This case study provides a high-level overview of how WastePlan worked together with Discovery to reach their incredibly ambitious environmental sustainability goal of receiving Net Zero Waste Level 2 Certification by the Green Building Council of South Africa (GBCSA). This has now been achieved at three of their main sites: 1 Discovery Place in Sandton (Gauteng), Coega (Eastern Cape), and Century City (Western Cape). We are eagerly awaiting results for their site in Kwa-Zulu Natal.

ABOUT THE CLIENT

Discovery is a proudly South African-founded financial services organisation that operates in the healthcare, life insurance, short-term insurance, long-term savings, banking and wellness markets.

Recognising that its ability to do business is fundamentally linked to the well-being of the communities in which it operates, Discovery’s core purpose of making people healthier and enhancing and protecting their lives, is aligned to the goal of strengthening a sustainable environment.

Their impressive 147,000m² head office in Sandton is a 6 Green Star-rated building and is also ISO 14001:2015 certified. The multi-storey building can accommodate 8,000 employees, and also includes space for Discovery’s retail partners, a walk-in client services center, staff restaurants and coffee shops. Their offices in the Nelson Mandela Bay area is located in the Coega BPO park, which has state-of-the-art solar panel installations, which is landlord owned and supplies renewable energy to the office space they occupy. Discovery Century City is a more conventional office complex with two concrete buildings connected by an 8m-wide glass-fronted atrium.

THE CHALLENGES

In their 2021 Climate Change Strategy, Discovery outlined their approach to climate-related risks and opportunities, including commitments to reduce company generate waste to landfill by 2023. The alignment of operations across its various sites – as well as finding the right waste management partner to fulfill these commitments – posed a challenge, which was successfully addressed through the appointment of WastePlan as their specialist service provider in 2019.

Challenges included construction waste due to frequent refurbishment and maintenance, contamination of recyclable material by food waste, and the need to introduce some operational changes to reduce the generation of non-recyclable materials.

The location of some of their sites (in the different geographic areas) required finding localised solutions for various waste streams. For example, there was a need for composting solutions for paper hand-towel and low-grade paper, as well as recycling solutions for a number of low value, or difficult to recycle, plastic streams.

THE SOLUTION

So, how did Discovery and WastePlan work together to achieve Net Zero Waste Level 2 Certification in three provinces?

Key initiatives included:

• The launch of Discovery’s internal campaign in February 2022, where they announced their ambitious green goal, explained Zero Waste To Landfill (ZWTL) to employees, and introduced the different tiers of waste management.
• Close cooperation between Discovery management and WastePlan, which included conducting comprehensive audits of the waste streams generated in order to formulate an action plan, as well as monthly progress meetings.
• First focusing on achieving the ‘quick wins’, such as working with the coffee vendors and lifestyle service providers to offer biodegradable or recyclable packaging, and implementing effective organic waste management at the eateries.
• Together with the cleaning partner, designing custom-built recycling stations based on the typical waste categories found in the audit.
• Reinforcing the ZWTL goal with an internal marketing campaign among employees. This included sharing visual data on waste decomposition timelines, and recommending they watch thought-provoking films like A Plastic Ocean and The Lorax with their families.
• Employing trained staff on-site to manually sort through all separated waste streams according to type and grade to optimise the recycling process.
• Proudly sharing every achievement along the ZWTL-journey with employees, and continually reminding everyone of the importance of maintaining good at-source recycling habits.
• The WastePlan specialist ZWTL team finding solutions for waste streams which typically are not readily recyclable, as well as alternative waste treatment solutions for non-recyclable materials.
• Ensuring the accurate measurement and detailed recording of all waste streams generated at each site, in compliance with GBCSA accreditation criteria.

THE RESULTS

The journey embarked on by Discovery and WastePlan over the past 5 years resulted in sustained improvements having been achieved in the waste diversion rates for each of the buildings as listed in the table below.

This culminated in the successful Net Zero Waste Level 2 Certification by GBCSA of Discovery head office in Sandton (Gauteng), Coega (Eastern Cape), and Century City (Western Cape).

WHAT THE CLIENT HAD TO SAY

As Adrian Gore, CEO of Discovery, has said, “We are here to change the world. Not just tag along.”

Vanessa Drummond, Environmental Operations Manager, added, “Discovery is determined to be an exceptional employer, excellent partner and a good corporate citizen. We are also deeply committed to nation building and protecting our planet. These accreditations represent a significant milestone in environmental sustainability, reflecting Discovery’s commitment to continuously reduce company generated waste sent to landfill.”

Of course, none of this would have been possible without an exceptional waste management partner such as WastePlan. The entire team, from the on-site sorters to the Management team are all fully committed to achieving and maintaining our zero waste to landfill goal and we are thrilled to have partnered with a provider that is as committed to making a difference as we are.

If you also have an unwavering commitment to environmental stewardship and want to set new sustainability standards for your industry – contact WastePlan today!