Source: Natural Capitalism: The Next Industrial Revolution(Hawken et. al., 1999)

Interface carpets aims to be the world’s first sustainable corporation

Traditionally, old-fashioned broadloom carpet is replaced every decade because it develops worn spots, causing major disruption to an office

Over 5 billion pounds of the carpet now in landfills has Interface’s name on it

Chairman Ray Anderson realised that not throwing more energy and money into holes in the ground represented a major business opportunity

Interface launched a transition from selling carpet to leasing floor-covering services

Interface owns the carpet and leases it to customers Interface is responsible for monthly inspections and maintenance if

required Benefits:

Carpet tiles used so only worn parts are replaced – usually 10-20% of area shows 80-90% of the wear

Increases net employment (less manufacturing but more upkeep)

Eliminates disruption, since worn tiles are seldom under furniture. Because the carpet is laid in the form of tiles, glue fumes are also significantly reduced or possibly eliminated. The customer’s former capital investment becomes a lease expense

Cost savings to customers

Interface has developed a new polymeric material to create a new kind of floor-covering service, called Solenium, that can be completely remanufactured back into itself. All worn materials can and will be completely separated into their components, fibre and backing, and each component remade into an identical fresh product.

Benefits: production process is simpler less wasteful: manufacturing upper surface produces 99.7% less

waste than normal carpet, and the other 0.3% gets reused. provides better service - highly stain-resistant, does not mildew,

easily cleaned with water, 35% less materials-intensive, four times as durable (using sevenfold less massflow per unit of service) and is acoustically and aesthetically improved

suited to renewable feedstocks manufacturing cost substantially reduced and margin increased

Overall reduction in the net flow of materials and embodied energy by 97%

If a satisfactory quality of service isn’t being delivered, the problem can be addressed directly and immediately

Service cost can be fully deducted from taxable business income, just like any other normal operating expense

Product’s value doesn’t have to be capitalised, as capital cost is entirely off balance sheet and onto that of the firm that leases it – giving manufacturing firm an incentive to minimise capital requirements per unit of service flow

Higher performance and competitive advantage did not evolve through incremental improvement, but rather from a deliberate effort to redesign the flooring business from scratch so as to close all loops, take nothing away from the earth’s crust, and add nothing harmful to the biosphere

Future goal – all fossil fuel use to be ultimately eliminated

Source: Sydney Water’s website

Manages the water supply and sewage infrastructure for the greater Sydney region, servicing four million customers in Sydney, the Illawarra and the Blue Mountains

Delivers over 1.6 billion litres of water and collects and treats more than 1.3 billion litres of wastewater daily

Is involved in activities such as stormwater management and land management

Has 3,630 staff

Has an annual capital works program of around $500 million

Manages $3 billion of assets, including 10 water filtration plants, 30 sewage treatment plants and more than 40,000 kilometres of pipes

Owns 3,155 hectares of land, of which some has undisturbed vegetation

Sydney Water committed to sustainable operations

Develops an annual sustainability report. (Towards Sustainability Report 2002 can be viewed at http://www.sydneywater.com.au/html/environment/tsr/tsrpdfs.html

Has developed a comprehensive educational package for employees to build their understanding of sustainability and Sydney Water initiatives in this regard, including on-line and face-to-face components

Initiatives:

Programs to reduce water wastage, including periodic upgrading of sewage treatment systems and other infrastructure

Program to fix leaks in water system using acoustic devices – already saving 22 million litres per day, estimated will be 50 million litres a day when program completed

Initiatives:

Influencing demand through water pricing. Although Sydney has experienced significant and steady population growth, water consumption has been relatively stable, particularly due to the introduction of usage-based pricing which provides a direct incentive to conserve water

Productive wastewater reuse schemes. In one project in south-western Sydney, dry weather flows are treated and used for agricultural and tree-farming activities, reducing nutrient, sediment and organic material discharged into the sensitive Hawkesbury-Nepean River system. Irrigation demands are now starting to outweigh availability of treated wastewater

(continued)

Initiatives:

Distribution of ceramic mugs to head office staff and a cost differential for drinks served in foam cups to reduce use of foam cups in the cafeteria – resulting in a saving of 140,000 cups, and $11,000, a year

Program to encourage rainwater tanks in urban areas, such as provision of practical information such as sizing of tanks and efficient use of water. Backflow prevention devices have been provided free to customers purchasing tanks since June 2002. A model home including a rainwater tank has been exhibited at trade shows and home display centres, and work with other government agencies has been undertaken to simplify policies and procedures

