A Leicestershire veterinary practice has earned a prestigious accreditation for its green efforts to care for the planet as well as pets.
Ash Tree Vets has achieved the silver award from the Investors in the Environment (iiE) for the team’s ongoing efforts to be more sustainable which have also won support from clients.
The practice, which has branches in Market Harborough, Desborough and Kibworth, has found ways to further reduce waste such as using fewer single-use items and recycling much more, including pet food sachets and medical packaging.
The iiE national accreditation scheme aims to help organisations reduce their impact on the environment by cutting resource use and waste production.
To save energy, Ash Tree Vets monitors meter readings at all branches, ensures systems are turned off overnight and on weekends and has replaced old windows with new double glazing at the Market Harborough branch where bike racks have also been installed following Ash Tree Vets’ first travel survey.
Team members have taken part in gardening projects, a fancy dress litter pick and an environmental-themed movie night, while pet owners are supporting Ash Tree Vets’ green goals by receiving invoices, receipts and admin communications by email rather than paper.
Veterinary nurse Mel Gunn, who is part of Ash Tree’s Green Team, said they were delighted to have achieved silver just a year after earning a bronze for their environmental work which is overseen by lead vet Dr Nicole Dyer.
Mel said: “It’s been fantastic to work through the scheme over the last few years and be guided towards making real positive change in the practice. Our Green Team keeps expanding and it’s great to have so many of us feeling so passionate about improving sustainability.
“One area that has been particularly interesting has been a move towards low flow anaesthesia protocols. This has significantly reduced our Isoflurane usage – by 11 percent in 2022, which is 1.7 tonnes CO2 equivalent – as well as improving our patient care and staff safety, so it’s a win-win.
“Another project we’ve worked on has been to utilise Teracycle schemes throughout the practice so that we can recycle many more types of waste, including pet food sachets, medication blister packs and flexible plastic. This has hugely reduced the amount of waste that we are sending to landfill.
“We have also created wildlife-friendly areas in the outside spaces at the practice, planting flowers to attract bees and butterflies, and installing bird feeders. We have been involved with tree planting for a community project which was great fun, and it’ll be really rewarding to see the area develop. Next stop, Green level!”
Emily Appleby, sustainability advisor at iiE, said: “Ash Tree Vets has maintained an excellent EMS with great staff engagement, exceeded its previous year targets, and demonstrated excellent understanding of performance and future target setting.
“The practice has also implemented a new Travel Policy and undertaken several projects to enhance the environment, support communities and staff wellbeing, and increase resource efficiency.”
