October 2007: Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI) Showcases ‘Next Generation' Environment Practices

• BITCI hosts Environment Forum for top businesses at Guinness Storehouse • Glanbia, IBM & Coillte demonstrate environmental management programmes DUBLIN, October 17th 2007: Business in the Community Ireland (BITCI), the country's leading corporate responsibility advisory group, has called on Irish business leaders to increase their commitment to environmental management policies, as part of a greater focus on sustainable business practices. At the group's Environment Forum, which took place today in Dublin, the BITCI showcased a number of ‘best in class' cases of environmental management practices by leading companies in Ireland. The event is part of Corporate Responsibility Week, a nationwide initiative spearheaded by the BITCI to promote responsible business practices in Ireland Speaking at the Forum, John Gormley, TD, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage & Local Government, said: “Companies have a responsibility to manage the impact of both their production processes and their products on the environment. Larger firms, given their scale, have a particular duty of care in this regard”. “The value of today's Forum, and the wider Corporate Responsibility Week initiative, is to show that companies in all industries can successfully implement environmental management practices, while maintaining their focus on sales, profitability and market share,” said Mr. Gormley. Tina Roche, Chief Executive, BITCI, said: “Irish firms are increasingly putting environmental issues higher on the business agenda which is illustrated by a number of companies actively pursuing strategies to address environmental challenges such as climate change. Today's Forum is all about showcasing best practices in this area and encouraging businesses to move to the next level in their commitment to the environment and thereby reducing their environmental footprint”. At the Forum today, IBM and Glanbia provided details of their environmental policies, highlighting in particular their efforts in the areas of energy management and waste management, while Coillte outlined its efforts to increase collaboration between businesses on environmental best practice. Glanbia achieved accreditation to the IS 393 Energy Management System standard in May 2007 and is the first dairy company in the world to hold this standard. The IS 393 has been developed by Sustainable Energy Ireland and requires companies to take a systematic approach to continuously improving energy management procedures. The fully integrated energy management systems the company has put in place have enabled the business to significantly improve its energy efficiency. IBM has implemented a sophisticated waste reduction and reuse programme in cooperation with the different partners in the company's supply chain which has had a major effect on its operations. The amount of waste generated in the Irish operations in 2006 dropped 31%. The amount of waste going to landfill dropped 23%. This project shows how a large company can positively influence other companies down in its supply chain. Coillte is leading a business working group - facilitated by BITCI - on how firms measure their environmental footprint. This group is a voluntary initiative bringing together 15 leading Irish companies in an ongoing forum where practitioners can share knowledge, experience and solutions to specific environmental challenges they are facing and reducing their environmental footprint. For further information, contact Moira Horgan, Marketing Communications Manager at 01-8743812, 086-1722105 or mhorgan@bitc.ie