Severn Trent - Adapting to climate change

A Beacon company case study

Severn Trent is a leading environmental services group providing water, waste and utility services. The Group employs over 15,000 staff and its turnover in 2004 was £2 billion.  Its business comprises Severn Trent Water, which provides essential water and sewerage services, Biffa - one of the UK’s largest integrated waste management businesses and Severn Trent Laboratories (STL) - the largest environmental testing company in the world.

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Processes

The majority (69%) of Severn Trent’s greenhouse gas emissions are methane, a by-product of the decomposition of organic material at its landfill sites and at its sewage treatment works. The remaining 31% comes from electricity use and its transport fleet. In 2003/4 greenhouse gas emissions from its UK sites, vehicles and electricity purchases totalled 2.02 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e), approximately 0.3% of the total greenhouse gas emissions in the UK. Severn Trent’s approach to climate change is twin-track:

1.  Mitigation – Severn Trent tracks flows of carbon through its processes.  It has developed scenarios with support from the Carbon Trust that allow it to forecast its greenhouse gas emissions to 2020. The company is able to use this model to identify the impact of changing EU and UK legislation, its most significant sources of emissions, and prioritise its mitigation efforts. Its activities are concentrated on renewable energy, primarily through capturing and utilising methane, energy efficiency and reducing fuel-related transport emissions.

2.  Adaptation – Severn Trent Water has taken a lead within its sector to understand and plan for the effects of a changing climate.  The company’s assessment has identified over 150 potential climate hazards including working conditions for employees, facilities management and transport.

Impact

  • International recognition - Severn Trent has received invitations to attend the COP7 Conference in Morocco and to join an independent advisory body providing guidance to Ministers on the impact of climate change for business. It was also nominated by the UK Government to the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as an author and reviewer for the fourth assessment report of the IPCC.
  • Renewable electricity generation capacity has increased by 10% across the group to over 100 MW in 2004. This is equivalent to 43% of its own electricity requirements, offsetting 0.2 million tCO2e in 2003/4.

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