Ashe Construction’s public declaration to get to net zero carbon has just been accepted and logged by the Science-based Targets Initiative (SBTi) under small to medium size enterprise (SME) eligibility.
The contractor is one of only 70 construction and engineering businesses in the whole of the UK to have achieved the validation.
The SBTi is a corporate climate action organisation that has developed standards, tools and guidance to enable companies and financial institutions around the world to set greenhouse gas reduction targets to a level that’s necessary to keep global warming below catastrophic levels, with an aim to reach net zero by 2050 at the very latest.
The initiative is backed by organisations such as the United Nations Global Compact and the World Wide Fund for Nature.
The UK’s built environment is responsible for a quarter of the country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and therefore, as a contractor, Ashe has a responsibility to do everything it can to reduce the GHG emissions created by its operations.
James Bisco, head of sustainability at Ashe says the company is in a unique position to make a real difference. He explains: “Unlike many other organisations, not only can we make a positive impact by reducing our emissions as a business, but we can also reduce climate change by constructing buildings that create less emissions when they are in operation; and where we can influence the design of buildings, we will always opt for the most efficient method of construction and ensure the buildings are efficient to run, such as the schools we are creating that are net zero in operation.”
“This is a massive step forward for us as a business. We’ve made a commitment to setting a science-based target to reach net zero by 2045, five years ahead of SBTi’s 2050 goal. We’ve undertaken a deep analysis of the business and made plans to reduce our emissions in line with the SBTi criteria and submitted our target for validation.”
To achieve the validation, Ashe had to comply with the requirements for an SME, gather information to answer an extensive list of questions around eligibility, net zero criteria, and GHG emissions. The company had to submit detailed documents for verification including its recently published Carbon Reduction Plan and Net Zero Road map.
Earlier this year, Ashe collected data to revise its GHG emissions level, including gathering data from all staff to set a baseline for staff commuting against which future changes will be measured. The emissions data was also used to develop a GHG emissions trajectory with which future emissions will be compared.
Ian Robbins, Ashe’s managing director commented: “We’re delighted that all James’ hard work has paid off and we’ve been officially validated. But now the real work begins because we will need to prove through measuring and reporting that our progress is in line with our annual targets, and we can only do this with the help of every member of the Ashe team and our supply chain. Beyond our own company, behavioural change is required throughout our entire sector to really make a difference and halt our greenhouse gas emissions.”
To hit Ashe’s targets, the company has an ambitious Carbon Reduction Plan and Roadmap to Net Zero with at least 90% of the target achieved through emissions reduction.
There are currently only around 6,000 companies in the UK who have achieved SBTi validation reflecting Ashe’s commitment to leading in this important aspect of Environment, Social and Governance (ESG).
Photo caption: Pupils planting at award winning The Valley SEN School where Ashe Construction has built a £15.8m Net Zero Carbon in Operation school for children with special educational needs and disabilities.