A unique environmental campaign to divert waste from being sent to potentially harmful landfill sites has achieved its first major milestone since launching in Aberdeen last year.
Not-for-Landfill – the first campaign of its kind in the UK – was introduced by city-based company One Stop Waste Solutions in April 2016. Since then it has attracted signatures from dozens of north-east businesses with leading oil services firm National Oilwell Varco (NOV) having the distinction of becoming the 100th member of the campaign.
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The free-to-use business network supports companies to recycle and reuse, as well as promoting best practice and the good work already being done by organisations to avoid landfill. To date, members have actively diverted more than 1,000 tonnes of waste from landfill.
Signatories to the campaign are asked to take a pledge committing to reduce, reuse and recycle waste; segregate key recyclable materials; and, create a working environment that is conducive to effective waste management, among other environmental objectives.
Another key focus of the campaign is to promote local charities and social enterprises that are actively seeking certain types of business waste.
Craig Donoghue is campaign manager for Not-for-Landfill and managing director at One Stop Waste Solutions. He said: “Businesses are becoming more and more environmentally-aware and, increasingly, see being eco-friendly as a key differentiator in a competitive market. Diverting waste from landfill also makes sound commercial sense due to the increases in landfill tax introduced by the Scottish Government.
“We believe there is huge potential for a campaign such as Not-for-Landfill to make a lasting difference to businesses and organisations in the north-east of Scotland and beyond. Looking ahead, it is our aim to create a fully-fledged green business network where all members can collaborate and share information with one another to ensure environmental best practice across the entire region.
“Despite still being in its relative infancy, the response to the campaign so far has been excellent with companies of all sizes – from charities and social enterprises to international oil and gas service companies and hotels – eager to sign up to do their bit and benefit the wider community.”
Since joining the Not-for-Landfill campaign in February, NOV Rig Systems and Aftermarket has successfully found a greener solution to its waste management and now favours waste-to-energy rather than using landfill as the primary destination for its general waste.
Richard Heslop, director of service and repair at NOV Rig Systems, said: “As a company we take our commitment to the environment very seriously and we have received tremendous buy-in from our staff, with every individual doing what they can to help the business achieve its overall environmental objectives.
“When we first heard about the Not-for-Landfill campaign, it was an easy decision to make given the real sense of community fostered throughout the campaign and the opportunities it presents to collaborate with companies, both large and small, towards achieving common goals.
“We looked at the actions that we had taken against the points of the pledge and realised that we were already working within it and so we should sign-up and participate in this worthwhile campaign. The Not-for-Landfill campaign is wider than just redirection of waste from landfill and we saw One Stop Waste Solutions as a progressive company who came up with ‘pragmatic’ solutions to problems.”
The Not-for-Landfill campaign is a free business network and resource that promotes and supports the good work that organisations are doing to avoid sending waste to landfill. It is also a useful starting point for many small and medium-sized enterprises looking to implement an environmental management system, such as ISO14001, in the future.
Businesses and organisations that have already signed up to the campaign include the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC), the Chester Hotel, Dolce Vita Flowers and Hydrasun. There are currently 108 unique members.
To sign up for the Not-for-Landfill campaign or for any further information please visitwww.notforlandfill.com.
