Corporate Services

Sustainability Annual Report for 2014-15

Alison Gardiner, Head of Office Support Services

1.Introduction

1.1As a non department public body,the Climate Change (Scotland) Act places duties on sportscotland to act:

  • in the way best calculated to contribute to the delivery of the Act’s emissions reduction targets;
  • in the way best calculated to deliver any statutory adaptation programme; and
  • in the way that it considers most sustainable.

1.2In 2009 the Scottish Government set an ambitious target of Scotland achieving a 42% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 and noted that the public sector had a key leadership role in delivering this.

1.3In order to report the greenhouse gas emissions associated with the organisation’s activities, we must convert the activity data into carbon emissions, e.g. distance travelled, litres of fuel used and tonnes of waste disposed of. The conversion factors used are provided and updated by the Carbon Trust and Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs).

1.4The Carbon Management Plan 2011-15 target was a 20% reduction on the 2009/10 baseline. Whilst recording methods continue to improve and at times challenge our original baseline figures, this report seeks to demonstrate how sportscotland is making a positive contribution to the carbon reduction agenda.

1.5It has been well-reported in the media that Scotland has failed to reach its annual carbon reduction targets since they were set in 2009, however, sportscotland has delivered and more on its original targets. In 2013/14, we achieved a 24% carbon reductionon the previous year and this has been built on in 2014/15 through delivering a further 4% carbon reduction.

2.Sustainability Annual Report for 2014/15

2.1The annual report for 2013/14 is attached as Appendix 1 and follows the format as prescribed in the HM Treasury Guidance on Public Sector Annual Reports: sustainability reporting guidance 2014-15. This requires external publication of our Sustainability Report in addition to submission to the Sustainable Scotland Network by 31st October 2015.

2.2The key highlights during the year were:

  • A full financial year’s operation of the Biomass Heating and Hot Water solution at Glenmore Lodge. In addition, to significantly lowering heating costs, the income in 2014/15 from this source was just over £27k.
  • The generation of 12863 kw from the SolarPV installations at Caledonia House, Inverclyde, Cumbrae and Glenmore Lodge which equated to over £6k of income during 2014/15.
  • Savings continued to be realized during the year as a consequence of the significant water use reduction activities undertaken in the early years of the Carbon Management Plan, e.g. leak detection systems, reduction in meter sizes. Participation in the national framework contract and unvoice checking services have led to ongoing annual savings of over £15k across all owned sites.
  • Increase in the availability and use of video conferencing and Skype facilities in place of staff travel (also made available to a range of partners).
  • The improvement in the Caledonia House Energy Performance Certificate rating from E+ (in 2009) to a B rating.
  • Various cycling initiatives, including significant uptake of the Cycle to Work scheme which allows staff to make savings in the purchase of cycles and cycling equipment.
  • Contribution to the employer’s requirements for Project Inverclyde to ensure sustainability of the new accommodation.
  • The inclusion in all formalised Procurement processes the need to demonstrate Added Value, Innovation and Sustainability. This was notable in the procurement for the new facility at Inverclyde where 7.5% of quality scoring was allocated to sustainability and environmental performance. Performance in this respect will form part of reporting arrangements from 2015/16.

2.3Energy Champions across the various sites were instrumental in the progress made. The achievements at Glenmore Lodge were driven by Kirsty Murfitt, Training Admin and Environmental Co-ordinator and the cross-organisation activities by Lisa McGregor, Office Services Supervisor (now Project Coordinator for Project Inverclyde).. Their contributions were significant in supporting sportscotland deliver its Carbon Management Plan and supporting behavioral change in colleagues.

3.Key Planned Activities for 2015/16

3.1sportscotlandcontinues to workwith BRE Scotland to develop a toolkit for sustainable sports facility.

3.2A comprehensive review of the Carbon Management Plan is underway to ensure alignment with the new Corporate Plan and to establish a realistic carbon reduction target for the period 2015-19. This will be designed to meet in full the requirements of the refined Scottish Government Statutory Order which includes a requirement for mandatory reporting for Major Players from November 2015 (with the first report due in autumn 2016). The delivery of the final report for 2015/16 will be supported by the use of a Climate Change Assessment Tool, Influencing Behaviours Tool and e-learning module which have been made available by the Scottish Government.

