05 February 2008

Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS)

Sustainable Development

What is Sustainable Development?

Enabling everyone to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life without compromising the quality of life of future generations.That means:

Living within environmental limits
- Limiting climate change
- Protecting limited natural resources
Stimulating strong, healthy communities and a just society
Building a strong stable economy

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Why Now?

We are living beyond our means. From the loss of biodiversity with the felling of rainforests or over fishing, to the negative effect of our consumption and production patterns, our way of life is placing an increasing burden on the planet which cannot be sustained.

Working towards sustainable development is not just the right thing to do it is in our own long-term best interests.

The cost of inaction will be far higher than the cost of tackling climate change now.

Government must lead by example by:

Reducing our own impact on the environment
Sustainable procurement, the public sector buys £150 billion worth of goods and services a year
Influence and regulation through our energy and trade policy role and contacts with business and consumers.

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Making BERR more Sustainable

Estate Management

Reducing our environmental footprint
- In 2006 BERR topped the Sustainable Development Commissions’ league table on Government estate management performance. We are committed to maintaining our estate according to sustainability principles.

Key Policy Areas / Sectors

Developing sustainable strategies and policies e.g.
- The Energy White Paper
- Sustainable Construction Strategy
- Retail
- Environmental Innovations Advisory Group (EIAG)

If you have work underway that relates to sustainable development let us know at: sustainability@berr.gsi.gov.uk

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BERR Estate Management Performance

BERR like all Government Departments has a significant contribution to make to sustainable development, not just through our policies and services, but also through our support activities. Decisions about energy, water and waste management, and the goods and services Departments buy, all say a great deal about the Government's commitment to sustainable development.

We believe it is important for Government to lead by example and we are committed to transforming and delivering a 'step change' improvement in the way that we manage our business sustainably. Sustainable operations also help deliver good value for money and efficiency, and are part of building a modern and resource efficient public sector.

Targets agreed across central Government set out a number of priority areas for action. They are intended to drive improvements in the way that Departments manage their land and buildings. BERR topped the Sustainable Development Commissions’ league table on Government estate management performance for 2005/06. BERR is committed to doing everything it can to maintain this good progress.

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Energy White Paper: Meeting the Energy Challenge

BERR leads for Government on energy policy. Energy is essential in almost every aspect of our lives and for the success of our economy. We face two long-term energy challenges:

tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions both within the UK and abroad; and
ensuring secure, clean and affordable energy as we become increasingly dependent on imported fuel.
The White Paper sets out the Government’s international and domestic energy strategy to respond to these changing circumstances, address the long term energy challenges we face and deliver our four energy policy goals:

to put ourselves on a path to cutting CO2 emissions by some 60% by about 2050, (with real progress by 2020)
to maintain the reliability of energy supplies;
to promote competitive markets in the UK and beyond;
to ensure that every home is adequately and affordably heated.

It shows how we are implementing the measures set out in the Energy Review Report in 2006, as well as those announced since, including in the Pre-Budget Report in 2006 and the Budget in 2007.

Some of the measures in the White Paper require further public consultation. Consultations were launched in May 2007 on nuclear power, the Renewables Obligation and guidance on the 1965 Gas Act. If you would like to take part in the nuclear consultation, see the Future of Nuclear Power website. We will launch further consultations in the coming months. For more information on these, please see the Consultations page.

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Sustainable Construction

Construction has a huge contribution to make to everyone's quality of life and in enabling the positive impacts of its work to be achieved in a more sustainable manner. Construction projects can significantly alter the nature, function and appearance of the towns and countryside in which we live and work.

The BERR Construction Sector Unit (CSU) works closely with other Government Departments including Defra, on sustainability issues, and DCLG on Building Regulations.

Draft Strategy for Sustainable Construction Consultation

BERR Construction Sector Unit (CSU) is co-ordinating development of a Government and industry Strategy for Sustainable Construction. In July 2007 Stephen Timms, Minister for construction at BERR announced the launch of a draft Strategy for Sustainable Construction consultation. The proposed joint strategy aims to help the industry deliver more sustainable construction methods and products.

Copies of the Consultation Document and the Response Form can be found on the Sustainable Construction Strategy consultation page of the BERR website.

The consultation closes on 30 November 2007.

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Sustainable Retail

Food production, packaging, distribution and disposal can be the cause of significant social and environmental impacts. The EU food industry contributes 20-30% of total greenhouse gas emissions. For analysis of the environmental impacts of food production and consumption see the government research known as "The Shopping Trolley Report".

The Government, has been working closely with supermarkets to help them tackle their impacts. For example, 24 major retailers and leading suppliers have joined the Courtauld Commitment. The agreement will lead to new packaging and technologies so that less rubbish is produced.

Food manufacturers and retailers are encouraged to contribute to the UK's sustainability goal through the Food Industry Sustainability Strategy (FISS), developed with industry, to improve the environmental, social and economic performance of the food and drink sector.

BERR has set up a Retail Environmental Sustainability Expert Group (RESEG) to encourage retailers to work together, to adopt and spread good practice, and find innovative approaches to improving environmental sustainability, including energy efficiency.

But stainable retail isn't only about the production and distribution of food. To spur consumers on, Direct Gov has developed a greener food and drink guide, which includes advice on buying from sustainable fish stocks, choosing food that is in season, drinking tap water over bottled water, and crucially, reducing the amount of times we 'pop to the shops' in the car.

