RDA vows to watch its waste

Yorkshire Forward, the vast county’s Regional Development Agency, has promised to adopt targets to reduce its waste, use more recycled materials and make efforts to step up the sustainability of its procurement strategy.

These pledges make it the first RDA to formalise its in-house environmental commitments and will require those it funds to do the same.

Starting today, December 1, the agency will require developers to use a minimum of 10% recycled materials in construction projects it supports or funds. Such projects will also be expected to use paper with at least 75% recycled content in their offices, and at least 50% for brochures and other publicity materials.

Tom Riordan, chief executive of Yorkshire Forward said: “The new office blocks and apartment complexes springing up and changing the urban skyline are a sign of the region’s increasing prosperity and its growing economy.

“Hand-in hand with this prosperity we must ensure that we protect the environment and our commitment to these important targets underlines how hard we are working to reduce our carbon emissions and make more efficient use of our resources.”

The details of the scheme have been drawn up with the help of WRAP and Recycling Action Yorkshire.

Sam Bond