(continued)

Initiatives: Provision of flexible work options to maximise retention

of skilled staff and reduce staff absenteeism eg. two long-day childcare centres in Sydney providing affordable care for children of employees and the community to address low levels of female participation in the Sydney Water workforce

A ‘Give as you earn’ scheme - staff can automatically donate money from their pay to tax-deductible charities in Australia. Sydney Water matches each new and additional donation above existing ones dollar for dollar. More than $31,583 was donated between July and December 2001, matched by Sydney Water

Initiatives:

A Youth Employment Strategy to address the fact that only 4.5% of employees were aged 15-24. This strategy includes work experience placements, sponsorship, scholarships, graduate and undergraduate programs, an apprenticeship program and disability traineeships

(continued)

Initiatives:

A performance management system to foster staff development by increasing employee knowledge, skills and experience and e-learning and leadership training for senior managers

A program to improve the health and safety culture through a range of programs for employees and selected topics. Training includes manual handling, construction training, ergonomics and risk management. The ‘Be Safe, Mate’ program encourages employees to take responsibility not only for their own personal safety but also that of their colleagues

(continued)

Sydney Water engages the community in projects such as the rehabilitation of Smalls Creek, which eventually leads to the Hawkesbury River. The creek has Aboriginal sites, a remnant vegetation community and several endangered species of flora. The local community participated in early planning workshops to identify and prioritise issues, and later in five full-day working bees to remove weeds and undertake bush regeneration and revegetation. The community are now taking an active role in the management of this area

Sydney Water runs a Speaker’s Program where staff present about Sydney Water’s activities and water conservation initiatives to interested community groups

(continued)

Source: Corporate Sustainability: an Investor Perspective. The Mays Report (Mays, 2003)

The insurance industry has an affinity for sustainability because a range of environmental, social and economic factors influence its core business challenge of calculating risk and setting appropriate premiums. They also influence its core purpose of helping people to manage and reduce risk

Weather-related risks, influenced by climate change, are major drivers of claims costs for the insurance industry in big-ticket areas like home and motor cover

Natural disasters like hailstorms, floods, cyclones and bushfires represent a major driver of losses – both insured and non-insured – for the community and the economy. An inability to underwrite such risks would not only have ramifications for individual insurance companies, but global economies

Source: Mills et al, (2001) page 72, prepared for IAG

Australia has enormous potential to suffer from impending climate change. More than 80% of its population resides within 50 km of the coast with increasing concentrations in regions already vulnerable to weather hazards (CSIRO, 2002)

In addition, $1,500 billion of Australia’s wealth is locked up in homes, commercial buildings, ports and other physical assets (ABS, 2002). This is equivalent to nine times the current national budget or twice our gross domestic product

The insurance industry currently underwrites the risk to the bulk of these assets from weather events but climate change threatens its ability to do so as effectively in the future

Insurance Australia Group (IAG) is Australia’s leading general insurer

IAG provides personal, compulsory third party (CTP) and commercial insurances as well as retirement solutions in Australia and New Zealand. The Group comprises a number of brands, including NRMA insurance, SGIO and CGU Insurance

IAG serves a significant portion of the Australian and New Zealand market with about 11 million policies in place

IAG has taken the first steps to incorporate sustainability into its business model

At the organisational level, IAG has implemented staff development programs and increased eco-efficiencies

At the product level, it has assessed how to incorporate sustainability principles into products

IAG is further enhancing brand and reputation through participating in community programs and focusing on its corporate climate change position and research

(continued)

A key business objective is to reduce the size, frequency and ultimate cost of claims

Being more proactive in areas such as preventing workplace accidents, mitigating against climate change and promoting safer communities can translate directly into a lower claims burden

‘As an insurance group, our business is to pay claims. But to fulfil this role we must stand for more. We need to be able to help our customers and the community beyond just paying claims. To do this, we need to share our experience and knowledge with the community to help manage and reduce risks. We also need to build a culture which allows our people to develop and work to the best of their abilities. We must ensure that our business is sustainable and can deliver ongoing value to our shareholders’ – an IAG perspective

(continued)

Three priority areas that align IAG’s business interests with societal interests: safety – pursuing a strong safety culture within IAG’s own

workplace to anchor its role as Australia’s leading provider of worker’s compensation services

environment – improving environmental performance starting with the in-house ‘basics’ such as recycling, energy efficiency, less paper use and reduced travel, but extending to the entire value chain through supplier and customer relationships

community – supporting communities in an effort to reduce risk, including being safer and cleaner, thus reducing the potential for claims

