EMAS

Crawley Borough Council is committed to environmental improvements and has put in place an environmental management system, covering all directorates, to identify our environmental impacts and set targets for improvement.

Our achievements have recently been awarded the international standard ISO 14001 and also the European award EMAS (Eco-Management and Audit Scheme). These are significant achievements, indeed only 12 UK councils have received EMAS.

There are many benefits to having EMAS:

• Our many impacts on the environment are identified and reduced.
• Laws and regulations are identified and complied with.
• Substantial financial savings, through materials, waste, energy and water reductions. Avoiding the costs of fines, clean-ups or time wasted is also extremely beneficial.
• It is a powerful marketing tool. People often ask what is the council doing to protect the environment? EMAS is proof of our commitment.

The activities that we have concentrated on recently include:

• Energy and water consumption
• Waste management and minimisation
• Transport and car mileage
• Pollution prevention by correct materials handling and storage
• Procurement of goods and services

Environmental Policy

Our Environmental Policy shows the main issues that we cover. Look in Related Documents.

How have we done?

The EMAS Statement has recently been published, showing activities and achievements for the year in 2008-09, such as:

• A new Climate Change Strategy was formally approved by Cabinet in December ’08 and details the council’s pathway to becoming Carbon Neutral by 2050.
• A 7% reduction in electricity consumption for the council’s buildings was achieved.
• The 4000th GREENbin target was achieved.
• The GreenZone education centre at Tilgate Nature Centre has now been fully revamped and promotes key messages for reducing residents’ carbon footprint.
• A new procurement business case now ensures purchasers consider the impact and effect their purchase has in relation to the council's Sustainable Procurement Strategy and Environmental Policy.
• “Let’s FACE it!” (Focused Action for Crawley’s Environment) undertook 62 community projects with the assistance of 1,511 local volunteers providing 4,528 hours of their time.

Crawley is still one of only 16 UK local authorities with EMAS, which shows our excellent achievements.

We have recently been recognised internationally, by hosting a delegation from the Beijing Municipal Audit Bureau who came to Crawley to learn all about our EMAS activities.

For further information on environmental management go to www.iema.net

We’ve done our bit, so can you.

Take Action

We can all do our bit for the environment, whether you’re at home or at work, the council can help you.

Businesses can receive a free audit and advice through the Green Business Programme. While everyone can benefit from the top tips in the Green Guide to Crawley.