Environment and climate
REDUCING OUR ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT
We are committed to reducing our environmental footprint, adapting to climate change and safeguarding biodiversity.
Bureau Veritas upholds the same environmental policy across all its activities. As defined in our 2020 strategic plan, our environmental policy spans three key objectives (based on our 2015 consolidated results):
Reducing CO2 emissions
Considering the services it provides, Bureau Veritas' environmental footprint is relatively small. Business travel, energy consumption and leaks of ozone-damaging substances account for 98% of Bureau Veritas' total CO2 emissions. Bureau Veritas is committed to reducing its normalized energy consumption and business travel-related carbon footprint.
Energy management
80% of all electricity used by the Group stems from its laboratories, with the remaining 20% used in offices. Energy performance-improving initiatives for our buildings have been rolled out, including LEED certification, the installation of LED lighting in our laboratories and the use of renewable energy.
Waste management
Due to the nature of its business activities, in terms of volume, Bureau Veritas' main form of waste is paper. To cut back on consumption levels and reduce the ensuing waste, a number of initiatives have been put in place, including issuing electronic reports, and electronic archiving and printing when clients and regulations authorize such practices.
Finally, our ISO 14001 certification ensures a high level of control over our environmental management system and the waste produced by Bureau Veritas' activities.
A recognized environmental policy
Bureau Veritas voluntarily submits all its environmental practices and, more generally, its CSR practices, for assessment by the ECOVADIS agency, the Carbon Disclosure Project and the Dow Jones Sustainability Index.
ECOVADIS has awarded Bureau Veritas a rating of 68/100 since 2016. This rating allows the Group to maintain its "Gold" status.
The CDP, formerly known as the Carbon Disclosure Project, is a non-profit organization that studies the impact of the world's largest listed companies on climate change. In 2018, the Group was assessed once again, and was awarded a B, thus putting Bureau Veritas above average for its sector in terms of climate change performance.
Safeguarding biodiversity
In 2018, Bureau Veritas signed the "Act4Nature" biodiversity agreement. In 2019, the Group signed up to a global reforestation project. As part of its work on the project, Bureau Veritas has committed to planting over 6,000 trees in six different plantations around the world. All employees are invited to take part in the project, and Bureau Veritas has pledged to plant an extra tree for every tree planted by one of their employees.
