E. GREENING
THE DEPARTMENT'S
OPERATIONS
18. DTIs Green Housekeeping Strategy is currently
being revised and will shortly be re-issued to all staff with
the dual aim of increasing their understanding of the environmental
impact resulting from the Department's activities and providing
cost-effective measures to help further reduce such impact.
19. The Department's achievements in greening
its operation since 1990 include the introduction of a scheme
to recycle white paper and energy efficiency savings. Following
its introduction in 1990, the recycling scheme has progressed
and been expanded to include all paper. The Department
is currently achieving a 70.5 per cent recycling rate (against
a 75 per cent by weight target) for paper collected for recycling
against amount purchased. Staff are also encouraged to recycle
toner cartridges and cans as well as to save energy by switching
off electrical equipment whenever possible and using energy-efficient
IT office equipment. In terms of energy efficiency, at the end
of a five year energy programme (1990 to March 1996) the Department
achieved a reduction in energy use of 14.3 per cent. This was
just under the Energy Efficiency Office target of 15 per cent.
20. Looking to the future, the department is
committed to meet or better the Government target of 20 per cent
reduction in energy use by the year 2000 (based on 1990 levels).
On waste, the department hopes to set a target for waste minimisation
for the central London HQ buildings later this year, following
a waste audit which was carried out last year.
21. The Department's policy is to minimise the
environmental impact caused by its use of resources. The Department
has a procurement policy which encourages its purchasers to include
in specifications for goods and services requirements for safeguarding
the environment. The Department has a devolved procurement structure
and responsibility for implementing the policy rests with individual
management units. For those items which are procured centrally,
for example information technology equipment, specifications are
discussed with the Department's environment specialists and include
the need to minimise environmental impact. The vast majority of
procurement decisions on stationery are, however, delegated to
relatively junior levels. Consequently the Department works with
the stationery contractor to stock and identify the more environmentally
beneficial products and advises staff on what issues to take into
account in ordering stationery. Mr Battle has written a foreword
to the stationery catalogue, exhorting all staff and Ministers
to take the environment into account when purchasing stationery.
22. The Department fully supports the use of
environment management systems by Business and has established
an accreditation regime to allow companies to be certificated
to ISO 14001 and to participate in EMAS. It has in place all of
the basic components of an environment management system following
the models of 14001 and EMAS. A review of DTI by consultants in
1995 identified several areas where the Department fell short
of the standard of implementation which would enable certification
to be obtained. The Department is working to improve these areas—primarily
relating to communications and monitoring and measuring—and
will take stock of whether there is a case for incurring the additional
costs of certification when this programme of work is concluded.
23. The Department makes available specialist
environment training for those members of staff who need it. The
Department has a clear policy to make all staff aware of
how their actions can improve the environmental performance of
the Department. It educates the majority of staff on how their
actions can improve the Department's performance by issuing guidance.
This guidance is being put on the Department's intranet to allow
desk-top access.
24. The public are informed of the Department's
activities to improve its environmental performance through the
Departmental Annual Expenditure Plans Report. The integration
of environmental appraisal in wider policy appraisal does not
lend itself to separate public reporting. But the Department would
be happy to co-operate with the production of an overview report
of environmental appraisal within Government.
F. THE
DEPARTMENT'S
OTHER IMPACTS
ON THE
ENVIRONMENT
25. Apart from the environmental impacts associated
with energy use and raw material use in the Headquarters buildings
(see above), there are environmental impacts associated with the
travel undertaken by DTI staff and their contractors. The advice
to staff on improving the Department's environmental performance
addresses measures staff can adopt to minimise DTI's environmental
impact.
26. DTI has identified a number of environmental
liabilities for which it is responsible such as the costs of meeting
waste management and decommissioning liabilities at UKAEA sites
and liability for claims from previous mining activities.
27. The Department is compiling an environmental
effects register as part of its environmental management system.
It will be publicly available once established.
G. DEPARTMENTAL
AGENCIES, NDPBS
AND OTHER
SPONSORED BODIES
28. The Department has a co-ordinating role
towards its Executive Agencies (EAs). It ensures that environmental
best practice is conveyed to EAs. NDPBs operate at arms length
from the department with the Chief Executive responsible for the
day to day running of the NDPB. We make sure they are made aware
of any requirements and guidance on greening issues and we provide
advice to them as appropriate. In terms of reporting on environmental
impacts and performance, EAs and NDPBs are free to include this
in their Annual publications.
March 1998
