SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
Magazine
Number 14_November 2013
| P02 CIRSEE, THE FOCAL POINT FOR INNOVATION AT SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT | P08 INTERVIEW
WITH JEAN-LOUIS CHAUSSADE | P22 HOW AQUASSISTANCE IS INVOLVING THE GROUP’S EMPLOYEES |
ENERGY
EFFICIENCY,
A MAJOR
CHALLENGE_P12
PROTECTING
BIODIVERSITY
A CLEAR PRIORITY
FOR SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
“WE SYSTEMATICALLY TAKE BIODIVERSITY
INTO ACCOUNT AND INCORPORATE IT
AS AN ADDED AND DIFFERENTIATING VALUE
FOR OUR SERVICES AND ACTIVITIES.”
INTERVIEW WITH FRÉDÉRIQUE RAOULT_P24
SUPPLEMENT
4 PAGES ON SITA
IN NORTHERN
EUROPE
02
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_PORTFOLIO
01_CIRSEE, which operates from
two sites in the Paris area, currently
includes SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
four Expert Units. It is home to
almost 130 researchers, experts
and engineers in the water and
waste businesses.
01_
02_
02_Researchers at the Analysis &
Health Unit, one of CIRSEE’s four
Expert Units, develop new analytical
methods for identifying the pollutants
of the future, and there by improve
the way in which the related risks
are assessed.
More than 700
technical assistance assignments carried out
by CIRSEE teams in 70 countries every year.
03_
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
PORTFOLIO_
03
CIRSEE
THE GROUP’S
INNOVATIONS
INCUBATOR
Set up in 1981, CIRSEE (the ‘Centre
International de Recherche sur l’Eau
et l’Environnement’ or International
Water and Environment Research
Centre) symbolises the strategic role
played by research and innovation
at SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT in its
two business lines; water and waste.
Solutions for the future are developed
in close collaboration with the
Group’s subsidiaries and are
co-constructed with our customers.
Here is a guided tour.
PHOTO REPORT: GILLES BASSIGNAC / CAPA PICTURES
03_CIRSEE is the focal point of SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT’s innovation system.
Every day, its experts are involved in
perfecting new solutions in the water
and waste sectors for its local authority
and industrial customers.
04
_PORTFOLIO
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
01_ and 02_The Water &
Applications Processes Unit
develops new technologies to
improve the reliability of water
production businesses. Thanks to
MEMlab and SENSORlab, the Group
has two platforms which it uses to
study the ageing process and its
impact on the performance of the
membranes and sensors used in
the different processes.
OPEN
INNOVATION
Available worldwide, CIRSEE
(the International Water and
Environmental Research
Centre) relies on some
80 scientific, industrial
and university partners
internationally. In particular,
this cooperation enables
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT to
gain access to new knowledge
and technologies. CIRSEE
also shares its results with
the scientific and technical
community as a whole, by
publishing articles in specialist
reviews and attending the main
international conferences and
symposia, like those organised
by the International Water
Association (IWA).
01_
02_
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
PORTFOLIO_
More than 2,000
patents registered by the Group, including 31 in 2012.
03_
03_The Discharge Treatment &
Recovery Unit focuses its projects
on new waste water treatment
technologies, in order to recover
the water, energy and nutrients
contained in local authority and
industrial discharges in a
profitable way.
© A. CHEZIÈRE
04_
04_Resulting from a research
programme, NOSE (No Odours
for SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT) is a
service pack that we provide to
operators, which enables them
to identify, describe, treat
and monitor the odours emitted
by facilities into water and waste.
Controlling odour pollution
represents a major challenge
for SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT.
05
06
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_PORTFOLIO
01_ and 02_The Biogas Consulting
service, which resulted from a
research programme, provides
operators with the knowledge they
need to improve the production and
recovery of biogas generated by
the methanisation of sewage sludge
and some types of bio-waste.
02_
01_
03_
CIRSEE HAS FOUR EXPERT UNITS:
Water & Applications
Processes Unit
This unit is responsible
for defining, protecting,
modelling and improving
the management of water
resources, for optimising
the performance and cost
of drinking water production
facilities, and for developing
new technologies, while
controlling the health risks.
Analysis & Health Unit
This unit implements plans
to manage and control health
risks, supports operations
involving new public healthcare
problems, and advises when
new regulations and standards
are being drawn up, while
developing analytical tools for
the Group.
