Enviro-Mark News Issue 8, February 2010
In this issue:
|
Editorial
Kristin Flanagan
Happy New Year - although 2010 is one-twelfth over already! So how are those alcohol-inspired New Year’s resolutions looking?
If one of your well-meaning resolutions was to build and better differentiate your business, then it’s worth considering the green credentials of your supply chain.
Many of our members originally joined us to help create a marketing edge for their business and have since found that partnering with like-minded organisations – both up and down the supply chain – has had a big impact on the way they do business and the types of customers that seek them out.
So if you have, or are developing, a credible EMS it would be worthwhile taking a look around for like-minded suppliers and customers. If you can help or support others in their journey, even better! If you need some inspiration, you can find a full list of members and relevant certification levels here: http://www.enviro-mark.co.nz/clients.asp
In this issue, we celebrate some big milestones and take a closer look at the EMS achievements of the Phonak team.
All the best for the remaining eleven-twelfth's of the year!
Kristin Flanagan
Membership Manager
"We liked it so much we bought the programme"
Just like the guy from that old Remington shaver commercial, our fondness for Enviro-Mark has led us to purchase the programme from its UK owner.
Until now we have held the New Zealand license for the programme, which has meant we’ve had limited ability to enhance and expand our programme.
“We have ambitious plans to develop Enviro-Mark into the world’s foremost environmental management and certification programme,” says Enviro-Mark Programme Manager, Charlie Bartlett. “Owning the Enviro-Mark programme will make that possible.
“Environmental management is a fast-changing field. ISO, the International Organisation for Standardization, is working on new environmental standards and we need the flexibility to develop Enviro-Mark to ensure it continues to have direct international equivalence.
“Owning Enviro-Mark will also enable us to create specific industry or sector products and partner with complementary organisations. Plus it broadens the opportunities for integrating Enviro-Mark with other Landcare Research business environmental solutions such as the carboNZero Cert™ programme and CEMARS™.
We'll keep you posted!
...meanwhile the sad news is...
We’ve recently farewelled our Environmental Consultant, Kim Kelleher. Kim has moved to a new role as the Environmental Manager at the Port of Lyttelton.
“Kim’s experience in all areas of environmental management has been influential in helping many of you with your EMS achievements,” says Enviro-Mark Programme Manager, Charlie Bartlett. “We know from your feedback that she has been a popular and respected member of the team.”
Recruitment for a replacement is underway.
Bronze Checklist Revision & New Guidance Notes
The Enviro-Mark Bronze Checklist is our legal assessment and compliance tool that assists our members to ensure that they operate within their legal obligations relating to health and safety and environmental legislation.
The checklist is an important tool as it helps to identify applicable legislation and to assess compliance. It outlines the key compliance elements of 14 Acts relating to organisations in New Zealand, including: the Resource Management Act, Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act, Health and Safety in Employment Act, and the Waste Minimisation Act.
We have recently completed our annual update of the checklist and a new version (January 2010) is now available for the exclusive use of Enviro-Mark members. To complement the checklist we have also developed new Bronze Guidance Notes to help make identifying your legal compliance requirements as straight forward as possible.
All current, paid-up members should by now have received a copy of both these important documents via email (with an additional hard copy printed on 100% recycled paper from mills certified to ISO14001 being sent by post).
The new checklist will be used in all Enviro-Mark audits from 1 March 2010, so you’ll need to ensure that you are familiar with the changes.
If you have any questions - or if you haven’t received your organisation’s copy of the new materials, please contact us on 0800 366275 or enviro-mark@landcareresearch.co.nz
Certification Process
Landcare Research is the only organisation that can issue Enviro-Mark certification.
The entire certification stage can take up to two weeks after your audit has been completed, although this can depend on whether or not supplementary information is required. We do aim to speed things along so that you can celebrate being certified (and be commended for your hard work).
The certification process begins once your audit has been completed and you’ve closed-out all your corrective action requests (CAR’s). Your auditor applies for certification on your behalf and sends your audit report and details of how (if appropriate) the audit was closed out to the Enviro-Mark team.
The Enviro-Mark certifier (Business Manager, Charlie Bartlett) reviews the application along with the audit report and either requests further information from the auditor or approves certification depending on the request and the information provided.
We then print and send the signed and framed certificate via courier to you (plus emails logos as needed/appropriate).
Then it's time to party!
Member Update
Dr Jan Wright (centre) with BRANZ Group CEO Pieter Burghout (left) and BRANZ Quality and Environmental Manager Don Richards.
BRANZ is an independent and impartial research, testing, consulting and information company providing services and resources for the building industry. Their two main areas of activity are: researching and investigating theconstruction and design of buildings that impact the built environment in New Zealand and enabling the transfer of knowledge from the research community into the commercial building and construction industry.
Their core purpose is to improve people's lives through our research and to inform, educate and motivate those who shape the built environment
BRANZ has recently achieved Enviro-Mark Diamond certification and had its Diamond certificate presented by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Jan Wright. Dr Wright acknowledged BRANZ for being one of the first New Zealand research organisations to achieve Diamond certification, and noted the difficulty BRANZ faced in having an uncertain supply chain with a lot of the items tested to destruction, with whatever is left behind needing to be disposed of responsibly.
