Steel Blue receives Climate Active Certification
Australian Safety footwear manufacturer Steel Blue is proud to announce it has been awarded Scope 3 Climate Active Certification for its Australian business operations. This is an independent verification of achieving net zero emissions.
Climate Active is an Australian Government-backed initiative that awards certification to businesses and organisations that have credibly reached a state of net zero emissions. The Scope 3 certification is the highest level of Climate Active Certification and requires businesses to account for emissions factors including, but not limited to, employee commutes, upstream and downstream transportation and distribution, the collection of raw materials, and 3rd party business services.
Steel Blue has been working toward carbon neutrality across their business and supply chains since 2019. To receive its certification, Steel Blue accounted for emissions and impacts both upstream and downstream of the business’s value chain. It reduced those emissions as far as possible and offset the rest.
Steel Blue CEO, Garry Johnson, explained their motivation for pursuing certification saying, “We want to be a leader for sustainability within the footwear industry and beyond. I am proud that we are now the first safety boot manufacturer in Australia to receive the Climate Active Certification.”
“We want to be a leader for sustainability within the footwear industry and beyond."
Steel Blue has made net zero a key focus of the business by investing heavily in carbon emissions reduction initiatives across the organisation and its supply lines. Some of the changes made include installing 100KW solar panel systems at its head office and manufacturing operations in Perth.
During peak operating periods the system generates 71% of the business’s operating needs, and 100% during off-peak hours. They also switched their lighting systems to motion-sensor LED to reduce electricity usage, are transitioning their vehicle fleet from diesel to hybrid and fully electric vehicles, reduced waste by going paperless and exploring innovations to extend product durability like their GraphTEC™ range of safety work boots.
“As an organisation, we think it is important to recognise the impact we have on the communities and environments where we operate. We want to ensure we give back to those communities and protect both the local and global environment. Accordingly, where we couldn’t eliminate emissions for our vehicle fleet, air travel, water, energy, and freight, we invested in carefully selected projects which offset our carbon emissions.”
Steel Blue currently operates and manufactures Steel Blue Boots from facilities in Western Australia and Indonesia. As such, they invest in carbon emissions offset projects based in those locations; giving back to the communities where they work.
In Western Australia, the company has invested in the Gold Rated Australian Native Reforestation Yarra Yarra Biodiversity Corridor, which is a native reforestation project aiming to remove existing carbon from the atmosphere today and recreate a healthy landscape that has suffered decades of degradation and habitat loss. The project was established on degraded, semi-arid agricultural land, with the goal of returning the environment to its origins.
In Indonesia, Steel Blue has invested in the Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve Project, which focuses on community development by engaging with local communities to improve their food security, health care, education, and job opportunities. The project also focuses on biodiversity conservation, with the protection of over 100,000 endangered Borneo Orangutans.
“It’s as simple as the adage ‘leave the campsite better than you found it’. As a company, we apply that idea to our bases of operation and offset carbon emissions via projects in those areas,” said Mr. Johnson.
“We plan to continue investing in sustainability projects into the future as we role model being a good corporate citizen and a contributing member in the communities where we work. Achieving net zero and helping fight climate change is a top priority for our business. It is an honour to have our efforts recognised through the Climate Active Certification.”
Click through for full details on Steel Blue’s In Our Stride initiative and Big Five Goals, partners and achievements, or visit the individual pillars below.