These initiatives:

support premium pricing (through enhancing brand and reputation) and growth through increasing volumes and improving product mix

reduce claim frequency and size, and cost of claims processing

improve employee culture and therefore productivity as well as the ability to recruit and retain the best people

decrease operating expenses e.g. lowerenergy costs, reduced workers’ compensation costs

IAG has become a signatory to the United Nations Environment Programme’s Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), which requires incorporation of environmental considerations into day-to-day activities

IAG conducted extensive research into its sustainability ‘baseline’ including workplace safety and environmental performance

IAG developed and implemented corporate safety and environmental targets that focus on reducing injuries and accidents, and also cutting its paper, fuel and energy use, and minimising carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. For the 2003/04 financial year targets included reductions of: energy and paper consumption by 15% fuel (tool-of-trade cars) and air travel kilometres by 5% carbon dioxide emissions by 15%

Customer and consumer-focussed initiatives include the web-based Green Safe Car Profiler, a user-friendly tool on the Internet that allows easy comparison of new vehicle models in terms of their safety and environment attributes including fuel efficiency

Other current initiatives include working with a network of Preferred Smash Repairers to improve their overall business performance, including environment and OHS [occupational health & safety] modules, with the ultimate combined benefit of improved service to IAG’s customers, better outcomes for the wider community and business gains as well

IAG also has begun to ‘sustainability road-test’ a number of initiatives and ideas by engaging a broad range of external stakeholders from business, government and civil society, including organisations covering environment, consumer advocacy, social welfare and other fields that attract significant community support

Reducing the extent of possible climate change through policy strategies and innovative product offerings, e.g. products or policies that aim to reduce car emissions by offering cheaper insurance premiums for lower usage and support for the public transport system. Benefits include:

improved air quality

decreased road congestion (which would reduce aggressive driving, a factor that is responsible for half of all accidents in the USA)

Assess differentiating factors, such as relationship between distances travelled in an insured vehicle and average number and severity of claims, to allow insurers to factor the extent of vehicle usage (with environmental consequences) into insurance premiums. Benefits include:

better costing of premiums

encouragement for people to use public transport, with a reduced contribution to global warming and lessened long-term variability of climate change

(continued)

For the same reason, IAG are also considering the possibility of factoring the fuel efficiency of vehicles into premium calculations. Likewise eco-efficient housing lessens the impact of climate change. Better urban design has the benefits of:

lower theft and burglary rates

reduced vehicle usage & lower accident rates

lower greenhouse emissions

(continued)

Weather and climate are ‘core business’ for the insurance industry. At its most basic, insurers underwrite weather-related catastrophes by calculating, pricing and spreading the risk and then meeting claims when they arise. A changing, less predictable climate has the potential to reduce its capacity to calculate, to price and to spread this weather related risk

IAG believes that climate change is a real threat based on the assessment of the science presented by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, its own scientific modelling work and re-insurance sector research

Currently IAG is developing a climate strategy which includes: investing in world-leading research to learn more about the

problem and its expected impact, using international experts to look at specific Australian scenarios such as Sydney’s hailstorms and northern Australia’s cyclones

considering possible adaptation strategies to minimise vulnerability, for example comparing the merits of rival roofing and other building materials

exploring and adopting strategies that minimise IAG’s and its customers’ contribution to climate change through innovative products and processes, and new business models that contribute towards reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and

establishing a clear public advocacy positioning and a call to action to business, governments and community groups to work together to find sustainable solutions to the challenges

(continued)

Business value created as a result of sustainability initiatives should be rigorously measured and financially evaluated wherever possible

As well as providing accountability and incentive, this will allow the company to understand the long-term connections between its sustainability-related initiatives and business opportunity and growth

Source: Queensland Environment Protection Agency website

Symbiotic relationship between Cairns Crocodile Farm and Mulgrave Central Mill illustrates how one business’s sustainability problems can be another’s solution

Demonstrates how businesses working together can create solutions that have both environmental and economic benefits

Cairns Crocodile Farm has specialised in crocodile meat and leather products for the export market over the last 12 years, and has some 15,000 crocodiles

Ability to expand limited by the need to provide more warm water for crocodile ponds during colder winter months. Warm water during winter increases the appetite and growth rates of crocodiles, significantly increasing farm production rates and profits

Rather than the conventional solution of investing in a new boiler, the owners asked to use the warm water produced by the sugar mill ten kilometres away

