Anne Gregory

Putting the case for recycling

This example points to another area where enlightened companies have taken issues on board and used them as an opportunity not just to be seen as a company with ‘green’ credentials, but also as a means of gaining competitive edge. Recycling has become almost a buzz word for being environmentally ‘with it’.
In the late 1980s, British Alcan embarked upon a highly successful campaign to recycle aluminium from aluminium drink cans – a far more economical means of producing cans than using raw materials, and one which conserves the bauxite^{^} from which aluminium is made. With a dedicated smelter at Warrington capable of recycling all the cans collected in the UK, Alcan needed to set up a means of fuelling its recycling programme and so took a major step to invest in a UK network of recycling depots to facilitate collection of cans by the public.
The public relations campaign associated with this venture has been considerable, and hinged upon the radical idea of actually paying can collectors for their efforts. This in turn generates extensive opportunities for imaginative photocalls and editorials in national and local press, since collecting cans for cash also means generating funds for a wide variety of charities and community causes.
A recent – and award winning – PR initiative for Alсan in conjunction with Strathclyde Fire Brigade led to the collection of cans to purchase domestic smoke alarms – with excellent media coverage directly relating the recycling of aluminium to a campaign with life-saving potential.
Combined with school information packs, newsletters and promotions on a continuous basis, this clever long-term PR campaign has succeeded in winning Alcan a strong image as an environmentally sensitive multinational operation – as well as turning an environmental opportunity into a genuine business advantage.
Another initiative which has made use of recycling potential, but in a quite different field, is that of Yorkshire chemical company Lambson, which has invested ₤ 8.5 million in building the UK’s first plant to recycle spent sulphuric acid^{^}^ – used in a wide range of industrial processes. By recovering the acid and resupplying ‘new product’ to its customers, the plant will reduce the mining of sulphur by 22,000 tonnes each year, plus a consequent reduction of 72,000 tonnes of the limestone^{^} required to neutralize spent sulphur before it is disposed of in landfill sites. Once again, a little lateral thinking has enabled a company to take a major environmental step forward – creating considerable commercial benefit and valuable publicity.
Tuning in to environmental issues is not just the preserve of traditional industries. There are plenty of opportunities for high-tech companies to win plaudits for good initiatives. A leading distributor of computer consumables, ISA International, teamed up with The Woodland Trust to generate direct environmental benefit from the sale of a new range of recycled printer toner cartridges called ‘Reviva’.
In a clever promotional link-up, ISA’s customers find themselves contributing to a campaign to replant trees in British woodland by returning spent toner cartridges to ISA for recycling. As well as saving resources by reuse, each returned cartridge means a financial donation to the Woodland Trust – a double environmental benefit which also contributes to ISA’s logistical need to retrieve spent cartridges to fuel production of its Reviva range.
In the first six months of the project, more than 5000 trees were planted as a result of this campaign, while at the same time reducing the number of waste products which ended up in landfill sites. As well as the business benefit to ISA of retrieving cartridges, the initiative has generated significant editorial in relevant trade and computer media, presenting ISA as a leader in the high-tech recycling arena.
Not every company will be able to make a major environmental statement in the manner described above. Nevertheless, if the ‘culture’ of the management and staff is in tune with environmental issues a company can still demonstrate its ‘green’ credentials.
Most offices can contribute to waste reduction schemes by collecting for and using recycled materials, supporting local community waste-watch schemes and/or sponsoring ‘green’ local issues. It is important to strike a balance between genuine support for the ventures and being seen to jump on the bandwagon just for a short-term publicity gain.

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