The important steps to take towards sustainability

Government communicator Allegra Stratton recently hit a wrong note with her advice on micro-steps towards sustainability such as not rinsing dishes before they go in the dishwasher. What she didn’t say is that unless you’re running that dishwasher on green energy, a quick rinse under the tap is neither here nor there. In contrast, this week’s major IPCC report on climate change is a huge eye-opener, acting as a wake-up call for governments, businesses and the public.

With environmental issues well and truly to the fore, and with flooding, wildfires and extreme temperatures all becoming commonplace, it’s pretty shocking to hear that more than a quarter of property agents see sustainability as a “box-ticking exercise”. This was the verdict of a survey of 150 UK agencies carried out by home setup service Just Move In. According to the Getting Our House In Order report published this week, almost nine in ten firms (87%) don’t have a net zero strategy for reducing their carbon emissions although more than half (54%) do believe the issue is becoming more important for the industry. At Ringley, sustainability has been on our agenda for some years. In fact, back in 2012 we pledged to reduce our carbon footprint as a business and have been consistently doing so ever since.

According to the Just Move In report, the five least-adopted eco-practices are:

• Using green cleaning products
• Using a green energy supplier
• Consider energy-rating when buying appliances
• Use a smart electricity meter
• Use recycled paper

Our practice of the green principles

We can tick off all these practices – and a whole lot more, including our estate managers and site inspector using a hybrid car to reduce fuel consumption and offering on-line viewing and other facilities for all our customers to discourage paper use. Going right back to 2009 wherever possible all communications are sent out from our offices by email. As responsible managing agents we also feel that it is our duty to our customers as well as to society at large to manage buildings for our clients and residents in as sustainable a way as possible. This often has the added benefit of reducing costs for our customers. We are continually adding to the list of areas to which we apply green principles at the sites we manage. These include:

• Low energy light bulbs used throughout common areas and conversion to sensor controlled common parts lighting encouraged where possible. External lighting on sensors so that it is only in use when required. Leaseholders encouraged to use low energy bulbs
• Common parts heating thermostatically controlled wherever possible
• Green and/or economy utility tariffs encouraged
• Maximum insulation of loft areas where building has a pitched roof
• Recycling facilities provided at all properties where site layout/space permits or alternative local recycling arrangements advertised to residents
• Bicycle use encouraged by providing secure bicycle storage wherever site layout/space permits.

We are proud of our record on sustainability and these are just some of the ways that we are working towards net zero. To read more about our environmental credentials, go to our website