This was beneficial to the Mill as they previously had to pump water around a large cooling tower before discharging into the Mulgrave River, where there is a risk of thermal pollution. The Mill also receive an additional source of income from payment to supply the water, in addition to energy cost savings

(continued)

The water is now pumped to the crocodile farm and cools naturally as it runs through the crocodile ponds and then almost 6 kilometres through the farm’s wetland treatment system prior to discharge into an estuarine system

A third party has benefited from this arrangement as with the increase of the crocodile’s appetites, there has been a 30% increase in demand for poultry by-products from the local abattoir, Bartter Enterprises Pty Ltd, which has significantly reduced their waste load

(continued)

In the first month of piping in warm water from the Mill, the benefits far surpassed the farm’s expectations. The crocodiles required more feed than ever before, indicating a rapid growth rate

Economic, environmental and social benefits of the project have included: estimated direct reduction of approximately 1,500 tonnes of CO2

emissions annually from Cairns Crocodile Farm by reducing the need to use the boiler

reduction of bore water usage by six million litres each week at the Cairns Crocodile Farm

reduction in poultry abattoir waste by 260,000 kg annually creation of 13-16 new jobs over the next three years in these

industries and in the indigenous community, who collect crocodile eggs for the farm

Source: Green Development: Integrating Ecology and Real Estate (Wilson et. al., 1998) and Natural Capitalism: The Next Industrial

Revolution (Hawken et. al, 1999)

The International Netherlands Group (ING) bank headquarters in Amsterdam demonstrates the possibilities of good design

When the bank outgrew its original headquarters, the board of directors decided to create a new image for the bank

Their vision for the building – it would be “organic”, would integrate “art, natural materials, sunlight, green plants, energy conservation, low noise, and water”

This vision was refined to also require that it must use the latest technology, had to be flexible, and had to be energy efficient. Perhaps most importantly, the bank was not to cost “one guilder more” than a conventional building

The design of the building involved a multi-disciplinary team with close collaboration and took three years because all participants in the project, including employees, were involved at all stages

The site was chosen by workers because of its proximity to their homes

(continued)

Completed in 1987, the resultant 540,000 square foot building, which is a series of interconnected towers, is one of the world’s leading examples of how buildings should be built

The building: uses less than a tenth the energy of its predecessor and a fifth

that of a conventional new office building in Amsterdam, with annual energy savings of approximately US$2.9 million (1996 dollars)

uses passive cooling with backup absorption chillers and uses no air conditioning, something extremely unusual for a building of its size

is filled with natural light, artworks, curvilinear forms and flowing water. Indoor and outdoor gardens are fed by rainwater captured from the bank’s roof

(continued)

Employee absenteeism has dropped by 15 percent, productivity is up, and workers even hold numerous evening and weekend cultural and social events there

The bank has been elevated from fourth to second place amongst Dutch banks - uncertain how much this is the result of the new building and subsequent public image/corporate culture changes

(continued)

Source: The Western Australian Department of the Premier and Cabinet Sustainability Policy Unit website

City Farm is a youth project run under the auspices of Men of the Trees (WA)

With limited resources, this not-for-profit organisation is involved in a wide range of sustainability issues relating to healthy urban communities and environments, including community development, land reclamation, organic food production and waste management

On a one-hectare block, fifteen minutes from Perth CBD, City Farm has transformed a derelict scrap metal yard (that had originally been slated to be a car park) into a thriving community garden, implementing permaculture principles and growing organic food

The garden includes a nursery, vegetable patches, fruit trees, native flora and poultry

City Farm also hosts an artists’ workshop

City Farm’s primary emphasis is on community development

City Farm’s structure and operation is ‘organic’ and egalitarian, with volunteers and coordinators taking responsibility for day-to-day tasks. It has a democratic approach to decision-making, with all volunteers having input to management issues and freedom to organise new activities and projects that they take responsibility for

The City Farm site was originally contaminated with hydrocarbons and heavy metals, and the buildings had asbestos roofs. Removal of contaminated soil was undertaken

(continued)

Many community groups use City Farm as a space to meet and work, as it provides resources (both human and material), courses, workshops and venues for community groups at a low cost

City Farm promotes many community arts projects, providing local artists with workshop space and organising exhibitions. Art surrounds the grounds, from funky signage, to the sculptures and painted logs. City Farm is a keen advocate of functional art. For example, its old can-crusher has been transformed into a work of art using recycled materials

City Farm has been an active music venue that has fostered many local musicians over the years. It is home to the Sambanistas, Perth's biggest community arts and percussion group

