Die REMONDIS-Welt der Nachhaltigkeit
REMONDIS' World of Sustainability
De REMONDIS-wereld van de duurzaamheid
The whole notion of sustainability will be a lost cause unless we take action here and now to conserve our planet's natural resources. Future generations and today's developing countries will only be able to enjoy prosperous lives if steps are taken right now to counteract the growing shortages of raw materials. For us – being one of the world's leading recycling, service and water companies – there can be only one goal: to tackle this problem and lead by example. Why not join us on this path?!
Everyone agrees that global warming must be limited to 2°C – or preferably 1.5°C – if we wish to prevent our ecosystem from being irreparably damaged. Large areas of woodland in Germany are dying as the country suffers ever longer periods of drought. Pussyfooting around is not going to stop climate change. Some major action needs to be taken. And not just switching from fossil fuels to renewables but from virgin to recycled raw materials as well. We are showing how this can be done.
The Lippe Plant in Lünen is not only a high tech site, it is also an important project for combatting global warming. The various activities carried out at the site help to cut carbon emissions by 488,000t every single year. For a forest to have the same effect, it would need to contain 37 million trees. Certainly a lovely place to take a walk in but perhaps not an ideal place for creating 1,400 jobs.
People searching for an argument in favour of plastics recycling need look no further than at our seas and oceans. Vast areas of waste are floating around in them and are so big that they can even be seen from space. This problem, however, can only be solved on Earth – with more responsible consumer behaviour and systematic plastics recycling.
Talking the talk but not walking the walk? Not at REMONDIS. It goes without saying that our all-encompassing view of sustainability also includes us being sustainable ourselves. This covers all aspects of our business – from the energy efficiency levels of our head office buildings, all the way through to ensuring that all our locations adhere to our high social standards, no matter where in the world they may be.
Every company tries to make a profit. And things are no different at REMONDIS either. For us, however, money is always a means to a good end – which is why a large part of the profits we make is invested in developing new and innovative recycling processes and technologies. Helping to preserve our planet’s valuable natural resources.
Sustainability is not a state or a condition but an ongoing process. First and foremost, sustainability is team work. Which is why we cooperate closely with experts and research institutes that also feel strongly about conserving our planet’s natural resources and preventing climate change. Such work always leads to new approaches and innovations.
Wherever we see an opportunity to drive forward the notion of sustainability and to fix it even more firmly in the minds of people, then we are there, full of passion and enthusiasm for the cause. This covers a whole range of activities – from educational projects, to acting as advisers, to supporting universities.
Everyone is talking about the scarcity of raw materials and about sustainability. But what exactly is behind it all? We decided to do some research to find out what it’s all about – so that we could put together some pages with the most important background information for you to read.
If humans wish to win the battle against climate change and slow down global warming so it does not exceed the threshold of a 1.5°C increase on pre-industrial levels, then there really is still much to be done. One reason being because so much time is being spent talking about the subject and so little time actually taking positive action – and the window of opportunity is gradually closing. Which is why it is all the more important to look at the question of carbon stores from as many different angles as possible. One of them can be found below our feet. What many people don’t realise is that soil is our planet’s biggest carbon store alongside our oceans. And one that we can actually enhance. And this is where we come into play.
REMONDIS’ subsidiary RETERRA transforms biomass into a number of products including quality-assured composts that not only help to add nutrients to farmland but also to build up the humus content of the soil. Humus, in turn, is a perfect carbon store. By deliberately using compost, therefore, it is possible to increase the ability of soil to capture carbon and so curb climate change.
This gave us the idea of developing a tool for farmers that would enable them to work out exactly how the most could be made of the potential of their soil. No easy task. Working out the maximum amounts of carbon that can be stored in the soil depends on a whole host of factors such as the type of soil, land management, crop rotation, temperatures and rainfall. We decided to call on someone to help us – someone who knows more about calculating complex models than anyone else: the Fraunhofer Institute.
Not only spaces untouched by human activity like moors and uncultivated land act as carbon stores. Cultivated places such as farming and forestry land do, too. One important fact here: the greater the humus content, the more carbon can be stored.
Taking all the parameters mentioned above into account, CarboSoil, the tool developed by the Fraunhofer Institute scientists, is able to calculate the amount of carbon stored long term in the soil. The tool is used and fed with the necessary information by the experts from RETERRA. At the end of the process, the farmers are not only given recommendations on how to manage their land in the most climate-friendly way but also receive concrete figures on how they are helping to combat climate change. And this for each individual parcel of land. Indeed, this tool has huge potential as it can also be used to provide farmers with written proof about the concrete CO2 savings they have achieved on their farm.
For all those interested in the details: find out more about the CarboSoil’s calculation basis
Using fertiliser to enrich soils and help the climate at the same time – this is possible with quality-assured composts
The so-called ‘4 per 1000 Initiative’ was agreed on during the Paris Climate Conference back in 2015 – with the German government being one of the first signatories. The goal of this initiative is to increase humus content in soils all around the world. The reason for this campaign – as its name implies – is the fact that a growth rate of 0.4% in the soil carbon stocks in humus would compensate for all carbon emissions related to human activities. This alone highlights the huge potential of humus to protect our climate. A potential that the very most should be made of. For everyone’s future as well as for our climate.
Find out more about the 4 per 1000 Initiative at openagrar.de
83,000 tonnes of carbon could be stored every year simply by using RETERRA composts to enrich humus content in soils. This is the same amount of CO2 typically emitted by more than 2,500 4-person households in Germany.
Being one of the world’s leading recycling, service and water businesses with over 30,000 employees, everything we do revolves around sustainability. We ensure that the environment is protected and that natural resources are conserved in over 30 countries across four continents.
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