SustainIT Solutions Newsletter January 2010

Spotlight on

Carbon Reduction Commitment

Launching in April 2010, the CRC is the UK's first mandatory carbon emission trading scheme. Around 5,000 large, energy using organisations will be required to participate. Organisations that consume more than 6000 MWh of half-hourly metered electricity from January to December 2008, which at today's prices equates to an electricity bill of around £500,000 per year will be affected.

If you feel that these regulations will effect your business and you require more information from SustainIT Solutions on software solutions designed to help capture your environmental data please get in touch

Welcome to January's newsletter

SustainIT Solutions would like to wish all our friends and customers a Happy New Year and lots of success in 2010. This year, as we would guess you noticed, started with some heavy snow affecting transport networks. In and around Bristol, we haven't been spared - but this didn't stop us battling the elements, slogging our way up the drive and ... well, having fun in the snow.

Our newsletter is designed to keep you up to date with what's happening at SustainIT and the world around us. The big news this month is that SustainIT Solutions are pleased to announce two new training seminars; on the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme and Corporate Social Responsibility and sustainability. '1, 2, 3 to CRC!' is a training course for those people who are concerned that their organisation will be affected by the Carbon Reduction Commitment. During the half day course, the presenters will discuss how the scheme works; who is involved; what are the timelines; and how to plan for it. The seminar will ensure that participants are informed on how the Scheme can be advantageous to organisations, provide cost benefits and place them ahead of their competitors. 'Sustainability made simple for your Business' is a workshop designed for business leaders who need and want to implement a sustainability strategy into their business culture. Lasting a day, this workshop is an excellent way to learn about all aspects associated with CSR and sustainability.

Further details, including dates are available from Anthony Peake on 01275 774168 or email a.peake@sustainitsolutions.co.uk

COP15 - What has changed for UK Businesses?

The UN climate summit in Copenhagen - COP15 - ended just before Christmas without a new global agreement on climate change. What did happen was an acknowledgement of a deal agreed by five nations, led by the US, called the Copenhagen Accord. Containing no reference to a legally binding agreement, as some developing countries and climate activists wanted (and no deadline for transforming it into a binding deal), the accord was merely "recognised" by the 193 nations at the Copenhagen summit, rather than approved. The highlights of what was agreed were: a near global acknowledgement that global warming should be limited to less than 2C (3.6F), the degree of warming generally accepted as being "dangerous"; Rich countries must register the emissions cuts they will make by 2020 by the end of January 2010 (however, there is no guarantee that this will limit warming in the future as what countries cut is up to them); New and additional money "approaching $30bn" will be channelled to poorer nations over the period 2010-12, with a goal of providing an annual sum of $100bn by 2020; The pledges of rich countries will come under "rigorous, robust and transparent" international scrutiny and developing countries will submit national reports on their emissions pledges under a method "that will ensure that national sovereignty is respected".

As the dust settles on the conference, it is important to highlight what Copenhagen changed for businesses in the UK. The important issues reflect that the countries which brokered the Accord text, the US, China, India, South Africa, Brazil and the EU, indicates a world in which the balance of power has significantly changed in the last 20 years, so UK businesses will need to compete in a very different market; There is no longer any question that climate change is central to the political thinking of every country on the planet, and public awareness has also massively increased. UK businesses can no longer ignore this fact. However, the most important change is that green growth is now the prevailing economic model of our time. The ideas that addressing climate change is bad for business was buried at Copenhagen because countries from both developed and developing worlds have announced low-carbon economic plans and are moving forward with their initiatives. This ensures that, on a positive note, attention will now shift to a host of carbon reduction initiatives by countries, cities, companies and communities that are starting to build low carbon economies from the base up.

New Year Sustainability Resolutions

In case you haven't yet thought of your new years resolution, how about combining it with your company's sustainability programme. Here's some ideas ... Environmental Health Safety and Sustainability Managers can resolve to broaden the scope of your sustainability programme beyond the environment and climate change issues to include social and economic responsibilities; Corporate Responsibility Officers can resolve to move beyond issue management or corporate strategy to help each facility or other 'point of presence' establish a sustainability management system based on the soon-to-be-released ISO 26000 (Social Responsibility Standard) and an operational base of ISO 14001; Supply Chain Managers can resolve to work with suppliers to create a value chain based on sustainability, rather than based on fear that sourcing will be replacing them if they do not conform to your requests immediately; Senior Leaders can resolve to provide the direction to create a framework that will provide the sustainability action plan which implements your sustainability strategy to your facilities and supply chain. You can also provide resources to maintain the social focus to operate in every community in which you do business; Facility Managers can resolve to create your own sustainability management system and align it with the corporate strategy. Involve employees in the planning and implementation of the programme.

SustainIT software Solutions offers a window into the next level of response for businesses committed to becoming sustainable and creating sustainability strategies. If you think this subject will impact your business please get in contact with Anthony Peake on 01275 774168 or email a.peake@sustainitsolutions.co.uk.

Scrappage Schemes

Scrappage schemes sent car sales soaring towards the end of 2009. In the UK, a late rush sparked a 38.9% rise in sales in December when compared to the same month in 2008, but the scheme which offers new car buyers £2,000 discount if they scrap a car older than 10 years, failed to make up for last years dire performance, so for the year as a whole new registrations fell 6.4% from 2008 to less than two million cars. With consumers expected to steer clear of the car market this year, carmakers are relying on companies to come back into the market as the economic recovery gains momentum. Companies have been putting off their buying decisions and running their existing fleets for longer before replacing them, so 2009 saw a real slump in the business car market.

Chief Operating Officer Anthony Peake, has therefore decided to 'take a lead' and buy a new personal car for business use and at the same time 'help save the planet'. His old car, a Toyota RAV4, had an average MPG of 25, a cost of £0.25 per mile, and with an annual mileage of 24,000 this would produce emissions of 7,812kg of CO₂. This cost Anthony £6,000 annually in fuel and a further £600 in annual car tax, MOT and servicing. His brand new Toyota Yaris has an annual average MPG of 56, a cost of £0.15 per mile. The average annual mileage would produce emissions of 5,454kg of CO₂. It will cost £3,600 in annual fuel cost and a further £35 in annual car tax, MOT and servicing (no MOT or Servicing costs for next 3 years). Therefore the cost to Anthony for his new car (after discounts and the scrappage scheme) is £12,055, his annual saving over 4 years will be £11,600. So in fact the car will cost Anthony £455 and save the planet from 9,432kg of CO₂. Brilliant!!!