BRANZ champions sustainability and environmental management for the building industry and took on the Enviro-Mark certification programme to prove that it could 'walk the talk'
New Members & Certifications
Congratulations to these members who have recently been certified:
| Deosan Manufacturing Ltd | Diamond |
| Mighty River Power Ltd - Corporate Office | Diamond |
| Downer EDI Works - Invercargill | Diamond |
| Stevenson Resources | Diamond |
| Mighty River Power Ltd - Generation | Diamond |
| Fonterra Brands NZ Ltd - Takanini | Diamond |
| Downer EDI Works - Asphalt Plant Wellington | Diamond |
| Fumacare Ltd | Diamond |
| BRANZ Group | Diamond |
| Eco Maintenance Ltd | Diamond |
| Fusion Print Group | Platinum |
| Livingstone Bros Ltd | Platinum |
| Wellington Business Forms Ltd | Platinum |
| Candida Stationary Ltd | Gold |
| David Robertson Decorators Ltd | Gold |
| Remarkit Solutions Ltd | Gold |
| Interweave Ltd | Gold |
| Lithoprint Ltd | Gold |
| ABE'S Real Bagels Ltd | Gold |
| Cerebos Greggs - Auckland | Gold |
| Astra Print | Gold |
| ACP Media | Gold |
| ecostore Co Ltd | Bronze |
| Squiz Ltd | Bronze |
| Bramco Granite & Marble Ltd | Bronze |
| Capiche Design Ltd | Bronze |
| Maori Television Service | Bronze |
| Fairfax NZ Media Ltd - The Dominion Post | Bronze |
Seminar and Workshop update
Our last workshops for 2009 were held in Wellington on 18 and 19 November 2009. We kick off the next round of workshops around the country in February 2010, starting with Auckland on 9 February 2010. If you haven't yet attended one of our workshops, or feel you'd like a refresher, please check out our events page to locate a workshop in your area and book now.
Christmas Donation
Rather than print and distribute cards at Christmas we created an e-card, and donated the $500 we would have spent on printing and postage to the Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi (SoTM), which provides the majority of funding for the regenerating island reserve.
Helen Cain recently thanked us for our support on behalf of SoTM “We have a number of important projects to fund this year, including the translocation of riflemen and kokako to Tiri. Your donation will help us achieve these.”
Hatched - The Capacity for Sustainable Development
Looking for a compelling summer read about sustainability? Landcare Research has produced an eBook about the transformation required to create a more sustainable long-term future for New Zealand: www.hatched.net.nz
Check out the section on"Business as Sustainability Innovators" - Section.2.
Member Profile: Phonak
Phonak NZ technicians hard at work
Phonak, the Swiss-based supplier of miniature hearing systems and associated communication devices, has a global focus on more sustainable business practices. Here in New Zealand, Enviro-Mark Gold certification helps keep Phonak ahead of the competition. Craig Bennetts of Phonak New Zealand discussed the company’s EMS achievements with Charlie Bartlett.
What has been the key to the success of your EMS?
From the very beginning many of our staff were quick to recognise the importance of what we were doing – not just from a sustainable standpoint, but from a moral and ethical one as well. Senior management support has played a critical role also - teaming up with Enviro-Mark was originally their idea.
What has been the most challenging aspect?
There have been a few along the way, like getting started – and then keeping up the momentum. Our most challenging aspect at this particular point in time is managing the growing amount of recycling we collect and distribute. Our waste to landfill figures have dropped by more than 70% since we started our waste reduction initiative, largely by separating out and collecting all the waste we have identified as recyclable or reusable. We currently separate out and recycle all our paper, cardboard, rubber, foam, polystyrene, metal & cables, E-waste, rechargeable batteries, bottles, cans, plastics of all types, blown fluoro tubes – and we have a worm compost bin. This has resulted in quite a collection of waste streams.
What advice would you give to anyone else starting out on the EMS journey?
Look for support and use it well. Having support from a driving organisation like Enviro-Mark has been vital in the development of our EMS. By breaking the process down into achievable steps developing an effective EMS has been far easier than expected.
What are some of your EMS achievements?
We have greatly reduced our waste to landfill and set an industry benchmark for sustainable and ethical practice, and we have also:
• upgraded our vehicle fleet to low emission diesels
• established relationships with a network of like-minded companies – many of whom have Enviro-Mark certification
• introduced initiatives to help reduce our consumption of natural resources such as water and electricity
• helped to improve the environmental attitude and behaviour of staff
• helped many small community organisations by offering free reusable resources that we collect as part of our waste reduction programme.
How has the Enviro-Mark programme assisted?
The guidance, support and workshops have all been incredibly beneficial. The Enviro-Mark model of breaking bigger goals down into achievable steps has been an example we have emulated often and has resulted in a credible and robust Environmental Management System and an environmental certification that withstands scrutiny. This is something we can all take pride in.