Environmental Policy

The CLE Group recognises that, in pursuing its commercial objectives, it shares with all organisations a responsibility to protect and nurture the environment.  By exercising proper control over its activities, the CLE Group will promote the use of sustainable resources and discourage practices that are wasteful or damaging to the environment.

This policy contains a variety of practical measures to be taken in order to enable the Group to make a contribution towards protecting the environment at all levels of our activity.

A twice-yearly review of the policy will enable monitoring of achievements, and will identify opportunities for further improvements.

Key Aims

• To reduce unfavourable impact on the environment by The CLE Group through our work and consumption.
• To conserve and support use of sustainable resources.
• To follow “the waste hierarchy”:
  • Reduce;
  • Re-use or reclaim;
  • Recover (Recycle);
  • Dispose-as last resort.
• To establish and follow environmental good practice, and comply with all relevant environmental regulations and legislations.
• To develop organisational awareness of the need to care for the environment, and measures that can be taken.

Use of Materials
The CLE Group will, where appropriate and possible:

• Communicate the Groups “greening” initiatives to suppliers, staff and customers.
• Use double-sided printing and photocopying.
• Reuse printed paper for draft copies, internal notices, rough pads, draft printing, and informal hard copies of documents.
• Encourage electronic filing and archiving to reduce paper usage.
• Limit the use of cover sheets for faxes.
• Take care when producing letters, not to run over on to another page or to include empty line spaces if not necessary.
• Recycle packaging materials where possible.

Electronic and Waste Conservation
The CLE Group will, where appropriate and possible:

• Purchase recycled products.
• Purchase Fair Trade Products
• Energy management plan to reduce consumption of electricity, including a plan to phase in the program.  Consider having a third party energy audit to see where energy savings can be generated.
• Establish a purchasing policy to use environmentally friendly products.
• Expand our on site recycling programme.
• Order supplies from companies with sound environmental principles and with an environmental policy.
• Where possible use local suppliers, to minimise “fuel miles”.

Disposal of Materials
The CLE Group will, where appropriate and possible:

• Recycle all paper waste, including shredded confidential documents
• Provide clearly labelled containers for material to be recycled, with notices of what can and cannot be recycled.
• Provide an environment free of hazardous materials.

Employee’s Awareness
The CLE Group will where appropriate and possible:

• Provide environmental information and education for employees, encouraging employees to behave in an environmentally responsible manner.
• Organise staff training in environmental awareness.
• Use signs and notices as reminders.
• Include relevant information in new employees’ orientation.
• Post our Environmental Policy on the website.
• Encourage existing staff to set examples for new employees.
• Create awareness of the benefits to the environment of commuting by walking, bicycling or using public transport.
• Make information on recycling systems in CLE available to all staff.