Madrid, 31 May 2005. Ferrovial is the first private company to adopt the Madrid 2012 Green Letter. The initiative covers the environmental objectives to which the Madrid Olympics office and all the community, industrial and cultural groups are committed if Madrid is selected to host the 2012 Olympic Games.
By signing the Green Letter, Ferrovial undertakes to perform the following actions:
– Install solar panels at the residential developments built by its real estate subsidiary.
The action programme includes installing 11,000 m2 of solar panels throughout Spain by 2008.
– Acquire alternative-fuel vehicles (biodiesel, natural gas, LNG, electricity and hybrid) for its urban services division: street cleaning, gardening and waste collection.
The action programme includes increasing the alternative-fuel vehicle fleet to 4% of the total by 2008, especially in the services provided in the context of the Madrid 2012 bid. The company currently has a fleet of 4,888 vehicles.
– Reduce the volume of waste (from construction, demolition and excavation work by its construction division) that is disposed of in landfills.
The action programme includes reducing the volume of waste by 56 million cubic metres throughout Spain by 2012.
Ferrovial´s environmental strategy and actions
In 1997, Ferrovial was the world´s first construction group to receive ISO 14001 environmental management certification. At present, 91% of the construction and services activities (where there are more environmental risks) have been certified.
For the third year running, Ferrovial was the only Spanish construction group to be selected for the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes, one of the world´s leading sustainability benchmarks.
In 2000, Ferrovial was also the first construction group to establish an environmental performance index for its projects. In 2004, the index fell 114 percentage points to 94, i.e. a “good” level. The index was validated by King Juan Carlos University (Madrid) and is supported by the UNESCO Chair in Environment.
Environmental commitments
Ferrovial has also established a number of environmental commitments, in line with the company´s strategy in this field, including:
– Develop an environmental performance index (EPI) for the services division, capitalising on the experience of the EPI implemented in the construction division;
– Advance in energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the real estate division and in waste management. In the latter, the company is expanding the installations to trap and use biogas. The company will also analyse the position of the services division with respect to future administrative and legal measures that may govern “diffuse emissions” of greenhouse gas in the framework of the Kyoto Protocol, particularly those that will affect waste treatment plants;
– Launch a new environmental management campaign in its offices. This initiative will affect energy consumption, the use of resources such as water and paper, and appropriate waste management.
