Sustainable Development Goals

Transcription

1 Sustainable Development Goals SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2017

2 Giving resources new life Viridor s purpose is to give the world s resources new life. We deliver our essential services within a framework of our four core values and a structure of good governance within the FTSE 250 Pennon Group. Viridor s values: Challenge for change Making things happen Relentless pursuit of quality Stronger in partnership 2 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 3

3 Sustainability: Building trust and accountability Sustainability matters. We take our responsibilities towards the environment seriously and aim to be sustainable in everything we do. On September 25, 2015, countries adopted a set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure prosperity for all as part of a new sustainable development agenda. All of the UN SDGs are important. Several especially resonate with Viridor as we continue to work with our customers and partners to deliver greater resource efficiency. This report focuses on our performance and gives examples of our contribution towards the SDGs. At Viridor, we are looking to contribute where we can not only by delivering our core services in recycling, energy recovery and better resource management, but in the way we do business responsibly. We measure our performance against our own annual targets as well as using external benchmarks and frameworks. These include our active Business in the Community programmes and we were pleased to be a founder member of their Circular Economy Taskforce. Phil Piddington Managing Director, Viridor This report focuses on our sustainability performance over the last year and includes a selection of case studies from around the business. For the full set of UN SDGs go to: 4 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 5

4 SDG 3 Ensuring healthy lifestyles and promoting well-being for all WILD WALKS Viridor, in partnership with the Somerset Wildlife Trust, launched three wild walks during Mental Health Awareness Week. The walks, which take in Viridor s core offices in Taunton (at Priorswood, Blackbrook and Youngman Place), encourage Viridor colleagues, neighbouring businesses and the general public to get outdoors and connect with the natural environment and their local green space, improving both their physical and mental health. There is now an enormous amount of evidence that getting out into the natural environment is beneficial for our mental health and well-being, and can help to combat stress. We are enormously delighted to have worked with Viridor to add these three brilliant urban walks to our wild walk portfolio, and for Taunton communities to be able to benefit from time outdoors in a really easy, accessible way. Nature and Well-being Manager Somerset Wildlife Trust, Jolyon Chesworth HEALTH MOT Working with our health partner, Viridor has introduced free Health MOTs to all employees. The Health MOT uses a twostep process to assess physical and mental health, and provides personalised advice about how health and lifestyles can be improved. The first step is the online portal, the Health Gateway, which can be shared with a friend or family member so they too can benefit from the advice on offer, and get support with any personal goals set. The second step is a 15-minute appointment with a healthcare professional to assess things like cholesterol, blood pressure and discuss possible improvements. Participation is voluntary and confidential and the feedback so far has been extremely positive. Health MOT at Trident Park ERF Health MOT launched online and on-site with 100% positive feedback Health MOT for 1,000 + employees The Health MOT definitely opened my eyes. It may have saved my life. 3 Wild walks encouraging our employees to get outdoors Viridor Employee 6 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 7

5 SDG 5 Achieving gender equality by empowering women and girls GIRLS IN STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) At our Ardley Education Centre in Oxfordshire we worked with six female students from The Bicester School on an Engineering Development Trust (EDT) STEM-based project. The girls project reached the top four out of 1,000 groups entering and won the overall best project in their hub. Viridor has a long-term partnership with The Bicester School as part of Business in the Community s Business Class Programme which has increased the number of girls taking up STEM subjects. The programme has seen an increase in the number of students undertaking triple science, in particular girls, and contributed to improved school attendance with pupils being awarded extra UCAS points, increasing their chances of going to university. APPRENTICESHIPS Viridor s apprenticeship scheme offers great opportunities to gain skills, experience and on-the-job learning. It is essential that Viridor develops a pipeline of talent to equip our business with the skills it needs. Emily Sharkey, our apprentice from Leyland, is hoping to achieve qualifications which will one day contribute to receiving a managerial role within Viridor. Lucy Metters, our apprentice from Burgess Hill, would like to explore the option of experience in public relations and communications in the future. I have learnt the ins and outs of the recycling process whilst working for Viridor there are many steps and processes that contribute to the safe and effective recycling and reusing of the public s waste, that I was previously unaware of. Shortlisted for The UBS Award for Education Viridor has been shortlisted for The UBS Award for Education for our Business Class Partnership involving Ardley Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) and The Bicester School. Active STEM education partnerships in Scotland, Wales and England 28 Full-time apprentices to date The Education Team at Ardley have transformed the way in which our students see the world of science and engineering. We now have record numbers of students opting for triple science and young people aspiring to work in a field that they would previously have discounted. Tim Marston, Deputy Head, The Bicester School 8 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 9