City Farm promotes organic food through their community lunches and dinners. Every Thursday, City Farm cooks an organic vegetarian buffet lunch that is open to the public

(continued)

Education has always been a primary objective at City Farm, providing a link between urban and rural regions. It runs permaculture design courses, tours of the farm for schools covering worm farming, composting and plant propagation, and recycling workshops for primary school students

City Farm frequently runs information and workshops at festivals throughout the Perth metropolitan region. These stalls often feature compost and paper-making demonstrations

(continued)

City Farm provides information on community groups, up-coming events, environmental projects and campaigns, and provides advice on recycling

There is literature on hand for visitors (including their own publications), as well as having experienced staff to provide advice

Offsite, City Farm provides people with the opportunity to get involved in a number of landcare programs around the State

(continued)

From its inception, City Farm has regarded itself as a place where people could gain work-experience in a variety of areas. Many of its volunteers have gone on to paid employment

Government funded projects have included ‘Landcare and Environmental Action Program’ (LEAP), TAFE courses, 'Work-for-the-Dole' program, Community Service programs for the Justice Department and provision of volunteer opportunities for the mentally disabled with the Department of Mental Health Services

City Farm is working with ATSIC and a number of other Aboriginal organisations and government departments in setting up a 'Safe Place' on the City Farm site. Such a space would provide travellers without accommodation a safe place to at least make a fire and possibly have access to an ablution block

(continued)

City Farm practices and teaches a range of recycling and reuse techniques that put old materials into productive use - to some extent this is necessitated by limited funds

Recycling techniques are incorporated into school workshops

City Farm recycles organic and inorganic waste material. Organic waste is transformed into valuable organic matter through composting and worm farming. Since 1994, approximately 4,000m3 of tree mulch, 1,500m3 of lawn clippings and 20 tonnes of newspaper has gone into City Farm's gardens

Inorganic waste is reused in its offices and in arts projects. So far, 20 tonnes of recycled metal and 200 tonnes of discarded timber have been used on site

From the TAFE and surrounding offices, waste paper is brought to the site for recycling

Recycling and reuse is evident in City Farm's furniture, landscaping and artwork

Bicycle recycling reduces waste and provides cheap and clean transport

(continued)

City Farm works with its parent body, Men of the Trees to facilitate a range of tree-planting programs

As a salinity abatement strategy, Men of the Trees have conducted hundreds of tree planting programs, many of which have involved school children

City Farm's longest running tree-planting project (since 1990) is on the remote Aboriginal reserve of Pia, about 720km north-north-east of Perth. Pia is in the heartland of the Wadjarri people's lands, and is entirely managed by local Wadjarri people. There is an annual visit to the site to work on permaculture gardening, as well as art and music activities

Ongoing challenges of economic viability, given there is no direct government funding and a heavy reliance on volunteers

Secure land tenure - City Farm has operated on temporary leases since its inception, which has severely inhibited its ability to grow and restore its deteriorating infrastructure

Lack of legislative or policy support for urban farms

Source: Factor 4: Doubling Wealth – Halving Resource Use.

The New Report to the Club of Rome (von Weizsäcker et. al. 1997)

Agriculture is commonly discussed as a major cause of many serious environmental problems including soil erosion, overuse of water resources, deterioration of water quality in rivers and creeks, loss of biodiversity and in many parts of the world, salinity

However, a number of farmers are demonstrating that land can be farmed productively whilst protecting its environmental values

Sundance Farms in Arizona is an 830 hectare irrigated farm which grows crops including cotton, wheat, barley, milo, maize, seedless watermelons, rockmelons and sweet corn

The arid conditions in Arizona are similar to those experienced in many areas of Australia

Even in well-managed irrigated farms, only 40-60% of water applied to a field will be taken up by crops (for many farms this figures is closer to 20%), with the rest lost to surface runoff, deep percolation or sprinkler wind spray

(continued)

Sundance Farms changed from furrow and flood irrigation to subsurface drip irrigation in 1980. The drip lines, buried 20-25 cm deep, emit small amounts of water right in the plant root zone. The soil surface usually stays dry, reducing surface evaporation, and the root zone is never saturated, reducing runoff and deep percolation. The few per cent of water lost is mostly accounted for by the occasional backflushing of the drip lines

The drip lines, made to last and buried below the depth disturbed by any agricultural equipment, were dear to install, but the cumulative reductions in inputs and increases in productivity made the investment very cost-effective

(continued)

Water-use efficiencies increased from roughly 60% to over 95%, a factor of 1.6 improvement