3.3We will continue with the various cycling initiatives, including:

  • Cycle to Work Scheme.
  • Mr Bike workshops – where staff and partners can have their bikes MOT’ed and participate in road safety lessons.
  • Provision of Pool Bikes at Templeton.
  • Reimbursement of cycling for business at the HMRC rate of 20p per mile.
  • The supply of health and safety equipment for those who cycle for business purposes.

3.4We will put in place robust processes to measure carbon and financial savings achieved through the use of video-conferencing and Skype across the various sportscotland sites (including exploring the use of the Scottish Government climate change and sustainability tools for measurement purposes).

4.Summary

4.1sportscotland has responded well to the Scottish Government’s carbon reduction target and will continue to develop its carbon management plan and its associated evidence base in order to inform future decision making.

4.2It should be noted that investment may now be required if further significant carbon reduction gains are to be achieved from the sportscotland estate. These discussions will be taken forward within the Estates Strategy Group.

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2014/15 sportscotland Sustainability Report
Greenhouse gas emissions / 2013/14 / 2014/15 / % Change / Graph
(CO2e Tonnes ) /
Gross Emissions (tonne CO2e) / Scope 1: Direct emissions (from sources owned by sportscotland - this includes Glenmore Biomass boiler and all Centres owned vehicles). / 479.431 / 520.790 / 9%
Scope 2: Indirect emissions (bought by sportscotland), namely Gas and Electricity / 1257.71 / 999.37 / -21%
Scope 3: Business Travel / 467.28 / 587.028 / 26%
TOTAL CO2 / 2204.421 / 2,107.187 / -4%
Related Consumption Data / Estates Electricity KWH / 2,073,868 / 1,706,227 / -18% /
KWH/Litres / Estates Gas KWH / 820,799 / 554,786 / -32%
Estates LPG /propane Litres / 25,490 / 30575.94 / 20%
Estates Oil Litres / 113,328 / 96146.00 / -15%
Financial indicators (£) / CRC Related Expenditure / N/A / N/A / N/A / This is not relevant to sportscotland due to its relatively low energy usage levels and no requirement to report in this way.
Business travel total (£) / 600,605.79 / 572,828.17 / -5% / Included all travel e.g. owned/leased cars, private/hire cars, Air, Rail, Ferry, Bus and additional expenses
Energy Expenditure (£) / 321,795.07 / 275,917.93 / -14% / Included all energy expenditure with the exception of Solar Panels as they produce a cost saving. Income from Solar PV and Biomass are provided in the cover report.
TOTAL EXPENDITURE / 922,400.86 / 848,746.10 / -8%
Performance Commentary
Figures for 2014/15 reflect Stirling performance in 2013/14 for comparative purposes.
Direct Impacts
Scope 1 includes LpG, Jgas, oil, Biomass Boiler and emissions from vehicles owned by sportscotland.
Indirect Impacts
Scope 2 includes only emissions from gas and electricity provided by another supplier
Scope 3 Business Travel includes cars, air, bus and ferry - did not include centre owned vehicles
Renewable Energy Performance and Commentary
Solar Panel Energy Generated KWH / 31135 / 13666 / -56%
Non financial indicators / Biomass Heating Generated / 341160 / 408210 / 20%
Total Renewable Energy Generated / 372295 / 421876 / 13%
Performance of Solar PV is affected by weather patterns
Biomass figures demonstrates a full year of operation.
Waste Performance and Commentary
Total landfill waste (tonnes) / 90554.48 / 91240.00
Non financial indicators / Recycled waste (tonnes) / 41231 / TBC
% Recycled / 45.53% / TBC
There have been challenges in getting this information from cleaning/waste management providers. New arrangements now ensure that this is a contractual requirement.
Water Performance and Commentary
Non financial indicators / Estates Total Water Usage - m3 / 9621.34 / 8067.65 / -16.15%
These figures demonstrate the outcome of significant activity to reduce both water use and waste.

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