Sustainability

Bath & North East Somerset Council is committed to addressing the causes and effects of climate change and is a Beacon Council for Waste.

Heritage Services Environmental Statement - June 2024

Bath and North East Somerset Council declared a Climate Emergency in March 2019. Heritage Services is a business unit within the Council responsible for the Roman Baths, Fashion Museum, Victoria Art Gallery, Bath Film Office, Bath Record Office and the World Heritage Site. Heritage Services manages its activities, buildings and estates to promote environmental sustainability, conserve and enhance natural resources, prevent environmental pollution, and bring about a continual improvement in its environmental performance.

We will continue to reduce our environmental impact and help to address the climate crisis. This environmental statement documents what we are already doing and sets out a range of objectives and targets to:

Implement sound environmental management practices
Increase awareness of environmental responsibilities amongst staff
Implement practices that reduce our carbon footprint
Minimise waste and pollution and operate effective waste management procedures
Reduce the consumption of non-renewable sources of energy
Reduce water consumption
Evaluate suppliers’ environmental credentials as part of the procurement process and give preference as far as is practicable to suppliers, products and services who score highly for environmental sustainability
Minimise the use of environmentally damaging substances, materials and processes
Maintain our buildings in an environmentally sensitive way
Invest in the conservation of our heritage collections and assets
Encourage modes of transport by visitors and staff which minimise their environmental impact
Implement Council-wide actions as a result of the declared Climate Emergency.

What we have done and currently do:

In June 2024 we appointed a Sustainability Manager.

Travel:

We advertise in railway stations and always list the travel time on posters to encourage rail travel
Our websites advise travel by public transport to Bath and gives distances from Bath Spa railway station. Car travel is the last to be listed and use of the Park and Ride is encouraged
We promote Bath BID’s bus discount scheme with First Bus to all our staff to encourage travel on public transport
We encourage walking and using rail for our staff to travel to offsite meetings
We work closely with our Travel Trade partners to advise them of the Council’s proposed clean air zone, and to encourage them to adapt their vehicle fleets where necessary to respect its requirements and objectives.
We promote ourselves as part of a wider trip Bath to encourage a longer stay in the city
We offer free entry for our residents as part of the Residents Discovery Card Scheme to encourage them to visit with their visiting friends and relatives, who put less pressure on the environment by staying in their homes instead of hotels.

Waste, recycling and plastics:

With our catering provider Searcys we have eliminated the use of plastic straws
Our shops use recyclable paper bags and 100% biodegradable carrier bags. In line with DEFRA we charge for plastic carrier bags and the proceeds (after tax) go to the Roman Baths Foundation at the Roman Baths, The Glove Collection Trust at the Fashion Museum and to the Friends of the Victoria Art Gallery at the Gallery. Our aim is to stop offering plastic bags completely by 2025
We do not use plastic cups at our sites. We use paper cups that are compostable and biodegradable for spa water tasting at the Roman Baths.

Energy use:

Offices and meeting rooms have motion-sensitive lights which turn off automatically after the room has been vacated
We regularly audit the lighting used on site to ensure reduced energy consumption. Flood-lighting installed in the Great Bath in 2007 reduced energy consumption by 60%
Staff are encouraged to close windows and internal doors when leaving the office or meeting facility they have been using
Our computers and monitors have auto-switch off
Our public toilets have automatic mixer taps which help save water.

Suppliers:

The Council employs a Think Local policy with regard to the procurement of goods and services. This means lower delivery emissions and fewer meetings where long distance travel is necessary

Funders and sponsorship:

We will neither seek nor accept funding from an individual or organisation if it is profiting as a result of environmental destruction.

Our aims for the future

We acknowledge that there is always more we can do and so we have outlined some actions we will try to implement, over the next two years:

Produce Sustainability Strategy to plot our path to net zero by 2030; produce Sustainability Action Plan detailing measures we will take and setting out annual targeted cuts in our energy consumption
Map our carbon footprint, to better understand how our activities contribute to it
Build sustainability assessments into exhibition selection criteria; establish new procedure/policy for assessing loan requests against sustainability criteria
Reuse packing materials; keep crates when works return from loan; upcycle and reuse display equipment; avoid producing new plinths unless necessary; make year on year reductions in single use plastics; end practice of wrapping purchased works of art in bubble wrap; send less material to landfill and recycle as much as possible; donate to scrapstores; cooperate with colleagues across Heritage Services to share and reuse resources.
Begin 3 year phased programme of installing energy efficient lighting
Offer discounts on entry to those who show a valid rail ticket with the current date
Purchase an electric or hybrid van for use in transporting stock and goods to our sites
Survey staff across the service for their innovative impact reduction ideas. All staff to have received carbon literacy training
Take part in green weeks and celebrations e.g. Earth Day that are relevant to Heritage. Join Gallery Climate Coalition & Museums Freecycle; sign up to Julie’s Bicycle; attend Green Museums Summit. Work towards standards required for active membership of Gallery Climate Coalition
Where relevant reference climate and sustainability in Heritage learning provision
Include an environmental impact assessment as part of the criteria for agreeing touring exhibitions, and loans in/out, including the transport associated with them
Take part in the Arts Council’s environmental programme.

This is an interim position statement and will be revised and updated as these aims are achieved or new measures identified.

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

Sustainability

Bath & North East Somerset Council is committed to addressing the causes and effects of climate change and is a Beacon Council for Waste.

Explore Bath's world heritage

Explore Bath's world heritage

Other things to do in Bath

Sustainability

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