At SWA we recognise the potential environmental impacts of our operations and we are all committed to controlling them. We have a fully functioning Environmental Management System (EMS) which is accredited to the standard BS EN ISO 14001. Our environmental policy, which underpins all our environmental decisions, has three key elements:
Prevention of pollution
First and foremost is our responsibility the world around us. Our site waste management plan ensure we re-use or recycle as much waste as we possibly can; since the introduction of the EMS we have reduced the amount of waste we send to landfill by more than 60%. With our ever increasing recycling programmes coupled with looking at reducing and improving our packaging methods this is set to increase. We opt for energy saving equipment wherever we can. Our staff are enthusiastic and thoughtful when it comes to environmental issues and some great ideas result from our on-going in-house environmental training sessions and regular EHS Committee reviews. We firmly believe that by making small manageable changes, we can make a real difference for both SWA and our customers without compromising the quality and service our customers expect.
Legal compliance
It sounds obvious, but complying with environmental law can be complex and expensive. That’s why we dedicate resources to keeping our Register of Legal and Other Requirements up to date, taking time to ensure we are doing all we can to fulfil the requirements of UK and European legislation. We regularly audit our compliance, as well as being audited by our accreditation body, and set targets for improving performance. Customers can be assured that all our products are correctly labelled and comprehensive safety data sheets are available for all hazardous substances. (and can be downloaded from this website). We maintain a database of packaging weights and can assist customers in compiling data for the annual submissions of packaging data under the Producer Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2007.
Continual improvement
We are proud of what we have achieved so far, but it doesn’t stop there. We have a continual programme of environmental objective setting, and throughout the year we monitor our energy consumption and our waste output to keep meeting targets. We review our environmental impact assessment annually, or if we make any significant operational changes, so we can identify potential problems before they develop and we are always working to control our environmental impact. There are endless possibilities for becoming even better.
The products we stock are carefully controlled and any environmental hazards are clearly labelled. We are mindful of our environmental objectives in our purchasing strategies and we look for environmentally responsible alternatives to hazardous products, hoping to support the rest of the supply chain in managing environmental aspects.
