A commitment to resource efficient construction

The construction industry in Scotland uses significant amounts of energy, water and raw materials. In addition, the industry is also the largest producer of waste in the country.

By choosing this action, we will ensure that our business is resource efficient.  As a minimum requirement we will commit to measuring the use of energy,water and waste on our projects and reporting annually.

For construction sector support please visit our website. 

Verification Criteria

As a prerequisite for this action, your organisation must take part in construction activities.

The evidence required to verify that this action has been undertaken would be a report outlining the actions taken and their impact.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Achieve environmental accreditation or award

There is increasing pressure on organisations throughout Scotland to demonstrate their environmental credentials. In the public sector, this pressure is coming through the Scottish Sustainable Procurement Action Plan. In addition, as part of the tendering process, many private sector organisations are following suit and demanding proof that organisations have an externally verified environmental management system in place.

Businesses may also wish to consider entering environmental awards for business, such as the VIBES awards. 

Verification criteria

In larger organisations, senior management approval may be required for this action. Once completed, the evidence required would be a scan of the relevant certificate.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Assign senior manager responsibility

Senior managers tend to be the key decision-makers in an organisation. Assigning the responsibility to operate more efficiently to someone at this level will allow them to use their influence to drive change throughout an organisation and ensure any proposals are discussed at all levels. 

Verification criteria

Permission from relevant parties within your organisation would be required to make this change to a senior management role. As evidence for action completion, a scan of the change to the job description signed by relevant parties would be required (confidential information may be redacted.)

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Become an exemplar in resource efficiency

Many organisations in Scotland have already benefitted from showcasing their environmental achievements with the help of Zero Waste Scotland. This not only offers the opportunity to highlight your environmental credentials to potential customers and partners, but also allows best practice to be shared throughout your industry and improve Scotland’s performance as a whole.

Organisations who select this pledge action will be contacted by us to work together in the development of a case study to be used online. Examples are available online. 

Businesses choosing to become an exemplar, may also wish to proceed with the opportunity to join our the Green Network for Businesses, which gives you a plaftorm to showcase your resource efficiency improvements to other businesses in your area.

Verification criteria

You must have exemplary environmental performance in a number of different categories. To verify that this action has been completed, a case study developed in conjunction with us would be required.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Benchmark resource use

Benchmarking is a great way to let you set the level you wish to reach; to understand what competitors have achieved and to set new goals for your business and your staff.

Case studies can provide you insight as to what others are doing and help you to benchmark your business against others. 

Verification criteria

As a prerequisite for this action, you must be able to get access to utilities and/or transport data. 

Baseline data for energy, waste, water or transport  would be required as evidence that this action has taken place, preferrably in spreadsheet format.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Collaborate with other organisations

Joining forces enables businesses to achieve economies of scale and get better deals from suppliers and contractors, as well as offering contracts which will benefit all parties. This will reduce the environmental impact of each organisation as the travel and other associated impacts will be shared between the other businesses.

For insights as to what local businesses have done visit The Green Network for Businesses. 

Zero Waste Scotland's Energy Efficiency Business Support Service can help you collaborate with other business in your area. Contact our advisors by calling 0808 808 2268.

Verification criteria

A report outlining the actions taken and their impact will be required as evidence that this action has been completed.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Community litter pick

We commit to organising and/or supporting a minimum of one litter pick per year, working with the local community e.g. community groups or schools (if appropriate). This will help us to demonstrate our corporate social responsibility by minimising any litter impacts of our business on the community in which it operates. 

Verification criteria.

You must perform a risk assessment before undertaking this activity. A report outlining the actions taken and their impact will be required as evidence that this action has been undertaken. 

Actions may be evidenced by photographs of the litter pick/event; number of bags of litter and recyclate collected; staff and community involvement

This action covers

• Waste

Construction building information modelling

Digital technology is transforming the construction industry. Innovations are bringing reductions in carbon use, construction time, project costs, material use and construction waste.

Good design should consider the whole life of the building or project in addition to the construction phase. Digital technology and processes can help to achieve this with a focus on carbon and cost benefits beyond the construction and handover stages. Digital technology and processes can also be used to unlock efficiencies in the operation of buildings, using accurate data to drive better decision making and investment.

Innovative builds and retrofits  make use of Building Information Modelling (BIM).

If you would like to discuss how your business or project could work with us to receive free, specialist construction support and advice, please email us.

Verification criteria

Evidence of integration of Building Information Modelling into your build or retrofit. 

This action covers

• Raw materials

Construction designing out waste project

Attend a construction industry event hosted by Zero Waste Scotland or another party, to learn how to design out waste in construction. 

