates electricity from renewable sources like wind
Manage our energy power demand
e.g. check maximum and base load demand, reactive power and supply voltage

Heating & Cooling in our Premises

PledgeDone
Reduce energy use by controlling heating/cooling
e.g. turn heating thermostats down by 1°C, set timers to match building occupancy, ensure radiators are not obstructed, don't use air conditioning while windows are open
Insulate our premises to minimise the need for heating/cooling
Regularly service our heating/cooling systems so they run as efficiently as possible
Upgrade our heating/cooling systems
e.g. replace old plant with more efficient kit, install better controls or a building energy management (BEM) system, explore options for passive cooling
Install renewable heat technology
e.g. ground source/air source heat pumps, biomass boilers, heat recovery or solar water heating. Many technologies like these qualify for Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) payments!

Lighting

PledgeDone
Only use what we need
e.g. maximise natural light by keeping windows and skylights clean, switch off lights when not in use, label large banks of light switches
Install lighting controls to help minimise use
e.g. motion sensors, timer switches, light level sensors, zoning
Upgrade our lighting
this could include replacing bulbs or lamps in existing fixtures, e.g. changing from T8 fluorescents to T5s, or installing entirely new fittings, e.g. switching from fluorescents to LEDs

Fuel Use

PledgeDone
Encourage alternatives to commuting by car
e.g. provide information on public transport, set up a car share scheme, enable homeworking
Install staff cycling facilities to encourage employees to cycle to work
e.g. provide bicycles for your staff through the a cycle to work scheme, create safe cycle racks and/or changing rooms with lockers and showers
Reduce business travel by car
e.g. provide information on public transport networks, use video conferencing
Increase the efficiency of our business logistics to minimise fuel costs and emissions
e.g. provide ‘fuel efficiency’ training to drivers, regularly maintain vehicles and tyre pressures, plan journeys to reduce mileage, integrate deliveries with pickups
Upgrade our transport fleet to reduce emissions and fuel consumption
e.g. choose ultra low emissions vehicles (ULEVs) such as electric or biodiesel, upgrade existing vehicles with aerodynamic aids

Water Use

PledgeDone
Identify and fix all drips and leaks from taps and pipes to minimise our water losses
Install water efficient devices to reduce our water usage
e.g. install push taps, flow and flush controls, cistern volume adjusters in bathrooms
Harvest rainwater or grey water and use in our production processes or on-site facilities
e.g. clean with grey water, flush with rainwater

Products & Packaging

PledgeDone
Reduce our use of raw materials in production
e.g. negotiate bespoke material specification with suppliers to eliminate off-cuts, increase use of recycled material content in product
Reduce our use of raw materials through design
e.g. re-design products for long life, disassembly, return or lease
Reduce our use of packaging in production
e.g. reduce packaging specifications in production process, collaborate with suppliers to reduce packaging of materials bought in
Reduce our use of packaging through design
e.g. design lightweight packaging to minimise material content, encourage use of reusable or returnable packaging amongst suppliers and customers

Production Processes

PledgeDone
Ensure our production machinery is operating efficiently
e.g. carry out preventative maintenance, monitor shut-down and start-up times to prevent idle running, check for compressed air leakages, upgrade motors and drives
Review our use of ancillary materials
e.g. use non-hazardous machine lubricants, replace disposable PPE with re-usable alternatives where safe to do so
Identify ways to use water more efficiently
e.g. adjust flow to meet demand, use clean-in-place (CIP) methods, recover and reuse water wherever possible

Pollution Prevention

PledgeDone
Identify and label all our surface water and foul water drains
only rainwater should go down surface drains, everything else should go down foul water routes
Store all materials and wastes safely, particularly those with the potential to damage the environment
e.g. don’t stockpile redundant materials, ensure containers and bunds are in a good state of repair, be mindful of liquid chemicals, detergents, hazardous materials and batteries
Identify all spillage risks, put the correct spill kits in place and train our staff in how to use them
Reduce air pollution from dust, dark smoke and odours
e.g. maintain boilers and generators, regularly change filters, keep tins and drums sealed

In the Office

PledgeDone
Reduce our use of paper and printing
e.g. print double-sided, use ‘draft’ settings or reduce resolution on printers
Switch off all our non-essential electrical equipment when it’s not needed
e.g. install timers or manually switch off computers, monitors, printers and lights
Use tap water instead of bottled
branded jugs and glasses can be an attractive alternative!
Use reusable crockery and kitchen utensils rather than ‘throwaway’ ones

Buying green

PledgeDone
Choose products and materials based on how they are made and sourced
e.g. choose local, Fairtrade and recycled
Choose products and materials based on their end-of-life potential
e.g. choose reusable, recyclable and biodegradable
Choose suppliers with strong sustainability credentials
Adopt a sustainable procurement policy

Waste and Recycling

PledgeDone
Identify and quantify all waste being produced on our site
Reuse waste wherever possible and then segregate what remains for recycling
Remember that one person’s waste is another’s raw material!
Recover energy from unavoidable waste
as a last resort, e.g. through biomass boilers, anaerobic digestion (AD) or combined heat and power (CHP) systems. You could qualify for Feed-in Tariff (FiT) payments!
Review our waste contract
e.g. types and numbers of skips/bins, recycling levels and rates

Managing Risk

PledgeDone
Stay up to date with environmental regulations
e.g. sign up for Green Intelligence or email updates from the Environment Agency
Plan for extreme weather events
e.g. how to cope with flooding or hot summers and their impact on staff and deliveries
Keep track of trends, changing customer demands and best practice in our industry
e.g. sign up for Green Intelligence or updates from your trade association

Renewable Energy Generation

PledgeDone
Investigate which technologies are most relevant to our business
once all your energy efficiency options have been exhausted. You could qualify for Feed-in Tariff (FiT) payments for the electricity you generate!
Install solar PV on our site
Install a wind turbine on our site
Install a water turbine on our site
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