CPS Homes are proud recipients of the Green Dragon Award
CPS Homes are committed to causing as little impact to the environment that we all live in, whilst continuing to provide an exemplary level of service to our landlords and tenants.
To prove CPS Homes' commitment to their on-going responsibilities and dedication to minimising, and improving where possible the environment, CPS Homes have undertaken the Green Dragon award, and have successfully passed Levels 1 and 2.
CPS Homes have detailed the extensive scrutiny they have had to go through to achieve this award below.
Green Dragon Environmental Management Standard Level One
There are four main elements to the first level of the Green Dragon Standard. These elements are designed to provide the initial building blocks of an environmental management system for a larger organisation, or a very simple system for a small organisation.
The elements of Level One include:
Responsibility
This involves appointing someone in your organisation as the "Environmental Champion". Their role will be to act as a co-ordinator for all environmental activities within the organisation and be the driving force behind environmental improvements.
Environmental Review
In order to understand the impact of the organisation upon the environment, a baseline audit should be carried out of all activities and operations on site in order to identify environmental impacts and legal obligations. The review needs to address specific environmental issues as set out in the Green Dragon Standard.
Environmental Policy
Taking into account all of the issues highlighted as part of the initial Environmental Review, the organisation should develop an environmental policy, which will act as a guiding document for all future improvements.
Improvement Plan
Based on the information obtained as part of the initial Environmental Report and the commitments made in the Environmental Policy, the organisation should prepare a plan to improve its impact on the environment. It will be the responsibility of the "Environmental Champion" to put this plan into action and ensure that the objectives set out in the plan are achieved. Regular reviews should take place to ensure that the objectives set out in the improvement plan are being achieved.
Green Dragon Environmental Management Standard Level Two
The Green Dragon Standard Level Two focuses on understanding relevant environmental legal obligations and taking action to ensure that these obligations are met.
In order to achieve Level Two, an applicant must have achieved all the requirements of Level One in addition to the requirements set down in Level Two itself.There are four main elements to this second level of the Green Dragon Standard. These elements are designed to build upon the initial steps taken in Level one to work towards a more robust environmental management system, whilst still being relevant to the smaller organisation.
The elements of Level Two include:
Statement of Environmental Impacts
Using the Environmental Review prepared for Level 1, the organisation should highlight those areas of its activities and operations that have a key impact on the environment. These activities and their associated environmental impacts should be documented and recognised by senior management.
Register of Environmental Legislation
Using the information gathered as part of the Environmental Review for Level one, the organisation should identify and record all environmental legislation and other obligations that are applicable to the operations of the organisation. Steps should be taken to ensure compliance with the identified environmental obligations.
Internal Communication
The organisation should ensure that all employees are aware of the organisation's key impacts on the environment and understand their responsibilities and duties with regard to protecting the environment, complying with legal obligations and generally improving the organisation's impact on the environment.
Environmental Records
Monitoring should be carried out to obtain information on key environmental indicators within the organisation. The organisation should ensure that adequate records are maintained to ensure the effectiveness of the environmental management system.
The information contained within this article was correct at the date of publishing and is not guaranteed to remain correct in the present day.
