The government has set the target to lower total carbon
emissions by 80 per cent
by 2050. This means we need to make our existing homes more
sustainable. We also need to make sure our new homes meet the
highest environmental standards. Here's how we're tackling the
challenge:
Retrofitting existing homes
People in affordable housing are less likely to have
access to solutions that improve the energy efficiency of their
home. We invest over £1m each year in making our existing homes
more energy efficient and cheaper to heat. Last year, we installed
energy saving measures in nearly 4,000 homes.
Influencing government
We need the government's help to reduce emissions from
affordable housing stock. Energy efficiency must be cheaper and
more accessible. We're proud to be at the forefront of this debate.
Our lobbying contributed to the introduction of the Feed-in
Tariff which we're currently piloting in
Norwich.
New homes
Green technologies are incorporated into all our new homes. Our
multi-award winning development Wolverton Park uses
solar panels to provide homes with heat and hot water. Wind
turbines are used to generate electricity for public lighting.
Energy advice
We help customers save money on their fuel bills and protect the
environment through information videos and our
energy
price comparison service.
Green spaces
Green spaces promote community cohesion and have a positive
impact on health and wellbeing. Our
award-winning £16m Green Spaces
for People programme is making a difference to local wildlife
and biodiversity.
Green business
We've reached an important milestone with the ISO14001 certification -
a standard that demonstrates our commitment to the environment.
We've also implemented an environmental management system which
allows us to monitor our performance more effectively.
Environmental performance
| Year |
Total waste (tonnes) |
Office waste (tonnes) |
% recycled |
Total carbon emmissions
(tonnes CO2) |
Travel
(total mileage) |
| 2010/11 |
1,856 |
125 |
79.1 |
2,148 |
3,308,845 |
| 2009/10 |
1,653 |
41 |
43.2 |
1,420 |
3,179,975 |
| 2008/09 |
1,653 |
41 |
43.2 |
1,628 |
4,303,425 |
Our environmental figures have gone up partly because we have got
better at collecting data. See our
2011 corporate responsibility report (pdf) for more information
on how we manage our performance.
Environmental targets
As part of our Mayday pledge we aim to
reduce the CO2 emissions from our offices and our total waste
produced by 10% by 2012.
| Aim |
Target 2013/14
|
| Office waste recycled |
90% |
| Business miles saved through video conferencing use |
1.72m |
| Number of hours of staff training in environmental
management |
200
|
