Bywaters

Organisation type:

Recycling and waste management

Organisation size:

SME (approx 240 staff)

Location:

Bow

Aim:

Continual environmental improvement for both Bywaters and its customers whilst supporting local community initiatives and striving to set best practice in its industry

What Bywaters is doing to make a difference:

Making recycling easy for customers

During 2007, the company has been rolling out its ‘Bycycler’ recycling system to its customers to maximise their recycling and minimise their effort. The new system will work seamlessly with the £7 million cutting-edge Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) that the company has been installing during 2007. Operational from January 2008, the MRF will have an input capacity of 250,000 tonnes of office and commercial dry recyclables and is designed specifically for their customers’ materials. It will maximise recovery rates and minimise Bywaters and its customers’ impact on the environment.

Maximising recycling of construction waste and plasterboardh2.

Bywaters commitment to recycling extends to the construction industry where the company has managed to recycle over 80% of its construction customers’ waste during 2006. In 2008, the company will be extending its construction recycling facility at Leyton to build on this recycling rate.

Bywaters has been recycling plasterboard for British Gypsum since early 2006. In October 2007, Bywaters installed a new, technologically advanced plasterboard MRF at its Lea Riverside site to further improve its plasterboard recycling efficiency.

EMS certified to ISO14001:2004

Bywaters is committed to continual environmental improvement and this commitment is enshrined in the company’s Environmental Management System (EMS). This EMS was certified to ISO14001:1996 in 2004 and when the company relocated from three sites within the Olympic development zone to their new Lea Riverside site in Bow, the EMS for operations at the new site was certified to ISO14001: 2004. In October 2007, this certification was successfully extended to cover all operations at the new recycling and recovery facility.

Helping customers improve their own environmental performance

In 2007, Bywaters launched its Chartered Institution of Wastes Management accredited Waste Awareness Certificate course at its training centre at Lea Riverside. The course aims to help customers improve their own environmental performance.

Principal sponsor of London Remade

Bywaters is a principal sponsorship of London Remade, the recycling programme that drives materials resource efficiency in London, for the fifth year running. Their sponsorship has helped London Remade divert over one million tonnes of waste from landfill since 2001.

Signatory to the Mayor’s Green Procurement Code

As a signatory to the Mayor’s Green Procurement Code, Bywaters is committed to buying recycled product and products from sustainable resources wherever possible. This commitment saw them win the Mayor’s Green Procurement Code award in October 2007 for ‘Best Performing Small and Medium Enterprise’ having increased their procurement of recycled products and products from sustainable resources by over 900% from the previous year.

Committed to reducing carbon emissions

In November 2007, Bywaters formalised its commitment to reducing carbon emissions in a carbon policy. Bywaters recognises the impact of carbon emissions on climate change and is striving to reduce its emissions and avoid reliance on carbon offsetting.

Fleet of Toyota Prius

Bywaters runs a fleet of Toyota Prius, a petrol/hybrid car which combines a 1.5-litre engine with a 50-kW electric motor. It is one way that Bywaters is showing that it is reducing its carbon footprint in terms of vehicle emissions.

Working with local schools and colleges

Bywaters works with local schools and colleges to highlight recycling and waste issues in the local community. Dr Alan Kirk, Bywaters Environmental Manager, and other staff visit schools and colleges to help students learn about recycling and consider solutions to London’s waste problem. Bywaters is developing its training centre at its Lea Riverside site to work more closely with the community in future.

Next steps

Bywaters is always looking for ways to improve its environmental performance and is currently exploring food waste recycling technology and investigating the transport of waste by water.