Sustainability expert Envirowise is calling on Scotland’s 14,500-plus construction businesses to reduce their environmental footprint by improving resource efficiency and working with their supply chain.

The construction industry is one of the largest producers of waste in Scotland, with more than 10.6 million tonnes being generated annually.

Firms currently pay out £32 per tonne in landfill tax and with this tax set to increase by £8 a year, the financial impact on companies which do not act will only increase.

Since 2005, Envirowise has worked closely with construction giant Laing O’Rourke to improve its green credentials and the company is currently involved in developing a Site Waste Management Plan Project (SWMPs) which has already resulted in financial savings of £30,000 for the company.

Laing O’Rourke has developed the SWMP Project through its involvement in a consortium contracted to design, construct and manage a £135m schools building programme as part of the City of Edinburgh Council’s Smart Schools Programme. All schools are being designed to high standards of sustainable construction and will endeavour to meet the requirements of ‘Very Good’ for BREEAM Schools – a method of sustainability assessment for commercial buildings.

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Dr Stephen Thomson, Resource Strategist at Laing O’Rourke, said: "The construction project teams have improved waste management, in addition to storage and handling issues both on and off-site. Our SWMP project demonstrates a practical approach to data recording which isn’t onerous for site managers, and the time spent by administrators checking the number of skips, matching invoices, and dealing with issues regarding missing delivery tickets will be significantly reduced. The SWMP work with Envirowise has produced a robust and simple Excel-based template which will significantly influence our final Group SWMP design."

Envirowise construction specialist, Louise Craig explained: "Envirowise continues to work closely with construction companies across Scotland, communicating the benefits of implementing a 'zero waste' approach to all stages of a project's delivery. SWMPs offer a framework for systematically managing and reporting on waste levels throughout the life of a project.

"By setting this framework, it is easier to identify where resources are being wasted and how this can be addressed. These are considerations that Laing O’Rourke has tackled head on by developing their own successful SWMP project."

Envirowise’s ‘An Introduction to Site Waste Management Plans’ guide is available to download free-of-charge at www.envirowise.gov.uk/swmpguide

For more general advice regarding resource efficiency, companies can call the advice line on 0800 585 794 or visit www.envirowise.gov.uk/construction.

(GK/NS)