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Environment CRH Sustainability Report 2012
Environmental Policy Implementation CRH is committed to the highest standards of environmental management in all its activities.
Company and plant managers throughout CRH are responsible for implementing the Environmental Policy and achieving its objectives. This responsibility continues through company Managing Directors to Divisional Managing Directors, the Chief Operating Officer, the Chief Executive Officer and ultimately to the CRH Board. Line managers in each Group company are assisted by designated Environmental Liaison Officer’s (ELO). In each region, the ELOs network with each other and the Group Sustainability Manager and his team in the sharing of environmental best practice. Acquisitions are systematically integrated into the ELO network as soon as is practicable.
Policy The CRH Environmental Policy, applied across all Group companies, is to:
• Comply, at a minimum, with all applicable environmental legislation and to continually improve our environmental stewardship towards industry best practice. • Ensure that our employees and contractors respect their environmental responsibilities. • Proactively address the challenges and opportunities of climate change.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS BY ACTIVITY
All companies are required to have an appropriate environmental management system, the scope of which will depend on the type of operating activity concerned and the specific demands of the local permitting regime. The total number of Group locations with ISO14001 certification is now 530 (487 in 2011) and 80% of CRH’s subsidiary cement plants are also certified. It should be noted that ISO Environmental Certification is not common in industrial operations in the United States. An overview of the various environmental impacts associated with CRH activities, which are addressed in the sections which follow, is provided in the table below.
• Optimise our use of energy and all resources. • Promote environmentally-driven product and process innovation and new business opportunities. • Be good neighbours in every community in which we operate.
CLIMATE CHANGE/CO2
OTHER AIR EMISSIONS
WATER
WASTE
REINSTATEMENT
BIODIVERSITY
TRANSPORT
Cement
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Other Process
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Materials
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Concrete Products
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Clay Products
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Building Products
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Distribution
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