Discharge Treatment
& Recovery Unit
The main aims of this unit are
to develop new technologies
for treating waste water and
sewage sludge, in order
to ensure better control of
environmental risks, while
optimising the operating cost
of treatment processes.
Waste Treatment
& Recovery Unit
The aim of this unit is to design
and implement processes
intended to optimise waste
recovery, whether they involve
the recovery of materials or
energy.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
PORTFOLIO_
No less
07
than 130 researchers, experts and technicians work
in the four Expert Units at two sites: Le Pecq and
Croissy (Yvelines, France): - The Water & Applications
Processes Unit, the Analysis & Health Unit, the
Discharge Treatment & Recovery Unit, and the Waste Treatment & Recovery
Unit. Their daily tasks include performing trials in laboratories or at pilot facilities,
making analyses, transferring acquired knowledge and providing on-site technical
support to the Group’s operating entities.
CIRSEE is the focal point of SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s scientific and technical
network. As the sector benchmark, it has a fundamental leadership role in this
community.
Since its foundation, its most prestigious achievements have included, in
particular, pioneering the transfer of membrane technologies, developed by
the medical sector, to the sector for the treatment of drinking water in 1988.
But CIRSEE has also distinguished itself by perfecting several innovations for
waste water and waste solids. Examples include optimising the recovery chain
for biogas produced by the methanisation of bio-waste and sludge from sewage
treatment plants.
In accordance with the Group’s sustainable development roadmap, CIRSEE
focuses primarily on the protection of natural resources and the uses to which
these resources are put. This includes the development of cutting-edge tools
designed to identify micro-pollutants in drinking water and the study of the ageing
process for polyethylene pipe, as well as everything concerned with the recycling
of waste and encouraging the transition to a circular economy. At the origin of
every research programme is a requirement identified by a Group subsidiary,
which is then forwarded to CIRSEE, following a formal process. Once its relevance
and feasibility have been established, the programme is subject to highly detailed
management in order to ensure that it responds to market demand on an on-going
basis. The ultimate aim is to provide the innovative and effective solutions expected
by customers who share SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s high standards and vision.
03_Researchers at the Waste
Treatment & Recovery Unit work
on defining waste in order to
subsequently design the best
solutions for biological or
thermo-chemical recovery.
08
_INTERVIEW
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
AT THE HEART OF
THE CHALLENGES OF
st
THE 21 CENTURY
The end of SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT shareholders’ agreement(1)
provided an opportunity for Jean-Louis Chaussade to
review the last five years and to define the Group’s major
development areas.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
© TRISTAN PAVIOT / CAPA PICTURES
INTERVIEW_
What does the end of the shareholders’
agreement on 22 July this year mean for
the Group?
First, the end of the agreement means the recognition of SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT as a
mature, stable and balanced Group that is one
of the best in its sector. The Group has withstood a five-year downturn and has demonstrated
the appropriateness of its business model, which
is very different from that of its competitors.
Moreover, we are retaining a majority shareholder, GDF SUEZ, which understands our
businesses and supports our approach, and with
which we hold a large number of fruitful discussions within the framework of our industrial
and commercial cooperation agreement.
The Group’s four strategic priorities are the
new businesses in the water sector, the
recovery of waste, water for industry, and
international development. Can you explain
this choice to us?
These priorities are all directly related to
changes in our society!
For instance, Smartwater enables us to utilise
the intelligence and the speed of information
transmission provided by the 21st Century to
offer our customers additional and higher quality services, and to improve conservation of
water resources(2).
In the waste sector, our main goal is to
increase the percentage of recovered waste
and to promote the circular economy. We are
currently faced with increasing scarcity of some
raw materials. We must therefore be capable
of developing solutions that enable these raw
materials to be extracted from end-of-life products in order to re-use them.
For industrial companies, the sustainable
management of water resources involves
a threefold challenge: it is a question of responsibility, image and duty, given that the
regulations governing them are so stringent.
This means that water for industry(3) is a fastgrowing market, which represents a powerful
access point into countries that are undergoing
rapid industrialisation.
Finally, we will continue our international
development by offering our knowledge and
by adapting to the reality and the specific features of the countries in which we want to work,
using co-constructed models.
What are the keys to
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s success?
They are, first and foremost, the men and
women in our Group, as well as our shareholders and customers.
