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IMMEDIATE BENEFIT FROM WASTE AWARENESS COURSE 20 July 2006 After attending the Green Business Network’s recently held Waste Awareness Course, Milton Keynes based office services provider Control Group saw immediate ways in which to reduce waste in its operational processes. Because the company takes delivery of material for shredding and storing, items have to be booked in and logged thoroughly. This meant that for every item delivered, three pieces of paper were generated, one of which was always waste. Several other delegates on the course had already tackled this as a problem and were able to offer Control Group’s Maria Harbod several simple solutions that she could easily implement on her return to work. Maria says, “I found the course impressively informative and have already incorporated many changes in the way we work, these changes have saved money, energy and paper. Control Group is keen to do all that it can to help the environment. With the help of GBN we are making huge steps towards improving our processes and saving money.”

The Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM) Waste Awareness Certificate course offers an introduction to the concept of waste and helps delegates to take a fresh look at all areas of their business with a view to eliminating some forms of waste altogether. In light of the escalating costs of sending waste to landfill, together with rising costs of raw materials, energy and water, this means that most companies are able to save substantial amounts of money by putting a waste reduction programme in place. Estimates show that over 90 per cent of raw materials are wasted in production. This means that, for some companies, just 10 per cent of the raw materials bought are making it into final products.

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The Green Business Network’s nationally accredited Chartered Institution of Waste Management Waste Awareness Certificate course could help businesses to significantly reduce the amount of waste they send to landfill by helping them to take action to design-out waste and manage the waste they do produce far more effectively. GBN has already put 30 managers in Milton Keynes, Bedfordshire and surrounding areas through the Waste Awareness Certificate course, and intends to continue in its drive to save local businesses money whilst making environmental improvements.

The next one-day course will be held at The Forest Centre, Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire on 29 September. The course costs £85 for GBN members and £120 for non-members. email : info@gbn-mk.org webpage : http://www.gbn-mk.org ©2006 - Beds & Luton Sustainable Business Partnership. All Rights Reserved. Disclaimer Business Environmental Training Initiative

The Bedfordshire & Luton Sustainable Business Partnership (BLSBP) is an active innovative partnership that is able to draw upon a rich mix of skills in support of its work. The Partnership has been established since 1999 in order to promote environmentally sustainable economic development that contributes towards a vibrant local economy while protecting the environment through the responsible use of resources, efficient energy use and the minimisation of waste. We are one of the first Sustainable Business Partnerships in the UK and are well placed to carry out our increasingly important consultative role. The Partnership helps regenerate the local economy through support for environmentally sustainable business projects that encourage local businesses to incorporate environmental issues into their mainstream business decision making.

This approach by business benefits both the business (by increasing competitiveness and improving the bottom line) and the local environment by reducing waste, reducing local transport demands and encouraging involvement in the local community. It also helps the wider environment by reducing energy and resource use and reducing pollution and waste. BLSBP therefore acts as an umbrella for a flagship suit of projects that promote, through policy and action, the benefits of environmental sustainability for businesses in Bedfordshire. In addition to advocating the adoption of environmentally sustainable economic principles into main-stream decision making and widening awareness of the business benefits of incorporating environmental needs into decision making, the Partnership also provides support to Bedfordshire's thriving eco-efficient business community and looks to increase opportunities for eco-innovation and experimentation.

The BLSBP has a local and regional scope. It sits between projects working with businesses and communities in Bedfordshire and the regional policy agenda. It acts as a conduit between the two levels, promoting through action and policy the environmental and economic benefits of taking an environmentally sustainable approach as part of good management practices.