6 SDG 7 Ensuring access to affordable, reliable and clean energy Avonmouth ERF OUR ENERGY RECOVERY FACILITIES Viridor continues to invest for growth. We currently have eight operational Energy Recovery Facilities (ERFs) and four under construction. Two of our ERFs at Dunbar and South London (Beddington) are well into their construction phase and progressing well. Glasgow s Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre is receiving waste and generating energy and the new construction contracts are progressing well with ERF commissioning expected in Our Avonmouth ERF investment is now underway with site infrastructure in place and ground works commenced. Avonmouth will become operational in 2020, serving around 3.5 million people in the West of England and will supply the national grid with enough electricity to power 44,000 homes. ENERGY PROJECTS Viridor now employs a dedicated Energy Portfolio Team to manage its real-time electricity and gas forecasting, generation output and energy consumption, as well as to help lead, drive and publicise energy-saving projects. Viridor has continued to invest in smart meters and has now extended its energy-monitoring programme across its gas and unmetered supplies. It has identified a number of energy-savings projects and is working with operations teams to optimise energy usage. Four new ERFs under construction 244MW Total renewable energy generation capacity. 1,531GWh Total renewable energy generation. Eight ERFs now on stream. Includes our share of Joint Ventures (for 244MW and 1,531GWh) 10 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 11

7 SDG 8 Promoting inclusive and sustainable economic growth, and full and productive employment Viridor delivered strong performance in 2016/17 across our recycling and energy asset base. SPARK! We have some of the brightest and best people around. When you add this to our natural drive to innovate, it all adds up to something special. To make the most of our employees talent and creativity we have introduced our Spark! initiative. Spark! makes it easy for our employees to submit their ideas on anything from helping us grow our business, through to keeping us safer at work. Every idea that is shared is reviewed and, if it makes sense to do so, will be put into action. Our employees are sparking change at Viridor and so far we have had 234 ideas submitted. GRADUATE MANAGEMENT TRAINEE SCHEME Viridor s Graduate Management Trainee scheme gives graduates the opportunity to learn about how a business works and apply their knowledge and skills from university to real working life. The scheme involves a variety of different work placements all over the company in different regions and functions. The scheme helps the graduates to develop broader business and commercial skills and includes project management, presentation skills, leadership and managerial training. Viridor also has an apprenticeship scheme for new entrants and existing staff. More details are on the Gender Equality page. For more information go to page 8 of this report. 234 Spark! ideas 76 of our senior leaders have completed our management development programme and 24 individuals are undertaking our innovative Viridor management degree course. 36,000+ Engaging our employees: employee survey response rate. 75% Our new health and safety programme HomeSafe is designed to raise standards, prevent harm and create a culture of safety across the business. Jess Dunn at Ardley ERF Training hours delivered for our employees Our safety performance: 26 employee RIDDORS, 35 RIDDORS in total. 12 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 13