One of our strengths also lies in our capacity
for change. We decided, very early on, to support the changes in society by questioning our
business models via a dialogue with our stakeholders. Understanding the challenges faced by
our customers, population groups and regions,
in order to adapt what we offer, and our technical, contractual and financial intervention
processes has enabled us, and is still enabling
09
“ONE OF OUR
STRENGTHS LIES
IN OUR GENUINE
ABILITY TO CHANGE
AND TO INNOVATE
FROM A TECHNICAL,
CONTRACTUAL,
AND FINANCIAL
STANDPOINT, WHICH
HAS ENABLED US
TO TAKE THE LEAD
IN MANY FIELDS.”
JEAN-LOUIS CHAUSSADE /
CEO OF SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
us, to offer innovative solutions and to gain a
lead in many areas.
Lastly, another of our major advantages
is our ability to set up and maintain genuine
long-term business partnerships, which once
again involves accepting inter-dependency and
knowing how to maintain the right balance.
What challenges will the Group face
in the future?
The environment is at the heart of development in the 21st Century. This means that the
challenge for SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
is to be a major player in the environmental
sector. Increasing urbanisation and population growth require us all to consume fewer
raw materials. The recovery of waste and the
circular economy are therefore central to current concerns. Meanwhile, in the water sector,
all water usages and requirements need to be
managed in a coordinated manner, given that
in 20 years’ time, 40% of the world’s population
is expected to live in regions affected by water
shortages or drought.
The future will provide us with opportunities
and choices. We will need not only to be daring
and brave, but we must also be humble in the
way that we manage the company.
If we succeed in this challenge, SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT will become the undisputed leader in those fields of excellence that
are water and waste.
(1) Entered into by GDF SUEZ, GBL, CDC, Areva, CNP Assurances and
Sofina when SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT was created in 1998.
(2) See the Report on p. 24 of SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT Magazine, No. 11.
(3) See the Report on p. 24 of SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT Magazine, No. 10.
10
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
_CONTENTS
Magazine
is published by
de SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT.
Tour CB 21
16, place de l’Iris
92040 Paris la Défense, France.
PUBLICATION DIRECTOR:
Jean-Louis Chaussade.
MANAGING EDITORS:
Frédérique Raoult, Nathalie Parinaud-Gouédard.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
Méloé Debiais.
02 PORTFOLIO
CIRSEE, the Group’s innovation incubator
Spotlight on this international research
centre, which is working on solutions for
the future.
08 INTERVIEW
17 TALENTS
Kevan Sproul, SITA UK
Portrait of this HR Director, who is
behind the company’s Employee
Engagement programme.
18 IN BRIEF
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT, at the heart
of the challenges of the 21st Century
Jean-Louis Chaussade discusses
the outlook for the Group.
18
20
11 TALENTS
Eric Fievez, Degrémont
Meeting with an energy efficiency
specialist in the water treatment business.
12 CHALLENGES
Energy efficiency, a major challenge
Anne-Marie Fouchet, Energy
Product Line Manager at SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT, and Leena Srivastava,
Vice-Rector of the Teri University in India,
discuss the subject.
16 INNOVATIONS
Review of news about
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT.
In France
Worldwide
22 SOLIDARITY INITIATIVES
Aquassistance, the Group’s
commitment to social solidarity
How SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
employees are all involved in their
voluntary organisation.
24 SPECIAL REPORT
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
commits to biodiversity
Since its creation, the Group has made
protecting and preserving biodiversity
a priority.
34 INNOVATIONS
A project in Poland,
innovative in three ways
Focus on the future recovery unit
in Poznan.
CIT’EASETM, the dashboard
for local authorities
Spotlight on this smart, interactive
regional management tool.
35 TALENTS
Sara Dadou, SEAAL
Career path of a young woman who
is always there for her customers
ISSN NUMBER:
2108-3762.
COVER:
© PHILIPPE DUREUIL
DESIGN:
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Tel: 01 53 32 56 29.
CONTRIBUTORS:
Nelly Buffon, Alexis Charles, Emmanuelle Gautier,
Pauline Mallat, François Nemer, Matthieu Perotin,
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de Vivies.
DELEGATED EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:
Hélène Odoux.
COORDINATION:
Myriam Bendriss, Camille Fauconnier.
