The vast majority of the Group’s greenhouse gas emissions derive from electricity use at our facilities (46 per cent) and the transportation of our goods (29 per cent). In addition to the increasing costs associated with energy consumption, our markets are likely to experience increasing legislative measures in the future aimed at reducing the climate change impact from commercial operations. To help us to reduce our emissions, our businesses have developed various measures, including environmental management systems, resource efficiency plans, fleet management systems and fleet backhauling programmes.
Emissions of greenhouse gases have been reported in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (“GHG Protocol”), which was developed jointly by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and the World Resources Institute. The standard differentiates between emissions for which businesses are directly responsible (“Scope 1 emissions”) and indirect emissions from the generation of supplied electricity and supplied heat (e.g. district heating) (“Scope 2 emissions”). Certain other indirect emissions (“Scope 3 emissions”) do not form part of the core carbon footprint as defined by the GHG Protocol. However, given the nature of our operations and the degree of control we exercise over certain activities, we do believe that it is appropriate to report on the emissions from third-party provided transportation as well as from our employees’ business travel. These Scope 3 emissions, together with our Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions, are included in the data reported below.
During the coming year, we will further evaluate the activities that contribute to our greenhouse gas emissions, with a view to reducing those emissions. In next year’s report, we will publish targets for the reduction of our emissions in future years.
The data below for 2008 and 2007 is provided only as a record of historic data reported. For the reasons stated in the environmental performance section, including the overall improvement in the quality of data produced since 2007, it is not useful to provide a direct comparison with the Group’s environmental performance in previous years, nor does it provide a useful indication of future trends.
