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Hambleside Danelaw slashes carbon emissions by switching to renewable energy
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The building products manufacturer, Hambleside Danelaw Ltd, is making further cuts to its carbon output by sourcing the electricity supply for its carbon-neutral Inverness factory entirely from renewable energy.
With the switch taking effect from today, the Group estimates that the measure will reduce its carbon footprint by about 40 tonnes a year. Last year Hambleside Danelaw successfully cut emissions by 24.6% and it expects to achieve further major reductions this year as a result of using renewable energy sources. The Group has won numerous awards for environmental good practice.
The Inverness facility’s electricity is now being supplied by Green Energy UK. The electricity is generated from a wide range of renewable energy sources including wind, solar, combined heat and power, small-scale hydro-electric, energy from biomass and organic waste material. The wind energy is sourced from turbines on an island off the west coast of Scotland and a farm in Pembrokeshire.
Ray Khan, Hambleside’s Quality, Safety and Environment Manager, said: “Switching to green energy is the latest step in Hambleside Danelaw’s ongoing commitment to the environment. With the Inverness facility already carbon neutral, we are now using recycled materials in the manufacturing processes of our award winning roofing products.”
Government consultation on carbon offsetting
Hambleside Danelaw also said today that it will respond in full to a Defra consultation on a code of practice for carbon offsetting schemes to follow.
The Group offsets its emissions through the Trees for Global Benefit scheme in the Bushenyi District of Uganda. This project uses the Plan Vivo system which offers a tried and tested system for generating carbon offsets. Responding to the Government’s initiative today, Hambleside Danelaw agreed with Environment Secretary, David Miliband, that offsetting was not enough on its own and this was why the Group continued to pursue all avenues to reduce its emissions still further.
Hambleside Danelaw is pleased that its environmental programme using a planned approach, which includes reductions in landfill waste, is very similar in approach to that being adopted by major retailers such as Marks & Spencer. The leading environmentalist, Jonathon Porritt, has said that the M&S plan sets a new benchmark for businesses in caring for the environment.
