Exterminators Asia’s first CarbonNeutral pest control company

Friday, 3 October 2014 05:34 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Exterminators Ltd., Sri Lanka’s first and only CarbonConscious pest control company and the only ISO 14001;2004 EMS and OHSAS 18001;2007 and Sri Lanka’s first ISO 9001;2008 certified pest control, become the first ‘Carbon Neutral’ pest control company in the Asian region to be awarded this accolade by The CarbonNeutral Company (CNC) of the UK. The certification was obtained through CNC’s regional partner – The Carbon Consulting Company (CCC), Sri Lanka’s foremost provider of integrated sustainability solutions. This momentous achievement by The Exterminators is a result of a focused effort by their sustainability team to first quantify the company’s Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, work towards reducing the carbon footprint and finally, offsetting the remainder of the footprint through the purchase of registered carbon credits from CNC’s own registry.

A carbon footprint measures the total GHG emissions produced directly and indirectly from the activities of a company, product or activity, and is an essential tool for understanding and managing an entity’s impact on climate change. Carbon footprints are measured in tonnes of Carbon Dioxide Equivalent (tCO2e). A carbon credit is created by removing or preventing 1tCO2e from being released into the atmosphere (1tCO2e = 1 carbon credit). When an individual or company purchases registered carbon credits, that money is invested in a project that either removes, prevents or sequesters GHGs from the atmosphere. In return for their investment, the purchaser is provided with a certificate or permit representing the right to compensate (offset) an equivalent amount of emissions of an operational entity belonging to them. CCC CEO Sanith De S. Wijeyeratne said: “We are proud to have worked with The Exterminators in making it Asia’s First CarbonNeutral pest control company, and we congratulate Marlon and the rest of their management team on this noteworthy accomplishment. We hope that they have paved the way for other SMEs who were considering similar initiatives, to now take the green step in implementing offset inclusive carbon management strategies which will not only help tackle climate change, but will reduce bottom line costs and enhance brand reputation”. CNC is the most widely recognised voluntary carbon offset provider in the world and a leading provider of carbon reduction solutions. It was honoured with the ‘Best Offset Retailer’ award by the leading industry magazine Environmental Finance, for the third consecutive year in 2013.