Reduced tillage operations, replacing ploughing, floating, land planing and listing with simple shallow surface tillage also reduced tillage energy use by 50%

Simplified tillage allowed quicker postharvest turnaround of fields, permitting two crops to be harvested in some years

(continued)

Because the drip lines cut water losses, less of the applied herbicides and fertilisers left the fields. Herbicide applications were reduced by 50% and nitrogen fertiliser use by 25-50%

Less water had to be pumped from deep well turbines, thereby reducing pumping energy use by 50%

Crop yields increased by 15-50%

(continued)

A variety of factors probably contributed to the many observed benefits:

greater uniformity of water application

greater effectiveness of systemic insecticides now delivered through the drip lines directly to the plant roots

better management of yield-reducing salts that often accumulate in surface-irrigated fields

higher yields with less water meant a reduction in water use by a factor of 1.8 to 2.4 – in a hot and unforgiving desert where rising water costs had already wrung out the most obvious savings

Sources: Good News for a Change: Hope for a Troubled Planet (Suzuki and Dressel, 2002) and The Natural Step website

Nike isn’t always widely held up as an example of a sustainability-focussed organisation, particularly in light of revelations in recent years of sweatshop labour that has been used to manufacture some of their products

However, in 1998 the organisation adopted The Natural Step’s principles and has adopted sustainability as a company-wide priority

In 2003, there were 65 pilot projects and initiatives that focused on sustainable product design and operational efficiencies. Some of these activities include:

measuring the company’s global footprint by examining the supply chain, from packaging to transportation, as a step toward creating sustainability benchmarks, tracking results and reducing harmful impacts worldwide

attempting to replace inorganic solvents with water-based adhesives, cleaners and primers. Water-based cements in 90% of its shoes have helped the company save over 1.6 million gallons of solvents a year – the equivalent of more than 32,000 barrels of oil. They have also been working on removing carcinogenic phthalates out of inks. Nike advertised in conjunction with Greenpeace it would be phasing out the use of PVC’s

making shoeboxes 10% lighter, saving 4,000 tons of raw materials and US$1.6 million annually

attempting to make a totally recyclable shoe, with uppers and lowers that can be easily separated and recycled into other products – everything from more shoes to basketball court pads and volleyballs

(continued)

adopting the use of organic cotton. Although only 3% of cotton used in their products is now organic, the sheer volume of throughput still means that this is providing the organic cotton industry with enormous support

creating 17 sustainability-oriented positions in the United States and Asia

developing a commuting program to encourage Nike employees in the United States to take public transit, bike and carpool. This has resulted in 14,137 gallons of gas saved and 11,310 pounds of pollution prevented in 2000

(continued)

Nike has the following three sustainability goals:

Eliminate the concept of waste in product design, use of materials, energy, and any other resources that cannot be readily recycled or reabsorbed back into nature

Eliminate all substances that are known or suspected to be harmful

Close the loop and take full responsibility for products at all stages of their development

Source: Good News for a Change: Hope for a Troubled Planet (Suzuki and Dressel, 2002)

Leads the way in sustainable practice for the forestry industry Own what has been called the finest privately owned industrial

forest in the US Their practices have been praised by everyone from the Rainforest

Action Network and the Sierra Club to the Washington Post and the Christian Science Monitor

Employs 7,500 people directly, and grosses about US$250 million (US) a year in plywood, hardwood and softwood lumber, oil and gas

Business started in 1855 by the present owner’s grandfather-in-law The family have funded everything from libraries and scholarships

to church construction and foreign aid programs

The company has formally pledged to do three things: maintain the health of the forest ecosystem support the production of wood on a sustained, renewable basis provide social and economic benefits to the surrounding areas

and communities Collins Pine makes smaller profits than its publicly traded

competitors simply because its owners aren’t greedy Their more long-term methods mean they lose 25% profit, or

hundreds of thousands of dollars, compared to competitors. For example, by using natural tree regeneration, the forest matures at a more normal rate than the usual, even-age tree farm monoculture management

(continued)

Ironically, because Collins Pine forests are more ecologically rich, they are more impacted by government regulators, e.g. more stringent regulations to protect the fish and game species they’ve managed to bring back

In another example, the US Forest Service cuts firebreaks just inside their property line, because a well-managed, mature forest tends to stop burns. Clear-cutting neighbours in the watershed are allowed to overcut, while Collins Pine is then not allowed to take more in the state-allowable cut

(continued)

