Jamie Shaw, global head of sustainability at Karndean Designflooring, shares his experience of developing a sustainability strategy and looks at how we can all avoid the pitfalls of greenwashing.

“Change is hard,” says Jamie Shaw, “especially in a highly competitive market, but with the effects of increasing greenhouse gas emissions becoming clearer every day and growing public demand for more sustainable products and services, it has become obvious that business as usual no longer serves us well. It is now imperative that we think differently and take bold decisive steps toward a new paradigm.

“The government’s Net Zero Strategy: Build Back Greener explains how the UK will meet its legally binding target to reach net zero by 2050, offering us a framework and incentives (currently more carrot than stick) to revolutionise our industry and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As an added bonus, many of the new working processes required are also more cost effective and will improve employee engagement and retention.”

In the first step of measuring its emissions, Karndean used the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, an international standard for corporate accounting and reporting, to help establish their current carbon footprint, as well as Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for gluedown, rigid core and loose lay products.

Shaw acknowledges: “Establishing a baseline for emissions, called a carbon footprint, is vital to have any chance of reducing your impact. Without knowing your current situation it is impossible to set meaningful targets or implement specific plans.”

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