The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has embarked on a programme of creating a comprehensive rating known as GreenCo rating system, the first of its kind in the world, to assess the performance of companies on their greenness. It acts as a milestone for companies pursuing green initiatives to measure where they stand and help them in defining the path forward in achieving world class status in environmental sustainability.
The GreenCo initiative helps companies derive excellence in energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable energy, GHG emission reduction, waste management, lifecycle assessment, material management and green supply chain.
More than 100 companies are working on this rating system, and 26 companies have already rated under this program. This year 17 companies have been rated, including Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Co. Ltd., Tata Motors Ltd., ACC Ltd., JK Tyres and Industries Ltd., Kirloskar Brothers Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., Sundram Fasteners Ltd., S.P. Textile Processors Private Ltd. and Shree Cements Ltd.
The Tata Motors Commercial Vehicles Business Unit in Pune was awarded gold. The company sourced 29 per cent of its total energy from renewable sources and provided 35 lakh litres of water to communities. Toxic substance elimination was done from the processing stage. The company conducts lifecycle assessment for its automobile components.
Sundram Fasteners Ltd., Krishnapuram, was rated gold. Almost 65 per cent of the total electrical energy needs of the company was met through renewable sources. The company has a zero liquid discharge facility and also adopts electro coagulation surface treatment to reduce hazardous waste generation. Supplier rating is based on environment performance.
JK Tyres and Industries Ltd. received silver rating for its contribution towards environment protection. All its plants have maintained the highest level of efficiency in conserving resources, especially energy and water. The raw materials used were conserved through compound recovery, fabric recovery and black carbon reduction. The company followed transport optimization and reduced its usage of packaging materials. Further major initiatives were undertaken for reducing GHG emissions.