SGS updates on its recycling activities on the occasion of the Global Recycling Day

SGS updates on its recycling activities on the occasion of the Global Recycling Day

(PRESS RELEASE) GENEVA, 18-Mar-2022 — /EuropaWire/ — SGS, the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company, has announced that the company is joining people and organizations around the world in celebration of the Global Recycling Day, a day to recognize the importance of recycling for preserving our resources and securing a greener future.

The earth’s natural resources, which we depend upon for sustenance, are finite and rapidly running out. On top of this, we are facing a climate emergency. Unless we make significant changes to slow the rise in global temperature, we will see increased habitat loss, poverty, job loss and immigration from displaced communities.

Recycling is essential for protecting our planet. It helps to preserve natural resources, boost local employment globally and combat climate change by reducing CO2 emissions.

Recycling at SGS

At SGS, sustainability is embedded in our culture and how we do business. As a result of our commitment, we have recently become part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation community, a charity committed to creating a circular economy, which is designed to eliminate waste and pollution, circulate products and materials (at their highest value), and regenerate nature.

Integrating the circular economy principles into our waste management helps us to achieve our Sustainability Ambitions, and we encourage everyone at SGS, as part of our sustainability culture, to make a responsible use of natural resources, minimize waste through continuous improvement of our processes and also recycle. Employees in our offices and laboratories around the world – our Recycling Heroes – are helping to create a better planet by taking part in recycling initiatives, some of which are also linked to community activities:

Argentina

Our employees in Argentina recycle many different types of items.

They donate old company electrical and electronic devices to Red Reciclar Organization, which collects them and then either refurbishes and repairs them or uses their parts as replacement parts in other devices. Red Reciclar also collects out of use office furniture and donates it to schools.

Employees at our Argentina labs gather waste materials so they can be conditioned and reinserted into the productivity chain. Waste from our General Deheza lab is collected by a cooperative made up of women heads of household. Earnings from recycling are distributed to the cooperative’s members.

Waste materials from our Alejandro Roca lab are sent to Recycle Center Circularity. On average, over 70 kg of waste are recovered annually through this program.

SGS employees in Argentina also recycle used toner cartridge and have implemented collection points for propylene bottle caps, which are donated to a children’s hospital.

Uruguay

In Uruguay, our employees send used waste paper and cardboard to Repapel, a Non Governmental Organization (NGO) that uses earnings from recycling to sustain education programs in more than 75 public schools.

IT scrap is sent to a recycling company called Werba, which is involved in various community initiatives.

Peru

Our lab in Callao has adopted World Class Services (WCS), specifically targeted at reducing environmental impacts and the consumption of natural resources. Using WCS tools, the lab has worked with its waste management contractor to recycle 53% of waste, generating social and environmental benefits. The lab has also introduced good practices to extend the useful life of materials such as melting pots and glass packages.

About SGS

We are SGS – the world’s leading testing, inspection and certification company. We are recognized as the global benchmark for quality and integrity. Our 96,000 employees operate a network of 2,600 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.

SOURCE: SGS SA