8 SDG 11 Helping to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERING DISTRICT HEATING NETWORKS 185 MILLION Invested in new resource management infrastructure. 1,000 + employee volunteering hours delivered to date Viridor s volunteering policy gives our employees the opportunity to volunteer with local charities and community groups. Over the past year, our employees took part in the Mission Christmas appeal, litter picks and a Sussex Wildlife Trust project. Our Taunton-based employees have volunteered with our partner The Somerset Wildlife Trust to support their Routes to the River Tone urban community project. Our volunteering work focused on Children s Wood, an unloved green space in Taunton close to our headquarters. We have transformed the wood and made a positive community impact including inspiring the local residents to form a friends of group and plant 1,000 bluebells. Viridor won the CSR Award for 2017 which was presented in Taunton for a positive contribution to our communities. Viridor has formally signed an agreement with the London Borough of Sutton s energy-services company, Sutton Decentralised Energy Network (SDEN), to deliver heat generated at our Beddington site to a district heating network in South London. This initiative will distribute resilient supplies of hot water and heating to the new 700-home Felnex development near to Viridor s operations at Beddington. The innovative project will initially use energy generated by the existing landfill gas power plant to provide heating to homes and businesses in Sutton, tying into the Mayor of London s support for decentralised energy networks as a way to maximise the efficiency of energy generation. This will be supplemented by the Combined Heat and Power enabled Beddington Energy Recovery Facility (ERF), which is due to be operational in During 2016/17 Viridor has provided 8.0 MILLION in community support, sponsorship and charitable donations of which 7.7m was paid to Viridor Credits for distribution via the Landfill Communities Fund. Delivering community benefits: Pennon achieved three stars in the Business in the Community CR Index. 14 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 15

9 SDG 12 Ensuring responsible consumption and promoting resource and energy efficiency CENTRES 19,327 VISITORS NEW SOLUTIONS AND INNOVATION Viridor is continually working on solutions to align next-generation recycling resources with the needs of UK industry. Our 12.5m advanced plastics recycling facility at Rochester is capable of processing 75,000 tonnes of mixed plastics each year. The Rochester team has partnered with packaging specialists Nextek (funded by WRAP), to help find a solution to the 1.3 billion black plastic ready-meal trays sold by UK supermarkets that aren t currently recyclable. Viridor is also a founder member of two Circular Economy Task Forces (CETFs) cross-sectoral initiatives aiming to identify best practice and to drive innovation in resource efficiency. The Green Alliance CETF is focusing on how UK Policy can be improved, whilst the Business in the Community CETF is establishing exemplar case studies in this vital area. SWITCHING ON MINDS The Switching on Minds campaign promotes Viridor s education strategy. Through leaflets, banners and online media, the campaign encourages visits to our education centres. Here, groups can learn about how Viridor helps to manage resources more efficiently in their local area and why we need to move to a more circular economy. To show how primary school children can influence others a take-home leaflet was produced. Students are encouraged to tell their parents/carers about their visit and make a pledge to change their behaviour. Recycling volumes traded (million tonnes) 2.2 million tonnes throughput for Energy Recovery Our 11 educational centres welcomed 19,327 visitors. We deliver interactive educational experiences, encouraging positive behaviour change for students, community groups and customers. 7.6 million tonnes total waste material inputs Viridor Technology and Innovation Forum delivering a collaborative programme of R&D and commercial projects with our clients and partners for better resource management. 16 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 17

