8. Environment
8.1 Environmental Policy
8.1.1 Through our core business activities we are committed to providing good quality, reliable and cost effective public transport to all of our customers. Our core business strategy is to increase passenger numbers and encourage a greater move towards the use of bus and rail transport. This will in turn support the needs of society to achieve more sustainable travel. At the same time we recognise the environmental impacts arising from our business activities and are committed to reducing these through effective environmental management.
8.1.2 The Group policy is to achieve continual improvement in environmental performance.
8.1.3 We are committed to:
- maintaining an internal management structure for environmental issues which includes clearly defined responsibilities;
- complying with, and where possible exceeding, applicable legal and other requirements relating to the organisation;
- preventing pollution and reducing the overall impact of our operations on the environment;
- monitoring our environmental performance and setting objectives and targets for improvement;
- providing appropriate training and awareness programmes for our staff.
8.1.4 This policy applies to all the Group operations and will be communicated to all those working for or on behalf of the company. The policy is made available to members of the public on request.
8.2 Climate Change Policy
8.2.1 Climate change has now been recognised as an international issue. As a major transport operator we have a role in supporting governments and communities to reduce the impacts of climate change from road transport.
8.2.2 We are committed to reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from our operations in a way which supports Government strategies and in line with our commitment to our passengers to provide safe, efficient and reliable services. We also assess the potential risk to our business from evolving climate change policies as part of our ongoing risk management processes.
8.2.3 Our key climate change commitments are:
- to work actively with our suppliers to improve the fuel efficiency of our vehicles;
- to report annually on our greenhouse gas emissions from all vehicles and property that we own;
- to actively promote improved energy efficiency and fuel efficiency within the business;
- to support research into transport policy and the use of alternative fuels;
- to stay abreast of alternative fuel developments and continue to assess their commercial viability.
8.3 Biodiversity Policy
8.3.1 The following policy sets out the Group's commitment to conserving and promoting biodiversity where it is practical to do so. Conserving and promoting biodiversity is consistent with our commitment to furthering the aims of sustainable development in the management and development of our business. This Biodiversity Policy is consistent with our broader Environmental Policy, which includes a stated commitment to minimise the environmental impacts of our operations and prevent pollution.
8.3.2 The Group policy is to strive to enhance biodiversity where practicable.
8.3.3 Our commitment:
- Where we operate from sites which are designated as being of importance due to their natural habitats, we will work with the relevant organisations to ensure protection of these habitats through effective pollution control measures and management plans with the aim of conserving or enhancing the biodiversity of these sites;
- Where we are involved in the development of new sites, we shall comply with all relevant statutory requirements and guidelines in respect of designated areas on any of our landholdings. Where significant areas of landscaping are proposed, we shall take account of any local biodiversity networks or action plans;
- Where we operate from existing sites the potential to promote biodiversity is likely to be limited. The nature of the operations conducted at our sites is such that they are largely covered in hard standing. We shall however seek to identify any sites where the potential exists for enhancing biodiversity and over time develop appropriate actions plans to achieve this;
- Where we consider it appropriate to do so, we shall support the implementation of the UK Biodiversity Action Plan and Local Biodiversity Action Plans which define areas that require special protection and management. We shall seek to do this in partnership with organisations, who promote biodiversity on a local and national level and seek to identify ways in which we may be able to support the development of selected schemes or initiatives.
Tim O'Toole
Group Chief Executive
May 2011