HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
Sustainable Development Report for 2004-2005
Background
All Government Departments are required to report progress annually against the Sustainable Development (SD) Framework Targets. This report is a summary of the progress made by the former HM Customs and Excise (HMCE) and Inland Revenue(IR) for 2004/2005.
- Provide a description of Estate and identify significant impacts Met
- Develop strategies to deliver targets Met
Environmental Management Systems
Implement Environmental Management Systems in:
- a) all main offices by 31 March 2004 Not Met
- b) all other offices/sites by 31 March 2006 Not Met
By April 2003 all Departments should ensure they have arrangements to report publicly on their key sustainable development impacts Met
IR's response has been posted on the
HMRC Internet site
HMCE's
response has been posted on the HMRC Internet site
6 regionally based staff will be appointed to develop and implement Environmental
Management Systems across the estate. Progress on this target will be covered
as part of the Sustainable Development Action Plan (SDAP).
Both former departments have been reporting their SD impacts publicly since 2001.
Travel targets
- Reduce road transport C02 emissions by at least 10% Partly Met
- Require at least 10% of all fleet cars to be alternatively fuelled Partly Met
- Reduce single occupancy car commuting by 5% Not Met
The systems in place to gather data on business mileage will be widened
to cover the whole of HMRCr. This is an area we will be addressing as part
of the SDAP.
HMCE has reduced CO2 emissions by 4.5%
IR has reduced CO2 emissions by 13%
9.27% of HMCE’s fleet is alternatively fuelled.
3% of IR’s fleet is alternatively fuelled.
We have been unable to gather reliable data on single car commuting.
Water target
Reduce water consumption to 7.7m³ per person per year by 31 March 2004 (existing buildings) & 7m³ per person per year for all new buildings and major refurbishments.
Identify non-office sites where there are likely to be opportunities for significant water savings Met
- HMCE 2004/2005 7.4m³
- IR 2004/2005 7.3m³
Waste Management Target
- Calculate total waste in each site. Not Met
- Reduce waste by 1% per year. Not Met
- Increase recycling rates by 5% per year with an aim to achieving 75%. Not Met
HMRC sites are currently covered by a number of recycling schemes, which include restricted and confidential waste paper waste, although not across the whole estate. Our main PFI contractor is developing systems to measure our waste and to roll out recycling arrangements across the estate. Waste minimisation and recycling is part of the SDAP.
Energy Management Target
- Reduce carbon emissions by 12.5% by 2010-11. Not on course, but work ongoing
- Increase energy efficiency by 15% by 2010-11. Not on course, but work ongoing
- Use at least 10% from Renewable sources of electricity. Exceeded – 75%
- Use at least 15% Electricity from CHP by 2010 Not Met
IR carbon emissions have increased by 3% since 2003-04.
HMCE carbon emissions have increased by 24% since 2003-04. This increase may be partly due to data anomalies.
Our main PFI contractor let a new contract for energy monitoring during 2004-05 and the new contractor has been unable to verify historical data from previous years due to gaps in information left by the outgoing contractor. We will get a clearer picture comparing energy data for 2005-06 with 2004-05.
42.5% of IR’s electricity was from renewable sources.
52.73% of HMCE’s electricity was from renewable sources.
(75% of HMRC’s electricity is from renewable sources).
We will be exploring the feasability of sourcing energy from Combined Heat and Power systems as part of our SDAP.
Procurement Target
By 1 December 2005 draw up a Sustainable Procurement Strategy
- Should develop and implement an appropriate training and awareness programme on sustainable procurement Not Met
A Sustainable procurement strategy is currently being developed by our Commercial team. This builds on guidance developed by HMCE and IR Sustainable Development teams to identify environmental impacts of procurement at the specification stage and to inform the contract management process by assessing the environmental performance of suppliers and their product/services.
Estate Management target
- By December 2005, each department will draw up an estates management strategy Met
This strategy is currently being reviewed as part of the SDAP.
Biodiversity target
- By October 2003, Departments to ensure that they have comprehensive methods for identifying significant impacts for biodiversity Met
This should be achieved for 40% of sites identified as being significant for biodiversity by October 2004 and 80% of sites identified by October 2006.
Social Impacts target
- By 31 March 2006, each Department will draw up a strategy that sets out the way in which it will identify, assess and monitor significant social impacts that arise from the management of its land, buildings and operations. Met
The Sustainable Development Framework targets are currently under review by the Sustainable Operations Board.
New targets will be more outcome-focused on the 4 priority areas in the UK strategy, in order to secure real improvement in performance across Government.
