idverde Celebrates Climate Change Milestone In Journey To Carbon Neutrality

idvede grounds trimming While world leaders gather in the UK for the COP26 summit, leading landscape and grounds maintenance experts idverde are delighted to have been recognised on a global scale for their work to tackle climate change.

The company has been awarded the Carbon Neutral International Standard and welcomed as a participant in the United Nations Climate Neutral Now Initiative. This means that all idverde services that are delivered to its clients and customers are carbon neutral, covering the direct emissions generated from those business activities.

idverde recognises that being carbon neutral in itself is not the solution to the climate crisis but that this is a responsible step to take. Aside from the actions the business is taking to reduce its carbon footprint and working toward net zero, its activities from yesterday, today and tomorrow will still have an impact on the planet and they believe that it is their responsibility to compensate for those impacts.

As the UK and Europe’s leading provider of grounds maintenance and landscape construction services, idverde, while working in a traditionally energy-intensive industry, understands the importance of taking care of the environment.

The organisation prides itself on carefully considering its environmental impact and ensuring sustainability plays a key role across its operations.

As well as its ongoing commitment to reducing its carbon footprint, the business also places great emphasis on raising awareness among its 3,500-strong workforce of the climate and ecological crises the world faces.

The Carbon Neutral International Standard is certified by One Carbon World, a carbon neutral not-for-profit organisation and resource partner of the Climate Neutral Now Initiative, launched by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Climate Neutral Now encourages and supports organizations to act now in order to achieve a climate neutral world by 2050, as enshrined in the Paris Agreement.

Achieving this milestone is evidence of idverde’s commitment in working toward net zero emissions by reporting within a globally recognised framework that will ensure continuous progress and transparency in how the company responds to the climate crisis.

Dominic Knower, Sustainability Programme Manager at idverde, said: “I am delighted that we have achieved the Carbon Neutral International Standard through our partnership with One Carbon World. It has certainly been a challenge getting to this point, but it has been an unfaltering priority over the past 18 months to achieve this outcome.

“While we have made numerous positive changes to our business already, this milestone formally marks the beginning of our journey toward net zero as we now have a far greater understanding of our company carbon footprint.”

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Setting the standard for others in the industry, idverde’s priorities for reducing companywide direct emissions include:

  • Continuing to replace its small commercial vehicles with electric alternatives
  • Deploying the latest electric 3.5 ton commercial vehicles into the fleet
  • Implementing a new company car policy which will transition the fleet to electric models over the next few years
  • Replacing hand-held equipment such as pedestrian mowers, strimmers, hedge cutters and blowers with battery-powered alternatives
  • Deploying large electric-powered equipment into its machinery fleet where feasible
  • A commitment to raise awareness among its 3,500 colleagues about the climate crisis and ecological emergency
  • Switching the company’s utility energy supply to renewable sources, to power its 150-plus static facilities and electric vehicle/machinery fleet
  • Trialling alternative fuel solutions for reducing emissions from difficult-to-decarbonise vehicles and machinery.

Commenting further, Chris Pullen, Chief Executive Officer of idverde UK, said: “There is a substantial task ahead in decarbonising our services over the coming years but our commitment to do this is underlined by our participation in the Climate Neutral Now initiative. Through the signing of this pledge, we have committed to continuously measure our emissions, reduce them as much as possible and contribute to offsetting projects along the way.

“If the world is to successfully deliver on the Paris Agreement, idverde must play its part in following the science and taking every action necessary to support these goals.”

idverde has been taking action to reduce its carbon emissions for many years by adopting a range of new and emerging technology.

The business first bought a large quantity of small battery-powered hand tools back in 2009, using them to deliver services in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Working with the local authority idverde went on to deliver a 56% reduction in service carbon emissions over an eleven year period between 2009 and 2020, paving the way for the next term of the contract which started in April 2021. With the recent renewal of that contract, idverde is now investing in 12 electric vehicles to support the council in achieving its carbon neutral and net zero targets, while also operating one of the largest carbon-neutral contracts with Warwick District Council.