It is entirely appropriate that I m here today at one of the world s most iconic sporting venues.

Transcription

1 EPOW Events Roadmap launch 5 March 2013 Liz Goodwin Good morning, and welcome all, to Lord s Cricket Ground. It is entirely appropriate that I m here today at one of the world s most iconic sporting venues. This has been home to the Marylebone Cricket Club since 1814 and since then, has played host to some of the greatest cricketing talent in world names such as Fred Trueman, Jack Hobbs, Alastair Cook and Andrew Flintoff hang in the air (and can be seen on the Honours Board). Over the years, it has brought together thousands of cricket fans who share the desire to see, support and experience sporting excellence in action. While I don t count myself as a fan of the game, I am happy to watch cricket and my husband was green with envy when I told him about the venue for today s event. The turf at Lords, after all, is hallowed ground! Of course, behind every successful event whether it s the Ashes, a one-day international, a rugby sevens tournament, an athletics meeting or even the recent hugely-successful London 2012 Olympics lies a complex support structure. The same is true, too, for other events beyond the sporting arena, such as music and arts festivals, exhibitions and conferences. The whole events industry, cultural and business as well as sporting, in all its complexity, is a significant contributor to the UK plc economy. Supporting around 25,000 business and half-a-million full time equivalent jobs, it s currently estimated to be worth 36 billion a figure projected to rise by 2020 to 48 billion. We believe this important economic player can unlock additional financial savings, and benefit not only its bottom line, but also the environment, by reducing the amount of waste it creates across its supply chain. The London 2012 Olympic Games demonstrated this to extremely good effect. Other events and venues are already recognising the potential that lies in delivering more sustainable events, and in focusing more on reducing waste. viewing waste not as something simply to send to landfill, but as a resource in itself. Just to set this in context, in the UK, businesses consume 600 million tonnes of materials a year. Around a third of this ends up as waste but much of this could have been used productively. Defra has identified that businesses could achieve over 18 billion benefits per year through low cost or no cost improvements in the efficient use of resources, and over 23 billion if you include wasted water and energy. That is equivalent to about 5,000 for each of the 4.8m businesses in the UK. There s absolutely no reason why the events sector cannot tap into this rich seam.

2 That s why I m excited to be launching today s roadmap Zero Waste Events: A 2020 Vision, which has been developed by WRAP, in consultation with the industry, as part of our work with EPOW (European Pathway to Zero Waste). EPOW is a partnership between WRAP and the Environment Agency, part-funded by the EU Commission, and, as the name suggests, focuses on identifying the routes to zero waste. This is successful partnership that s been running since 2010, and whose impacts will be felt long after the official collaboration concludes at the end of this month. Today s roadmap also has the support of UK governments who all subscribe to the view that a sustainable events sector, where resources are used efficiently and waste is avoided, is good for business, and good for the economic health of UK plc. While WRAP has only recently developed a relationship with the events industry, through its support to London 2012, we do have a wealth of transferrable knowledge, expertise and practical experience in helping all kinds of organisations and individuals to reduce waste and use resources more efficiently. So: working with the events sector to help it on its zero waste journey makes perfect sense for us. And this roadmap has been created in collaboration with industry, for industry, with the aim of helping the events sector move towards the goal of sending no waste to landfill by It s an ambitious goal, yes, but its vision - where organisations make the most efficient use of resources by minimising demand on primary resources and maximising the re-use, recycling and recovery of all event materials instead of treating them as waste makes sound common sense. We know that some organisations are already well on the way to achieving this goal, reporting 50% recycling for their events. The majority, however, have yet to unlock the potential, averaging a recycling rate of just 15%, with large amounts of waste being sent to landfill. This compares with average household recycling rates of around 44%. WRAP already has an excellent pedigree in helping event organisations to move towards a more sustainable, zero waste approach. Our work with the team responsible for delivering the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games has demonstrated what can be achieved with the right commitment, planning and approach, and I m delighted that LOCOG s former Corporate Sustainability Manager Phil Cummings is here today to lend his support to this initiative and share his experience with you. He ll be able to talk in more detail about zero waste events and how they can be delivered in reality and why this isn t just a nice to do but something that has a much more significant financial and environmental benefit. It was our experience in working with LOCOG, and helping it plan and deliver a zero waste Games that enabled us to develop an events-specific resource management plan or RMP - tool. The tool was awarded a London 2012 Inspire Mark. These awards were given by LOCOG in recognition of exceptional and innovative projects inspired by the Games.