This action covers

• Raw materials

Construction site assessment

We will conduct a site waste assessment to identify where waste is arising and make steps to reduce and prevent waste to landfill.

Support for your business or project

Zero Waste Scotland can work with site managers and environmental managers to quantify opportunities for better resource efficiency that saves money, carbon and material use. 

Zero Waste Scotland has engaged a team of specialists to help deliver support and can help you business or project by;

• Identifying cost savings from different ways to manage materials and waste (especially troublesome waste streams);
• Sharing Best Practice and tools for site management; and
• Supporting sub-contractors to reduce your waste costs.

If you would like to discuss how your business or project could work with us to receive specialist support and advice, please email us. 

This action covers

• Raw materials

Develop a Litter Prevention Action Plan

We commit to developing a Litter Prevention Action Plan for our organisation and to contribute to the development of the Community-level plan covering our area. By developing a plan and taking action to prevent our operations / staff / clients from producing litter, we will demonstrate our commitment to our local community, the environment and help to bring about long-term behaviour change in relation to littering and flytipping.

Organisations from a wide range of sectors and industries are being encouraged to produce Litter Prevention Action Plans which will then feed into the development of Community Litter Prevention Action Plans covering each Local Authority area.

You may also find the Anti-litter campaign toolkit useful. 

More information can be found by emailing our litter and flytipping team.

Verification criteria

This action will be evidenced by the submission of a completed Litter Prevention Action Plan and the associated approval email.

This action covers

• Waste

Develop environmental policy

An environmental policy is a written statement outlining your organisation’s commitment to managing the environmental impacts of its operations. By developing an environmental policy, you'll gain a better understanding of how your organisation impacts on the environment, and what you can do to reduce these impacts. It is a great way to improve the way you manage your resources and achieve cost savings.

There is advice on how to develop and share an environmental policy, together with example policies from which you can learn.

Verification criteria

Your organisation must have an environmental policy to make pledge. If you don't have one already, you need to make it one of your pledge actions.

As evidence that this action has been undertaken, a scan of your environmental policy signed by senior management or a link to the document online would be required.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Host student placement

Hosting a student gives valuable experience to the next generation of resource efficiency professionals and provides a link for your organisation to these highly skilled students and graduates. 

Many universities in Scotland operate a work placement link-up as part of their degree courses and are always looking for new organisations to partner with. Alternative programmes exist such as Bright Green Partnerships placements for students and graduates.  

Verification criteria

You must be able to accommodate a student within your organisation.

A scan of an employement contract (including job description) signed by relevant parties would be required as evidence that this action has taken place (confidential information may be redacted).

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Improve energy efficiency

Reducing your energy consumption will lead to direct cost savings through lower energy bills. The first stage of identifying what savings you may be able to make is to undertake an energy audit.

If you think your business could achieve more than 5% or that it would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate?

Verification criteria

For implementing physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building. This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge actions.

Written confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence.

This action covers

• Energy

Improve EPC rating

The Energy Performance Certificate rating of a property is given by taking into account the energy efficiency and carbon footprint of the property. The factors taken into account to provide an overall score for an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) include insulation properties; heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system and fuel type; services (such as lighting); and the use of renewables. Therefore, to improve your score, you will need to become more energy or carbon efficient in one of these areas.

Available guidance includes:

How to conduct an energy audit.

Save energy and money on lighting.

How to carry out a successful lighting replacement project.

How to save money on heating workplaces.

If you think your business could improve by more than one band, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is most appropriate? 

Verification criteria

In order to select this action, your organisation must already have an EPC.

A scan of successive EPCs showing improvement of least one rating point would be required as evidence that this action has taken place. Assessments must be carried out by an organisation other than Resource Efficient Scotland.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials

Improve recycling rates

Recycling is the processing of used and waste materials into new products. Most materials can now be recycled. The Waste (Scotland) Regulations require all organisations in Scotland to segregate paper, card, glass, plastics and metal at source for separate collection by 1 January 2014. At the same time, the increasing Landfill Tax often makes recycling a more commercially attractive way to deal with waste.

By recycling waste and diverting it from landfill, you can help reduce your organisation’s waste management costs. It will also help you comply with the Waste (Scotland) Regulations.

If you think your business could achieve more than 5% or that it would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate?

Recycle on the Go is an established brand for labelling bins in public places.

You could also sign up to the Every Can Counts programme to encourage drinks cans recycling in your workplace and make this part of your Pledge.

Verification criteria

For physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building. This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge Actions.

Written confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence that the action has taken place.

