Swanley Town Council

Environmental and Green Housekeeping Policy

All activities, as an organisation or as an individual, have some impact upon the environment. Swanley Town Council recognises its responsibilities to minimise the impact its operations have on the environment and seeks to achieve this through a programme of continual improvement. The Council’s chief impacts are those concerning waste and energy. On this basis it is the Council’s policy wherever practicable to:

• Prevent and minimise pollution
• Seek continual improvement regarding the significant environmental impacts of the organisation
• Comply with all relevant current legislation and standards and seek to meet future legislation in advance of implementation
• Integrate environmental considerations and objectives into relevant operations and decisions on a cost efficient basis
• Ensure that all individuals involved with the organisation are aware of their responsibilities in implementing this environmental policy
• Try to raise environmental awareness among the local community

As its chief environmental impacts are waste and energy, Swanley Town Council will pay particular attention to:

• Reducing the amount of raw materials used and purchasing materials produced by sustainable means (e.g. paper)
• Efficiency savings in waste production through waste monitoring and recycling
• Reduction in energy use via monitoring of bills and as far as is reasonable the installation of energy saving equipment (e.g. heating and lighting)
• Continual improvement in environmental performance
• Supporting internal environmental awareness and discussions
• Considering environmental implications as appropriate when reporting services and projects to the Council and committees