10 SDG 13 Taking urgent action to mitigate climate change and its impacts IDLE TIME VEHICLES CARBON CAPTURE AND UTILISATION Westbury solar farm Our Bargeddie Transport team achieved the maximum five stars for the ECO Stars Fleet Recognition Scheme. This scheme is supported by Scottish Government and all local councils and aims to help fleet operators improve efficiency and reduce fuel consumption and emissions. The ECO Stars Team carried out a thorough audit covering fuel usage monitoring vehicle idling, harsh braking and harsh acceleration. Bargeddie Transport managed to reduce the vehicle idling of their trucks from 97 to 22 hours within four months and have maintained 22 hours per week as an average which equates to less than one hour per vehicle. This has been a fantastic accomplishment by the drivers and staff and shows what can be achieved through good communication and commitment from our drivers. Viridor s Technology & Innovation Forum is undertaking a carbon capture and utilisation trial, in partnership with Oxfordshire-based CCm Research at Walpole anaerobic digestion (AD) plant. Walpole AD receives household food waste from Somerset County Council residents and digests it in enclosed tanks to produce a biogas and a nutrient-rich biomass digestate residue. The biogas is used to generate electricity for the National Grid. This innovative project uses waste carbon dioxide emissions harvested from the AD biogas-fuelled generators together with digestate to create a high-quality fertiliser that is ploughed back into the land completely replacing conventional fertilisers. Viridor is excited about the opportunity to demonstrate how it is possible to take material traditionally viewed purely as a waste and to transform it into highquality fertiliser. 838kW rooftop solar power installations at seven recycling facilities generating more renewable energy. Continued sector leadership with ISO50001 Energy Management Standard implementation. Better resource management clearly contributes to UK and EU climate change adaption strategies. 16% Our carbon emissions increased by 16% in 2016/17 Increase primarily as a result of our newly commissioned ERFs reaching their full operating capacity. For more Information see the Pennon Annual Report. 18 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 19

11 SDG 15 Sustainable use and management of terrestrial ecosystems and halting biodiversity loss BIODIVERSITY ON OUR SITES The Biodiversity Benchmark has allowed us to promote the good work that our Landfill Aftercare team do and the dedication of our company and stakeholders to protect the environment. We engage with local residents and volunteer groups, giving them access to areas which were previously restricted. The resultant environmental studies have increased our understanding of the environment and led to improvements in our use of restored land for local communities. The biodiversity benchmarking scheme has shown people outside of the company that Viridor is committed to safeguarding and increasing environmental enrichment. On two of our original 2009 benchmark awarded sites we have also had sightings of the heath bee-fly and Kent black arches moth. CARYMOOR ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST The environmental education centre at Carymoor Environmental Trust, adjacent to our Dimmer landfill site, has been supported by Viridor for many years. This year we are delighted to be celebrating their 21st anniversary with them. The Trust had a very successful year, delivering a broad range of environmental education sessions to 4,081 visitors, hosting 92 school visits and working with a further 2,652 children through their outreach education programme. Carymoor has created a unique mosaic of habitats on restored landfill and adjacent areas, supporting a diverse range of species. A range of wildlife is regularly monitored on site including bees, birds, plants, reptiles and butterflies. Carymoor s outstanding team of volunteers help to bring green issues to life all year round and work across all areas education, conservation and the community. Heath bee-fly at our Tatchells Biodiversity Benchmark awarded site Photography: Hamish Murray, Dorset Wildlife Trust Showcase partnerships with Somerset Wildlife Trust (Routes to the River Tone project), Carymoor Environmental Trust and City of Trees trees have been planted in Greater Manchester since the launch of our Street Trees partnership. WE CONTINUE TO MANAGE 31 CLOSED LANDFILL SITES ACROSS THE UK IN ACCORDANCE WITH BIODIVERSITY PLANS. TOTAL OF EIGHT BIODIVERSITY BENCHMARK SITES, GIVING VIRIDOR THE THIRD HIGHEST NUMBER OF ACCREDITATIONS ACROSS THE UK. 20 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 21

12 How can we help? At Viridor it s important that we can contribute and ensure progress towards greater sustainability collectively and collaboratively with our clients, customers, employees and supply chain partners. We aim to ensure that all our business activities have a positive economic, social and environmental impact. Our services reflect our customers aspirations and demands for zero-waste recycling-led services that follow the waste hierarchy and contribute towards a more circular economy. Sustainability is core to Viridor both in terms of ensuring long-term commercial viability and of operating in an environmentally and socially responsible manner. That s why we re challenging for positive change in all corners of our business. But change also starts with each one of us individually. Check out the UN s Lazy Person s Guide to Saving the World! 22 VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS VIRIDOR S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS 23

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