This action covers

• Waste

Join sector agreement

There are several voluntary agreement schemes operating in the UK that enable organisations to make a public commitment about reducing their waste or becoming more resource efficient. The benefits of such commitments are: 

• the opportunity to publicly highlight your organisation’s environmental credentials; 
• further support to cut costs, prevent waste generation and reduce carbon dioxide emissions;
• create a support network and vehicle for change;
• improve competitiveness, and
• help obtain buy-in from senior management.

Signagory schemes available to interested organisations are; the Courtauld Commitment, Scotland’s Resource Sector Commitment and the Carrier Bag Commitment.

The Courtauld Commitment 2025 aims to cut the cost of food and drink. An ambitious voluntary agreement brings together organisations across the food system to make food & drink production and consumption more sustainable. At its heart is a ten-year commitment to identify priorities, develop solutions and implement changes to cut the carbon, water and waste associated with food & drink by at least one-fifth in 10 years.

The Carrier Bag Commitment is a voluntary agreement operated by Zero Waste Scotland, which asks retailers to report carrier bag sales and commit to donating money raised to good causes in Scotland. It is a free tool to help centralise your records and keep information securely for a minimum of 3 years.

Verification criteria

Your organisation must be in a sector where there is a relevant voluntary agreement. For larger organisations, you will need to get senior management sign-off.

As evidence that this action has been completed, an updated membership roster or email showing acceptance into voluntary sector agreement would be requested.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Lease electric vehicles

Electric vehicles are powered solely by on-board batteries or fuel cells. The new generation of electric cars has a range of between 100 to 300 miles on a full charge. This is sufficient for the commuting and daily driving patterns of many people. The vehicles must pass the stringent safety testing that applies to all cars and, in terms of overall performance, they will be suitable for normal use including motorway driving.

Potential buyers will understandably have many questions that they need answered before committing to the purchase of an electric car. For free, impartial advice to help you decide if a plug-in vehicle could be appropriate for you, email or call Energy Savings Trust Transport Advisers on 0845 602 1425. 

Verification criteria

You will need to get senior management sign-off before selecting this action.

As evidence that this action has taken place, a scan of lease documentation would be required.

This action covers

• Energy

Litter prevention

We will keep the land on and surrounding our premises free of litter as far as is reasonably practical. For example, we will undertake litter monitoring and clearance where required; arrange or provide adequate bins for use by our customers, including facilities for the disposal of cigarette ends; and comply with Duty of Care requirements to ensure that our waste and recycling doesn’t become litter.

Actions may be evidenced by, for example: weekly monitoring sheets, waste transfer notes, site visits, staff awareness of litter issues.

Verification criteria

A report outlining the actions taken and their impact would be required as evidence that this action has taken place.

This action covers

• Waste

Measure and Monitor Food Waste

Measuring and monitoring your food waste is the first step to understanding how much food you waste and where it comes from. Once this is understood, you are in a better position to know how to prevent this waste. It also provides you with a baseline to monitor progress against. 

Zero Waste Scotland’s Food Waste Reduction team helps food and drink businesses in the fight against food waste.  We offer guidance, advice and one-to-one support, so that you can reduce your environmental impact, and your costs.  Contact our Food Waste Reduction team for support for your business, on 01786 433 930 or email food.drink@zerowastescotland.org.uk

Verification Criteria

 To verify that this action has taken place, submission of your collated waste data would be required, preferably in a spreadsheet format. 

This action covers

• Waste

Plan resource efficiency actions

Producing an action plan is a key step in ensuring an organisation can effectively improve its resource efficiency and save money. An action plan allows tasks to be prioritised based on cost and potential savings, and will ensure all tasks have been sufficiently resourced. This helps to ensure that investment in improving resource efficiency will be as effective as possible. 

To help your organisation form its own action plan, you can use The Savings Finder tool.

Verification criteria

A table outlining actions, who is responsible, when they need to be completed would be required as evidence that this action has taken place.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Re-use of materials from construction activities

The construction industry generates thousands of tonnes of waste, often in raw materials that could be re-used. We will take part in the construction material exchange to share unwanted materials with others, and source materials from the exchange when possible.

Verification criteria

As a prerequisite for this action, your organisation must take part in construction activities. 

As suggested evidence for this action, you could become a registered user of the Construction Material Exchange and re-use some construction materials.

This action covers

• Raw materials
• Waste

Reduce Food Waste

Reducing your food waste will lead to savings not only in reduced waste uplift costs, but also by hidden costs such as raw material purchase, staff time, energy use and transport. The first stage of identifying what savings you may be able to make is to undertake a food waste audit. Contact our Food Waste Reduction team for support for your business, on 01786 433 930 or email food.drink@zerowastescotland.org.uk

If you think your business could achieve more than 10% or that it would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate?

