CARBON REDUCTION PLAN

HITS overall Carbon Reduction Plan envisages net-zero achievement by 2040 and has six action strands (as follows).

FUEL COSTS LINKED TO INTERPRETER TRAVEL

HITS will continue to reduce energy and fuel consumption in provision of interpreting services by continuing switchover to remote interpreting while reducing travel distances for face-to-face interpreting.

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy and fuel consumption associated with interpreting services, HITS will continue to:

  • Promote use of remote interpreting methods such as video and telephone interpreting (Strategically crucial for rare or difficult languages or where interpreters may reside out-of-area, negating travel costs and unproductive travelling time.).
  • Work with customers to promote wider use of remote interpreting methods
  • Develop remote interpreting technologies to increase efficiency of service and encourage greater use
  • Identify languages with greater travel distances and migrate to remote delivery. 
  • Recruit local interpreters in more languages and reduce overall travel costs
  • Recruit additional interpreters who specialise in remote delivery.
  • Monitor requests for jobs against location of interpreters to minimise travel distances.
  • Encourage interpreters to use electric vehicles (schemes to support interpreters to purchase electric vehicles, flat rate mileage payments for all vehicles).
  • Promote interpreter travel by public transport (equalising travel-time payment rate with private transport)
  • Influence Approved Organisations to support environmental protection and improvement through service choices and preferences.

FUEL COSTS LINKED TO ASSOCIATED HITS SERVICES

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy and fuel consumption linked with associated services, HITS will continue to:

  • Deliver interpreter training courses online (eliminating 150 individual journeys per course)
  • Conduct Customer Management Review meeting online
  • Recruit locally-based team members
  • Offer salary sacrifice schemes for public transport passes or purchase of electric vehicles
  • Offer free journeys for staff on Community Transport minibuses
  • Support hybrid working practices to reduce commutes.
  • Encourage use of car-share and public transport.

ENERGY USAGE ASSOCIATED WITH OFFICE INFRASTRUCTURE

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy and fuel consumption associated with office infrastructure, HITS will continue to:

  • Purchase electricity from sustainable sources.
  • Reduce electricity and gas usage
  • Replace fluorescent bulbs with low-energy LED bulbs.
  • Use smart-meter to monitor energy consumption.
  • Encourage staff to turn off electrical equipment when not in use.
  • Use new energy-efficient boiler.
  • Implement energy-efficient heating plan across premises
  • Instruct staff upon closing doors and windows when heating on
  • Use heat reflecting blinds to keep rooms warmer in winter and cooler in summer


[Please note HITS operates from Grade II listed building and some other changes may not be feasible].

ENERGY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH PURCHASING AND PROCUREMENT

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy costs associated with purchasing and procurement, HITS will continue to:

  • Purchase low-energy items where possible.
  • Monitor published supplier emissions
  • Contact key suppliers for carbon reduction plans.
  • Favour suppliers with better carbon outlooks.
  • Work with sub-contractors to reduce carbon footprints.
  • Work to reduce distance travelled by sub-contractors in delivering our business.
  • Sub-contract locally where possible
  • Influence suppliers to support environmental protection and improvement.

ENERGY COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH RECYCLING

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy expenditure by encouraging recycling, HITS will continue to:

  • Recycle waste directly where possible.
  • Maintain recycling collections from premises
  • Recycle paper and ink cartridges.
  • Re-use equipment and furniture where possible.
  • Donate redundant IT equipment to charity (gifted to digitally-excluded people)
  • Discourage use of paper and other energy-intensive resources

ENERGY AND FUEL COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH TRANSPORTATION OF GOODS

Reduction Actions

To reduce energy and fuel costs associated with transportation of goods, HITS will continue to:

  • Purchase goods and services locally where possible to reduce delivery miles.
  • Build supplier database locally to reduce delivery mileage.
  • Influence suppliers to support environmental protection and improvement.

INDICATIVE TIMETABLE – ACHIEVEMENTS AND GOALS

2021-2024: HITS has reduced road miles associated with delivery of interpreting service by over 50% (approximately 3 million – equivalent to 1000 tonnes of CO2e) through move to remote interpreting and increased efficiency of ongoing face-to-face interpreting.

2025-2028: Further reduction of 30% to be achieved through continuation of established actions and promotion of sustainable travel strategies across staff.

Quarterly reporting of road mile reduction in provision of service and concomitant environmental benefits.

By 2030: Commitment to Carbon Neutral state by Community Action Dacorum (managing organisation)

By 2040:Commitment to Net Zero by Community Action Dacorum.