RiverRidge is pleased to announce the publication of its first annual Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) report, an important milestone in demonstrating its commitment to transparent reporting while providing an annual update on the progress it has made towards its ESG goals and ambitions.
The leading waste and resource management organisation is the first Northern Irish waste management company to publish such a report, which has allowed it to streamline and prioritise all existing and future sustainability initiatives.
RiverRidge, which started some 13 years ago as a small skip hire company, now employs almost 300 people over five locations across Northern Ireland and is renowned for being an innovator, adaptor and disruptor in its field.
The publication of RiverRidge’s first ESG report also follows the launch of its ESG Strategy, entitled Rethinking Our Future in 2022. Based on three core principles, the company has heavily invested in taking a long term view of its business, its place within the community and the planet, as well as looking after its people.
Brett Ross, CEO of RiverRidge said, “RiverRidge is a company that has been at the forefront of change and innovation over the last 13 years. As a company we have significantly advanced the concept of resource efficiency not only within our operations, but also on our customers, including local authorities, large public sector bodies and large and small commercial entities.
“The publication of our first ESG report is a major milestone for the company and among our many important goals and ambitions is our ambition to reduce our overall carbon footprint over the coming 15 years. We have a clear roadmap to achieving this by transitioning our collection fleet to renewable fuels, investing over £50 million in new waste treatment technologies, as well as converting our sites to over 70% renewable power.
“Not all of our emission saving projects are large scale. At RiverRidge, we are continuously implementing small scale interventions to address all aspects of our carbon footprint, as well as trying to improve the biodiversity of the areas within which we operate. This includes the likes of installing photovoltaic panels to run onsite pumps, deploying beehives across our disused landfills, constructing biodiversity reed beds, and the planting of over 1000 trees at our Craigmore site. All of this has been a great success and attracted an array of flora and fauna.”
RiverRidge has also adopted a number of working practices for employees including an investment into the development of a digital health and safety platform, substantially increasing training hours per employee, developing a comprehensive health and wellbeing policy, launching a bespoke employee communication digital application, along with numerous other employee engagement programmes.
Brett Ross added, “We are proud to work with almost 5,000 of Northern Ireland’s businesses, public bodies and local authorities, which consistently rate their satisfaction with the service we provide as high. We know from speaking to our customers that they value RiverRidge’s commitment to sustainability as it allows them to better understand the carbon impact of their own operation.
“Our inaugural ESG report not only holds RiverRidge to account, but gives our stakeholders clear visibility of our sustainable work practices and our vision – to treat waste as a valuable resource, and in doing so, ensure a positive outcome for both our planet and communities.”
RiverRidge’s ESG report also outlines how the company invests in the local communities that it serves, and highlights its extensive fundraising campaign for flagship charity partner, Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice.
Since the partnership began in 2015, RiverRidge has raised an incredible £90k for the charity. Lauren Doherty, Interim Director of Commercial and Brand Development said, “On behalf of NI Children’s Hospice, I wish to congratulate RiverRidge on the launch of its first ESG report. The Hospice has experienced first-hand the impact of the company’s dedication and support to local communities, with an incredible £90k of charitable donations, which has made a huge difference to the charity and enabled us to continue providing specialist care to children and young people with complex needs throughout Northern Ireland. We look forward to continuing our partnership with RiverRidge and following the company’s ESG journey in the years ahead.”
Welcoming RiverRidge’s first ESG report Dr Lisa Mcllvenna, Deputy Managing Director of Business in the Community (BITC) Northern Ireland said, “We commend RiverRidge for the publication of its first ESG report. This is a clear act of public accountability and proves to the organisation’s stakeholders, including its customers and employees, that the company is taking positive and decisive action with ambitious environment, social and governance targets.”
For further information regarding RiverRidge’s ESG report, see https://riverridge.co.uk/about-us/esg-report-2023/.