Verification Criteria:  

To verify that this action has taken place, written confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence. Where available, this should be supplemented with a copy of your food waste audit, photos of new equipment, and monitoring data revealing the percentage decrease of food waste achieved. 

Reduce materials consumption and wastage

The construction industry is an intensive user of materials and generates significant waste. We commit to measuring our use of materials and reducing our consumption.

Support for your business or project

Zero Waste Scotland can work with site managers and environmental managers to quantify opportunities for better resource efficiency that saves money, carbon and material use.

Zero Waste Scotland has engaged a team of specialists to help deliver support and can help you business or project by;

• Identifying cost savings from different ways to manage materials and waste (especially troublesome waste streams);
• Sharing Best Practice and tools for site management; and
• Supporting sub-contractors to reduce your waste costs.

 If you would like to discuss how your business or project could work with us to receive specialist support and advice, please email us.

Verification criteria

For the implementation of physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building.

This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge actions. Written confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence that this action has taken place.

This action covers

• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Reduce raw material use

There are various techniques that can be used to help you look objectively at your methods of manufacturing or how you deliver services so you can identify resource efficiency and cost-saving improvement opportunities. These include waste mapping, mass-flow analysis, calculating mass balance and process yields, and process optimisation. 

If you think your business could achieve more than 5% or that it would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate?

Verification criteria

For the implementation of physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building.

This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge actions. Confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence that you have completed this action.

This action covers

• Raw materials
• Waste

Reduce transport emissions

A reduction in transport emissions will usually be accompanied by a reduction in fuel costs, and vehicle wear and tear. Areas to target when attempting to reduce transport emissions include alternatives to travel, improvement in vehicle efficiency, increased use of public transport and fuel efficient driving.

Details on what support is available can be found on the Energy Saving Trust website.

If you think your business could achieve more than 5% or that it would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate?

Verification critiera

For the implementation of physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building.

This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge actions. Confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence that this action has taken place.

This action covers

• Energy

Reduce water use

Due to the energy intensity of water supply and wastewater management, water prices have risen steadily over the last 10 years and are likely to continue to mirror increasing energy prices. When managed correctly, water and wastewater reduction initiatives will help to reduce your utility costs. Identifying ways to reduce your water use may also highlight opportunities to improve processes that have been missed by other resource efficiency initiatives 

Guidance on the development of a full water minimisation programme is online. 

Water consumption can often be reduced easily, quickly and cheaply. Therefore, it is recommended that you create a new action with a higher target. Many businesses have achieved savings over 20% with no or low-cost measures. If you think your business could achieve this or that 5% would be difficult to achieve, then why not create a new action and specify the target you feel is more appropriate? 

Verification criteria

For the implementation of physical changes, you must have permission to carry out work in the building.

This can be linked to the benchmark and target setting Pledge actions. Confirmation that you have carried the actions out will be required as evidence that you have completed this action.

This action covers

• Water

Set senior management agenda

Discussing resource efficiency at senior management meetings will ensure your organisation approaches the subject in an integrated and cohesive manner. This will allow people in all areas of the organisation to understand their role in and the reasoning behind any future actions.

There is guidance available for how to develop a business case for energy efficiency projects. 

Verification criteria

As a pre-requisite for this action, seek permission to add items to management meeting agenda.

A digital copy of a meeting agenda from more than one meeting would be required as evidence that this action has taken place (confidential information may be redacted).

Set targets to reduce resource use

In order to reduce resource use, it is necessary to measure how resources are currently being used in your organisation by conducting an audit of how resources are being used. This could include looking at energy, water or raw materials usage within your organisation and looking at where savings could be made.  

There is guidance on how to conduct an energy audit.

Verification criteria

As a pre-requisite for this action, you must be able to get access to utilities and/or transport data. This can be linked to the benchmark Pledge action. 

A document explaining your choice of Key Performance Indicator (KPI) and target choice would be requested as evidence for completing this action.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste

Share experience across the business community

Learning from the experiences of other businesses is a valuable way of avoiding unexpected pitfalls and making sure things are right first time. We will work with Zero Waste Scotland to share best practice amongst businesses in Scotland. 

For further information please contact one of our advisors on 0808 808 2268 or email us.

Verification criteria

As evidence that this action has been completed, a report outlining the actions taken and their impact would be required.

This action covers

• Energy
• Water
• Raw materials
• Waste