Commitment to environmentally sound operating practices secures seventh place in new league table
LAFARGE have ranked seventh in the UK’s first-ever league table of ‘green’ organizations. The roll, featuring more than 2,000 businesses, agencies, hospitals and government units, aims to show what progress is being made to cut carbon.
Published by the Environment Agency from information supplied to its CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme, the table is expected to act as a baseline for future years and will also show overall CO2 emissions.
Lafarge Aggregates & Concrete UK (LACUK) are the highest listed of the large building materials suppliers operating multiple sites across the UK.
Miles Dobson (pictured), LACUK’s head of manufacturing, said: ‘We are absolutely delighted to have ranked so highly on this very first league table of the Carbon Reduction Commitment scheme.
‘For Lafarge to be the top ranked multi-site, national construction materials supplier makes us all feel very proud and is a testament of our drive to constantly improve our sustainability.
‘Lafarge is totally committed to operating in the most environmentally sound way possible. We seek to minimize our impact on the environment in all ways, from operations at our 150-plus sites to our transport systems and our innovative product lines.
‘Education and people development is also very much part of Lafarge’s business culture, and spreading the message about energy efficiency has been a big element of our work for the CRC scheme.
‘We are pleased to say our workforce has wholeheartedly taken the carbon reduction challenge on board and a major part of our success has been down to their ideas and efforts.’
The league table ranks organizations according to actions taken to monitor and reduce energy use as a preparation for participation in the CRC scheme, such as installing smart meters or complying with the Carbon Trust Standard.
Lafarge achieved the Carbon Trust Standard last summer following three years of carbon-management initiatives (during which time emissions were cut by more than 24%) and independent verification.
The Standard covers all of the company’s UK operations and subsidiaries, including 35 quarries, 98 Readymix plants, 17 asphalt plants, nine depots and the head office.
Top spot in the league was shared by 22 organizations, including Center Parcs, OFGEM and Manchester United FC with a weighted score of 2092.5.
A further 10 companies shared various rankings before Lafarge’s sole standing at seventh with a weighted score of 2071.
Among the initiatives which helped boost Lafarge’s position were: achievement of the Carbon Trust Standard; installation of smart meters; awarding sites energy-rating certificates; improvements in the efficiency of pump, conveyor and heating and lighting systems; and the adoption of weekly energy readings to track unexpected usage.
A major advance was the creation of a database to record and manage energy consumption, ensuring both accurate data collection and a new visibility of data which helped drive employee awareness and engagement.
The CRC scheme requires large organizations using more than 6,000MWh per year of electricity – equivalent to an annual electricity bill of around £500,000 – to measure and report their carbon emissions each year.
It came into force in April 2010 and aims to significantly reduce UK carbon emissions not covered by other pieces of legislation, such as Climate Change Agreements and the EU Emissions Trading Scheme – programmes which involve LACUK’s sister company, Lafarge Cement.
As part of their commitment to cutting CO2, Lafarge Cement are implementing measures such as: improving manufacturing methods; replacing fossil fuels with other energy sources, eg tyres, processed sewage pellets or meat and bonemeal; and using left-over substances from other industrial processes, eg fly ash, in the cement mix, thereby saving on raw materials.