Collins Pine at Alameda forest was asked if they had any of the rare great grey owl feeding at their meadows, which then required a 600-foot wide strip of trees to be left around all meadows. In spite of the imposition, they said yes, not because they had ever seen the owl, but because the habitat was appropriate and the owl could return

Despite lower profits and stiffer regulations, the Collins family takes low enough profits that they can provide decent wages for all their employees

Staff are proud they can protect the forests and their long-term livelihood

Many staff have waited years for an employment opportunity to arise at Collins Pine

(continued)

The company also decided to certify its wood, whereby an outside agency is invited to determine if a company’s practices are truly sustainable, so that the lumber can become “certified,”, that is, bear a consumer label stating that it is cut within the renewable limits of that forest

Despite initial reluctance from many employees about potential loss of control, interference and more paperwork, the outcomes have been inspiration for higher achievement and a revitalisation of practices

This process also initiated positive dialogue with environmental organisations such as Greenpeace

(continued)

Source: The Western Australian Department of the Premier and Cabinet Sustainability Policy Unit website

The Granny Smith Gold mine is a joint venture between Delta Gold and Placer Dome, located approximately 25 km south-southwest of the township of Laverton, surrounded by a number of other mines, in the north-eastern goldfields region of Western Australia

Laverton has a population of about 500 people, a substantial proportion of whom are Wongutha, the traditional custodians of the surrounding country

The processing plant has been producing gold from ore since 1990. Originally envisaged to have a 10 year lifespan, the discovery of additional gold deposits in 1998 will see another 20 or more years, providing both the company and the community time to find ways to diversify local industry with a goal of a longer term sustainable future

The Granny Smith mining venture has developed and introduced a unique blend of sustainability practices and is taking more holistic approaches to mining activities

Granny Smith Gold Mine aims to encourage beneficial environmental, economic and social outcomes, to relations in both the immediate vicinity of the mine site and with the local community of Laverton

By recognising the importance of sustainability, Granny Smith's gold operations have introduced a philosophy that recognizes economic potential as only one of a host of values, such as social justice and conservation, which can be nurtured in concert with traditional business goals

Revegetation has been planned and designed for both operations and closures. As progressive decommissioning of sites occurs over the life of the operation, revegetation follows in phases

The revegetation strategy includes final terraforming of disturbed land, planting schemes for tailings areas and general rehabilitation of the Granny Smith location

The seed, save and sow method is used, where original plants at dig sites are de-seeded for propagation and later replanting/reseeding to ensure the integrity of local ecosystems is retained

With a goal of diversification of the local economy, an experimental crop of 200 olive trees has also been planted and is growing well

Granny Smith has a worm farm for recycling of all cardboard, paper and food scraps on the mine site, thus providing fertility for the olive trees while solving a waste management issue

The "Ruggies" recycling program initiated in 1997 to reduce material disposed to landfill. Several mines have since joined the program and thousands of tonnes of waste have been recycled. The program has also succeeded in cleaning up mine sites.

Material recycled includes steel from mill balls, copper from cables and aluminium from drink cans

(continued)

Transport contractors that once returned from minesites to Perth empty are now taking saleable cargoes back with them

Money raised benefits children's hospital and charities

All people work voluntarily for the Ruggies Recycling initiative

(continued)

The social impacts associated with having a large mining operation on the edge of a remote community are being considered

For most of the past century there have been few significant attempts to cultivate positive relations with local indigenous people

Historically the gold mining industry has been weak with respect to employment of aboriginal people

Granny Smith has made efforts to increase local employment opportunities for the indigenous people, in both the town and on the mine site

Various mine training programs such as the Aboriginal Mine Training Program and the Adult Certificate of General Education open new career opportunities

(continued)

Cultural initiatives that seek to encourage and support opportunities for local artists to display and sell their work have also become a normal part of the mine's development strategy

It was determined that local arts and crafts such as weaving, painting, pottery, wooden artefacts and carvings in the form of traditional 'tools of the trade', such as shields and boomerangs, would benefit from the construction of a small tourist outlet to facilitate greater sales

(continued)

The mine is working with the community on developing the local economy, so that when the mine eventually closes, the community has alternative means of generating income. Harnessing previously undeveloped local potential is essential to providing a truly sustainable vision for the area

With this in mind the potential for olive farming, tourism, and crafts sales are being investigated to diversify the local economy

This is an example of effective liaising between two communities. One, a mining camp with a fly in-fly out population, and the other, a small town-site in an isolated corner of Australia's outback, where people historically received relatively little benefit from large mining developments

The efforts made between the two demonstrate the global community possibilities for successful outcomes through incorporating sustainability into mining operations