THE FOLLOWING WERE INVOLVED IN THIS ISSUE:
Jeremy Alonso, Hugues d’Antin, Adel Babou,
Anne Couderc, Anthony Durston, Mathilde
Guery, Éléonore de Larboust, Élodie Marchand,
Délia Moulin, Abderrazak Moussadek, Dominique
Ogeron, Hélène Parent, Anne-Laure Paté,
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TRANSLATION:
RR Donnelley.
PRODUCTION MANAGER:
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HEAD OF PRODUCTION:
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PRINTED BY:
SIRA
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Tel: 01 34 18 62 00.
This document is printed
on PEFC paper. 10-31-1342.
36 INNOVATIONS
Incentive-based pricing
Spotlight on a more responsible way of
sorting waste in France with SITA.
37 MILESTONES
On the web, look at the trends and
read about a few meetings.
© WILLIAM DANIELS
24
38 PERSPECTIVES
“Our water and waste treatment solutions enable us to limit
the impact of human activities on natural environments.
Improving the quality of these treatment processes therefore
contributes to protecting biodiversity.”
Printed on paper from sustainably managed
forests, by an Imprim’Vert certified printer.
Please send us any comments you may have,
in writing, to: editing@suez-env.com
Brigitte Kahane, founder
of the EcoDesign Observatory
This specialist reviews a concept,
where usefulness, responsibility
and sustainability are linked.
YOU CAN FIND US AT:
WEB
w www.suez-environnement.fr
EMAG
w www.emag.
TV
w www.suez-environnement.tv
suez-environnement.com/
YOUTUBE w www.youtube.com/
w As you read the magazine, flash the codes with your
flash code reader to view the videos or websites
relating to the topic (cost of a mobile Internet connection).
user/suezenvironnement
TWITTER w twitter.com/suezenv
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
TALENTS_
11
ERIC FIEVEZ HAS BEEN HEAD OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY
AT DEGRÉMONT SINCE 2010. He is passionate about
this job, the profile of which he designed, which he also
did for the two previous jobs that he has held since joining
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT in 2006.
Eric Fievez reports to the Scientific, Technical and Innovation
Department, and currently plays an increasingly cross-divisional
role in order to spread energy saving culture within the Group.
And it’s working! “The number of collaborative programmes involving innovation in this area is increasing, mindsets are changing,
and the message is beginning to get through”, Eric Fievez is happy
to announce.
Innovation is well and truly a mantra for Eric, who trained as
an electrical and mechanical engineer, and almost apologises
for “not having more experience in water treatment techniques”.
Eric was identified by a head-hunter when working at Alstom,
and joined Degrémont in 2006, at a time when large desalination
plants incorporating increasingly complex automated processes
were being built. Eric Fievez was one step ahead of the competition, and was responsible for the development of computerised
plant simulators. These simulators programme and check all
the automated systems before they come on stream. This solution, which has already been adopted for major international
desalination projects, will be fitted in the Group’s future large
water treatment plants.
“Developing processes and equipment that consume the
smallest possible amount of power, coordinating initiatives with
international correspondents, working on existing offers and on
research programmes with other Group entities or subsidiaries,
and promoting the range of innovative energy solutions to local and
government authorities, etc. Every day is different, with a full diary
and no risk of resting on my laurels”, he admits with a smile.
What about the future? Eric is confident and optimistic. As he
explains: “I am convinced that the outlook for energy efficiency and
green innovation is very positive. I am also convinced that treatment
plants will soon be smart, cabled and… green.”
ERIC FIEVEZ / HEAD OF ENERGY
EFFICIENCY AT DEGRÉMONT
“ENERGY EFFICIENCY IS
A CHAIN ALL OF WHOSE LINKS
YOU NEED TO CONTROL.”
Degrémont: at the forefront
of energy efficiency
— To deal with rising energy costs and decreasing energy
resources, while providing answers to regulatory changes,
Degrémont has developed a full range of solutions for
improving energy efficiency in water treatment businesses
(producing drinking water, desalinating seawater and
treating waste water) based on its capacity for innovation
and its engineering expertise.
© A.DETIENNE / CAPA PICTURES
To find out more:
w go to the Interactive 3D Guide at
www.degremont.com/efficacite-energetique
_CHALLENGES
01_
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
© XAVIER SCHWEBEL
12
02_
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT,
ADVOCATING
THE SENSIBLE USE OF
ENERGY IN THE WATER
AND WASTE SECTORS
In the water and waste businesses, like everywhere else, energy savings are increasingly
becoming a priority. If you need convincing, you only need to understand that energy
expenditure amounts to between 10 and 50% of plant operating costs.