3 The tool has been well received and is currently being updated based on feedback but more of this later today. It s this experience and expertise we re providing to the organisers of both the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles in However, the roadmap which we re launching today is not an on-line tool. Rather, it is an important first stage in setting out a clear vision for how the whole industry can achieve zero waste to landfill by Turning the ambitious vision into reality will require a collaborative approach. And adopting frameworks or standards such as required for ISO and BS 8901 accreditations, as well as tools like the RMP will also help smooth the path. The roadmap challenges the industry to consider how it can work more closely and in partnership across the whole supply chain, working individually and collaboratively to reduce waste. It highlights the main considerations an organisation needs to make when preparing for and delivering a zero waste event. Most importantly I want to stress that this roadmap is not just for the major events in the UK calendar. Whatever the size, nature or location of your event, this initiative is for YOU with potential to deliver real and tangible benefits. Every event can benefit from using resources more efficiently, and we d like to invite anyone planning an event to explore what this approach, which draws heavily on our hands-on London 2012 experience, can offer them. Events managers will, of course, want to know exactly what these benefits are what is in this approach that will benefit their organisation. Firstly, events can expect to see increased profit using fewer materials more efficiently reduces overall costs and cuts spend on waste disposal. Next, they could see clear competitive advantage improving environmental performance can win new customers and ensure you hold on to your old ones. It can also spotlight opportunities for reuse or onward sale of tradable waste. Examples of this from the Olympics include the majority of sports equipment being donated to national sports associations. almost half the fixtures, fittings and equipment were sold for use at the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games. Even the tennis balls found a good second owner at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home! Organisations will be better equipped to adapt to future changes, meeting sustainable environmental targets as well as demonstrate a professional approach to corporate responsibility something we know is increasingly of concern to customers and stakeholders. Finally, by using resources more efficiently, an organisation can become more resilient.

4 Not only can they reduce their reliance on virgin materials in an increasingly resource-constrained world, but they can potentially improve their financial performance. and become more competitive. For any events organisation seeking to gain ISO or other environmental or management standard, the stepped approach of the roadmap will provide a useful reference and approach. Why do we believe a roadmap represents the right route to achieving zero landfill? WRAP has seen this approach used successfully in the past, across a variety of sectors for example, in construction, retail, the dairy industry and in clothing. It enables players from across a sector to come together, setting commercial sensitivities to one side, to focus on common goals, identify areas where action can have the most impact, and share ideas and best practice. In all these sectors, industry collaboration and buy-in has been critical to success, and this events roadmap is no different. That s why, over the past six months, we have run workshops across England, Scotland and Wales for events industry stakeholders. These have brought together some of those who already have some experience of sustainability and who were willing to share their knowledge and what they have learned from running their own events. Among these were representatives from venues, event organisers, suppliers, waste contractors, sponsors and regulators some of whom have joined us today, supporting the onward journey for the industry as a whole. Their input has been critical, ensuring that the roadmap reflects the reality of events handling and will be fit for purpose for organisations across the sector. The result is a plan that will be as applicable to a small one-off event where tackling on-site waste from participants is the focus, to a multi-million pound, multi-day, international festival. It sets out a pathway to Our destination is just seven years away what can we, together, achieve by then? I m excited by the possibilities, and hope you are, too. If you re keen to get started on this journey straight away and I hope you are then let me draw your attention to a new, dedicated events industry portal we re launching today, alongside the roadmap. This will be home to a range of events-related resources produced by WRAP, our partners, and third parties. These include, for example, our Resource Management Plan Tool, as well as the London 2012 Learning Legacy documents. You ll also be able to find signposts to other useful information to help you manage and deliver sustainable events. Later today we re going to hear from Resource Management Minister Lord De Mauley, and from some other distinguished speakers.

5 I m delighted to say that we re going to be hearing from Marek Gordon from SITA and from Russell Seamore from this excellent venue, here at Lord s. I ve already mentioned Phil Cumming, formerly from LOCOG, and we re also going to be joined by Helen McFarelane from McDonalds. So without further ado I will pass you back to our facilitator to continue with the rest of the day s proceedings. I plan to be around and to join you for most of the morning and some of the afternoon session. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and views about how we can collectively turn this vision into reality.