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Want your business to be more sustainable?

Include Sustainable Development objectives in projects,contracts, from the start.
Limit waste by defaulting printers to double sided printing and collect and recycle waste paper. Recycle toner cartridges, much of the waste we create is material that does not biodegrade easily - specify within contracts that deliveries should not be over packaged.
Have policies which encourage staff to save your business money by switching off lights, computers and other equipment when not needed; replace bulbs with energy saving versions; and when buying new equipment think about its energy efficiency.
Sustainable development can be incorporated into many aspects of buildings, from identifying the need for new buildings – could an existing space be used? - to options for refurbishment, running and maintaining the building. In the short term green products may cost more, but in the long run the building will have much lower running costs.
Develop a ‘Green Transport Plan’ – assess the needs of staff and visitors travelling to your premises. How will you support or encourage them to travel in a sustainable way? Encourage the use of public transport, cycling and walking find out what would encourage staff to use these modes of transport more.
Develop a short environmental policy statement to show how your organisation is committed to reducing its impact on the environment. It could include: how you are reducing energy use, how you reuse or recycle where possible, your commitment of purchasing environmentally sustainable materials wherever possible, how you will use natural resources in a better way.

Find out about the WEEE and ROHS directives and what they mean for your firm.

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Sustainability at home

Use the Act on CO2 Calculator to find out what your carbon footprint is and how you can do your bit to tackle climate change.
Re-use your carrier bags and refuse new ones until you really need them.
Recycle as much as you can. Are there any community/voluntary recycling schemes locally? Use a composter or wormery for green waste.
Save energy and money – use energy saving light bulbs, don’t leave your TV on standby, and only boil as much water in your kettle as you need.
Buy products with less packaging and avoid buying throw away goods – make use of local services like libraries and tool hire shops.
Purchase sustainably – Buy energy efficient products and where possible those made from recycled material
Donate unwanted items like clothes and furniture to reuse/recycling schemes – these can provide for people on low incomes or in sheltered housing.
Save water through fitting cistern displacement devises, do not leave taps running and collect and make use of rain water
Start walking and cycling – not only will these make you fitter they will reduce traffic and pollution. Use public transport wherever possible. Explore the possibilities of using or setting up a walking bus to encourage children to walk to school. If you need to travel long distances by car think about car sharing.
Shop locally – cut down on congestion and support local businesses.
Insulate your loft, hot water tank and any cavity walls.
Wash clothes at 30 rather than 60 means that you use 1/3 less electricity.

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Corporate Social Responsibility

BERR leads the Governments interest in Corporate Social Responsibility which is how companies address the social, environmental and economic impacts of their operations and so help to meet our sustainable development goals.

The Government has a role in setting standards in areas such as environmental protection, health and safety and employment rights. The Government can also provide a policy and institutional framework that stimulates companies to raise their performance beyond minimum legal standards. Our approach is to encourage and incentivise the adoption of Corporate Social Responsibility, through best practice guidance, and where appropriate intelligent regulation and fiscal incentives.

ISO 26000, the development of Corporate Social Responsibility standard at ISO level is an important project. BERR is playing an active role in the development of this standard. In 2006/7 we secured funding for UK experts to feed into the standards development process and we aim to finalise it in 2008..

You can find out more on the Government website on CSR.

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Travel

Transport contributes 25% to the UK's annual Carbon emissions.

In order to create a healthier environment with clearer roads we all need to consider our travel options carefully and where possible reduce the negative impacts we have on the environment and our quality of life. To calculate the emmissions created by your journey use one of the Climate Care's CO2 calculators.

Travelling more sustainably can include: walking or cycling, using public transport, forming or joining car sharing scheme, carbon offsetting our flights or buying lower emission cars.

Government Emissions

The UK has developed a Government Carbon offsetting fund (GOSF) to meet the commitment to offset emissions arising from official and Ministerial air travel from April 2006. The portfolio of projects will offset the total estimated emissions of participating departments and agencies for a period of three years, from April 2006 to April 2009.

Business Taskforce on Sustainable Consumption and Production

The Business Taskforce was convened by BERR and Defra following a commitment made in the UK Government Sustainable Development Strategy of 2005.

The aim of the Business Taskforce is to bring forward practical proposals that enable companies to move to more sustainable patterns of consumption and production (SCP) in ways that boost competitiveness and contribute to economic growth.

Accelerating progress in adoption of SCP practice by business requires companies to examine how they can satisfy needs with new business models that generate more value while using significantly fewer resources.

The Business Taskforce is working with business to:

Identify strategic barriers and opportunities for adoption of SCP in business models and how these can be addressed by business and government.
Develop clear messages for business around SCP.
Explore the priorities for capacity building on SCP.

Tackling the issue of sustainable energy supply, production and consumption is a key priority for business and government. The Taskforce will explore the potential for business to contribute to the uptake of distributed energy as a driver of sustainable economic growth at a local level. The food industry will be used to explore the scope to follow an integrated approach.

Rapid action on high-impact products is key to making progress on SCP and integrated action along the value chain is critical to achieving necessary transformation in products and services. The Taskforce has focused its work in this area on personal mobility, with emphasis on understanding how this system impacts on the production and consumption of cars.

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