Environmental Policy

Equal Access Group Pty Ltd aspires to minimise its impact on our environment and maximise the effective use of resources. We strive to achieve this by increasing communication and awareness of our efforts in accordance with this policy and fostering responsible environmental behaviour amongst staff, volunteers, and users at all levels.

Equal Access Group is committed not only to complying with applicable law in all of its operations but to absolutely minimising its risks and impacts through the development of robust and documented systems to implement, measure, monitor, and disseminate excellent environmental performance both within its operations and to the broader community.

Purpose
This Environmental Policy is intended to provide a framework to bring together the different accountabilities involved in different areas of environmental responsibility, and to clarify the content of these responsibilities in each area. It aims to integrate a philosophy of sustainable development into all the organisation’s activities and to establish and promote sound environmental practice in our operations.

Policy

Equal Access Group commits itself to minimising its impact on our environment through:

• Providing a safe and healthful workplace
• Creating an environmentally aware culture where responsibility is assigned and understood
• Being an environmentally responsible neighbour in our community
• Conserving natural resources by reusing and recycling
• Using in our own operations processes that do not adversely affect the environment. To this end, all plan assessments re undertaken electronically using software that allows our consultants to review, scale and check dimensions without the need to print large scale drawings. For onsite auditing, our company has developed a proprietary auditing tool, AccessCheck ® used on a tablet/iPad that is cloud based, which ensures our access audit process is truly paperless, respecting the environment and meeting our and our clients’ commitment to environmental sustainability.
• Ensuring the responsible use of energy throughout the organisation. Solar Panels have been installed for electricity supply and to reduce our carbon footprint. Additionally we have installed LED lighting throughout and all equipment, lights and climate controls are turned off at the end of the day.
• Staff work on a hybrid office/home model to minimise driving time and we conduct meetings electronically whenever possible.
• Participating in efforts to improve environmental protection and understanding
• Using our own professional expertise where possible to assist in the development of solutions to environmental problems.
• Striving to improve our environmental performance continually
• Conducting rigorous audits, evaluations, and self-assessments of the implementation of this policy
• Working with suppliers who promote sound environmental practices
• Enhancing awareness among our employees, volunteers, and users – educating and motivating them to act in an environmentally responsible manner.

Procedures

Equal Access Group will develop clear guidelines for staff to adopt sound environmental work practices, and adequate training will be provided to ensure these practices are carried out.

Equal Access Group will act promptly and responsibly to correct incidents or conditions that endanger health, safety, or the environment. It will report any such incidents to the relevant authorities promptly and inform affected parties as appropriate.

Equal Access Group will, where feasible, reuse and recycle materials, purchase recycled materials, and use recyclable packaging and other materials.

Equal Access Group will ensure that its services and products are safe, efficient in their use of energy, protective of the environment, and able to be reused, recycled or disposed of safely.

Equal Access Group will in its operations minimise materials and energy use, prevent air, water, and other pollution, and dispose of waste safely and responsibly.

Equal Access Group will in its operations conserve energy by improving energy efficiency and giving preference to renewable over non-renewable energy sources when feasible.

Equal Access Group, where appropriate, utilise its particular knowledge and experience to contribute to environmentally sustainable techniques, technology, knowledge and methods.

Equal Access Group will contribute to the maintenance and increase of biodiversity through its management of its landholdings.

Equal Access Group will meet or exceed all applicable government requirements and voluntary requirements generally observed in its field, and will in addition adhere to the more stringent requirements of its own environmental policy.

In order to continually improve its environmental management system Equal Access Group will conduct rigorous audits and self-assessments of its compliance with this policy, measure its progress against its environmental goals, and report its success periodically in its annual reports and elsewhere.

Equal Access Group will maintain an open and honest dialogue with staff, stakeholders, and the public about the environmental, health and safety performance of our operations and services.

Equal Access Group will ensure that every employee and every contractor is informed of and expected to follow this policy and to report any environmental, health, or safety concern to management so that prompt action may be taken.

Equal Access Group will include in its criteria for selection of suppliers and contractors their environmental performance.

Equal Access Group will not invest in companies whose business operations conflict with, or detract from, the environmental objectives of this policy.

Responsibility

• It shall be the responsibility of the General Manager to establish and maintain policies and procedures to bring these procedures into effect.
• It shall be the responsibility of the General Manager to implement these policies and procedures.

Authorisation

Equal Access Group Pty Ltd
Bruce Bromley
Managing Director
29 August 2022

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