Regulatory pressure, regional considerations, and the outlook for the future Anne-Marie
Fouchet, Energy Product Line Manager at SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s Innovation Department,
and Leena Srivastava, Vice-Rector of the Teri University in New Delhi, India, and a former
member of the SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT Foresight Advisory Council (FAC), set out the major
challenges posed by energy efficiency.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
© DR
© XX
CHALLENGES_
13
“WE ARE COMMITTED
TO MEETING REGIONS’
LONG-TERM ENERGY
REQUIREMENTS BY
MAKING FULL USE OF
THE POTENTIAL OF THEIR
WATER AND WASTE.”
ANNE-MARIE FOUCHET /
ENERGY PRODUCT LINE MANAGER AT
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’S INNOVATION DEPARTMENT
03_
© BUSINESS ROLL AGENCY
What is energy efficiency (EE)?
Anne-Marie Fouchet: I n S U E Z
ENVIRONNEMENT’s businesses, this
concept covers all the initiatives implemented
to reduce the energy consumption of water
and waste treatment processes and facilities,
as well as to generate power from water and
waste. Avoiding water leaks and taking action
to reduce the amount of waste generated are
the first steps in a commitment to energy
performance. However, the most innovative
solutions are currently focused on two other
topics: first, reducing energy consumption
and the environmental impact of that consumption, and second, developing local power
generation solutions.
02_The Haworth drinking water
plant in the United States, run by
United Water, has implemented a
dual approach to lower its energy
consumption costs: the continuous
improvement of the energy
consumption for each m3 of water
produced and the management of its
operations to benefit from a cheaper
per kwh price.
04_
03_Degrés Bleus is an innovative
and environmentally friendly
solution for providing heating or air
conditioning to buildings, thanks
to a system that is connected to
the sanitation network, in order
to recover heat. Here in LevalloisPerret, the first local authority to
have adopted Degrés Bleus, the
solution provides heating for the
pools at the aquatic centre.
In what way is this a fundamental
challenge for communities?
Leena Srivastava: The need for energy
efficiency and demand management is,
undoubtedly, an imperative that is universally
applicable. However, the models for service
provisioning vary significantly across countries
and cities and the intervention outcomes
can be expected to be different. Creating an
awareness on the imperative to save resources,
the economic and financial costs and benefits
associated with them and the net cost allocation
structures that can be effected would all lead
to a smoother transition to, and acceptance of,
alternative contractual models with all stakeholders – government, regulators, customers
and civil society. Transparency and trust building would hold the key.
w
© DEGRÉMONT
© DR
01_ReEnergy, the SITA News
incineration and waste-to-energy
recovery plant, located at Rotterdam
in the Netherlands, provides heating
to nearby greenhouses, representing
a saving of about 3.5 million m3 of
natural gas.
04_Degrémont has launched
a website dedicated to energy
efficiency in water treatment
businesses. It explains all the
solutions offered by the subsidiary.
w www.degremont.com/efficaciteenergetique
AQUALOGY:
A 360° APPROACH
TO ENERGY
EFFICIENCY
Aqualogy, a SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT entity
dedicated to technology services for water
resources management and hydraulic
infrastructure, has launched an innovative
solution for operators of facilities involving
the large water cycle, industry and the
agricultural sector. The solution consists of
three areas: energy audits (over 500 audits
have been carried out in various countries
since 2009, and have resulted in corrective
measures equivalent to energy savings
of €5.6 million); a comprehensive energy
management solution (remote metering
and support with the purchase management
process) based on a customisable software
package developed in-house; a support
service for the implementation of renewable
energy projects that includes innovative
solutions in the micro-turbine sector.
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_CHALLENGES
© DR
14
“GIVEN THEIR MANAGEMENT
SKILLS AND THEIR ABILITY TO
ACCESS FINANCIAL RESOURCES,
LARGE COMPANIES LIKE
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT HAVE A
MAJOR RESPONSIBILITY.”
LEENA SRIVASTAVA /
VICE-RECTOR OF THE TERI UNIVERSITY
IN NEW DELHI, INDIA, AND A FORMER MEMBER
OF THE SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT FORESIGHT
ADVISORY COUNCIL (FAC)
01_
01_SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
installed a highly innovative solar
panel system, the Solar Active
System, at the Aquaviva waste
water treatment plant. It generates
free and environmentally friendly
heat and power, at the same time.