Ingenuity, resourcefulness and creativity in regards to rehabilitation approaches

Genuine approaches taken towards the building and maintaining of positive relations - both employees and the wider community

Contributing to the quality of life of local community - respecting cultural and social needs

Wider social contribution also - in the form of the Ruggies Recycling Program and its contribution to Princess Margaret Hospital

Successful communications with government and non-government agencies, and grass-roots community members

Positive approach to long-term issues considered too hard by previous generations

Sustainability reporting - transparency and openness in communicating progress towards sustainability

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Source: the former NSW Environment Protection Authority website

Blackmores provides natural health products and services, selling vitamins, minerals, herbs and nutrients

Started out as family business more than 60 years ago but publicly listed in 1985

Employs some 240 people in Australia, and also operates in New Zealand and South East Asia

Sustainability initiatives stem from the company founder, Maurice Blackmore, who firmly believed that human health depends on a healthy environment and that this connection should be reflected in his company’s business principles. This has been a long-standing approach

Reducing trade waste discharge - by planning of operations, and installing a new pump. Liquid waste is treated by a specialist contractor

Recycling incoming packaging - waste plastic is compressed and sold to recyclers, cartons are reused three times before being sent to recyclers

Blackmores is a signatory to the new National Packaging Covenant

Separating recyclable and organic waste from staff canteen waste sent to landfill. An on-site worm farm deals with a percentage of organic waste each day

Reusing products - products below specification and returned products are used as additives to fertiliser

Reducing energy use - through participation in the Energy Smart Business Program run by the former NSW Sustainable Energy Development Authority

The company has set up a formal energy team and introduced several measures to cut its consumption of electricity: the building has been insulated low-wattage fluorescent tubes have been installed airconditioning is controlled by time switches lights are turned off when not in use

The company has also installed a solar generator on the roof and feeds electricity back to the grid. It has increased its use of ‘green’ power from 5% to 25% in one year

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Contributing to community projects and local environmental projects. For example, for several years in a joint partnership with Oz Green (Global Rivers Environmental Education Network), and the Manly Environment Centre, Blackmores contributed to a program encouraging children and businesses to care for local waterways. The first project set out to clean up Manly Lagoon by monitoring pollution and encouraging local industries to minimise their impact on the Manly catchment

Raising staff awareness - by establishing environmental goals for the office, factory, kitchen, whole corporation and company future to encourage staff to make a conscious and ongoing effort towards improving environmental performance

Training for new staff includes pollution control and environmental awareness

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Reduced waste sent to landfill

Reduced energy consumption

Blackmores received a silver award at the Energy Smart Green Globe Awards in March 2000, acknowledging its energy efficient practices and the successful completion of 50% of targeted projects agreed to with the former NSW Sustainable Energy Development Authority

In October 2001 the company attained gold award standard

Blackmores does not have specific information about costs and savings as cleaner production ideals have been part of the company ethos since conception

Source: Sydney Water website

In 1998 SEC Plating Company was using 300,000 litres of water per day, making them one of the top 20 water consumers among trade waste customers in Sydney

The company also constantly battled to meet trade waste (aqueous liquid waste) quality standards

Poor waste management was identified as one of the key underlying causes

The company developed an effluent improvement program to reduce pollutants entering the waste stream from the source, reduce the volume of water used, isolate waste streams containing substances prohibited under Sydney Water's Trade Waste Policy, and implement water recycling

Some issues became more manageable through employee education and better ‘housekeeping’ – addressing relatively simple issues such as preventing tanks overflowing, improving chemical handling to reduce and manage spills, and changing work practices

Determining the acceptability of wastewater streams for Sydney Water’s sewerage system required a thorough analysis program, testing for compatibility with other wastewater streams, and investigating treatment suitability in the company's own effluent treatment equipment

Some waste streams were able to be batch treated onsite, while others required transport for offsite management

Water recycling trials have indicated scope for recycling

Average daily mass emissions have decreased substantially

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Long-term average daily mass trade waste load for SEC Plating Company, 2000/01 and 2001/02

(Source: Sydney Water) *Sulfate load is x1000

Other benefits:

cost savings, with a 60% reduction in trade waste costs There have been overall savings of thousands of dollars per annum, from reduced quarterly agreement fees, reduced laboratory analysis costs, and reduced water and sewerage costs

water consumption has been reduced from 300,000 to 100,000 litres per day

SEC Plating Company intends to maintain this focus on environmental improvement and cost saving and has set clear targets for its water management program, including 70% recycling of wastewater