This innovation allows to reduce
the energy consumption bill of the
station.
02_In Hong-Kong, SITA Waste
Services provides purified biogas
from its waste storage centre, to the
gas production plant of the city via a
19 km long pipeline.
w
What is the weighting for regulatory
pressure when taking energy efficiency
into account is concerned?
A.-M. F.: Many drivers are used to promote
energy efficiency. In France, for instance, the
TGAP(1), which applies particularly to waste
incineration companies and landfill facilities,
operates on a sliding scale depending on the
facilities’ energy performance. As of 2014,
the European Energy Efficiency Directive
will require energy audits to be carried out on
companies with more than 250 employees that
generate annual revenues in excess of €50 million. Local authorities, which are also seeking
effective solutions, are required to take into
account the environmental impact of their
development projects by using tools such as
PLUs (Plans Locaux d’Urbanisme or Rural
Development Plans) and SCOTs (comprehensive regional development schemes).
L. S.: Regardless of whether their aim is to
protect resources, fight pollution, or encourage energy savings, changes in the regulations
usually result in a tightening of performance criteria and of their application conditions at a local
level. The result is very often an increase in the
price charged for services provided. Companies
must take into account the impact of these kinds
of measures on end-customers, especially in
emerging countries. The design of cross-subsidy
mechanisms or the creation of partnerships with
players in the renewable energy sector are some
of the avenues that maybe considered.
What underpins SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
specific knowledge?
A.-M. F.: As a company that builds plant and
equipment, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT is
naturally concerned with optimising the performance of its plant and equipment, starting
at the design stage. This concern is illustrated
by the development of the ‘Design to Energy’
range, which aggregates cost saving processes.
These initiatives feed on feedback from the
teams responsible for building and operating the
facilities and information returns from the field
also make it easier to include an efficiency component right from starting point for the projects.
Our very broad geographical operating range
also provides us with a second advantage. In
fact, opportunities in the energy efficiency
field primarily depend on local environments and on the degree to which electricity markets have been deregulated. SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT, which operates in the
United Kingdom, Spain and the United States,
among other countries, has been able to test
and validate operating methods that are appropriate for different environments.
Finally, we are running ambitious R&D
programmes with recognised partners, such as
the biogas recovery programme for instance,
via the BIOVALSAN project, aimed at feeding
the biogas produced by waste water treatment
plants into the network; and the BioGNVAL
project, for the production and supply of liquefied bio-methane fuel.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
CHALLENGES_
15
A CLOSE LOOK AT SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’S SOLUTIONS
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT offers different structured solutions in three stages:
02_
Taking action by implementing technological
solutions
w ‘Design to Energy’ to use more energyefficient processes (Thermylis™ solutions,
Dehydris™ Twist Evaporis™, Biovalix, etc.).
w ‘Smart Energy’ to measure, monitor and
manage processes and infrastructure
(Aquacalc, Sevaqua, Watt Warning™,
Greenbass, and Smart Metering solutions, etc.).
w ‘Energy Business’ to optimise energy
purchase and sale prices (Aqualogy, SITA
Négoce, and SITA Power solutions etc.).
w ‘Green Energy’ to generate power from a
region’s water and waste (production of biogas,
hydraulic micro-turbines, CHP, wood, and
recovered fuels, etc.).
w ‘Zero CO2’ to control and manage the
environmental impact (WEEE recovery, and
fossil fuel substitutes, etc.).
Ensuring the long-term energy performance
of your plant and equipment
w Integrated Energy Management, ISO 50.001
certification WIKTI™ energy, etc.).
© DR
© BRUNO TOUSSAINT / GDF SUEZ
Understanding your energy problems, your
goals and your situation so as to draw up an
action plan together
w Energy audits of plant and equipment
(electrical, thermal, comprehensive, and
energy supply, etc.), ‘GreenCubes’ audits
(overall performance of wastewater treatment
plants), and regional energy assessments
(via EXPLICIT, a SAFEGE subsidiary).
Should companies like
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT pursue
energy efficiency? How?
L. S.: Given their management skills and
their ability to access financial resources, large
companies like SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
have a major responsibility. Assuming this
responsibility implies making ongoing efforts to
pursue innovation. Obviously, this is the case
for technologies and processes. However, it is
also important to explore alternative commercial models, which are probably based on
supplying services in a more decentralised way
in order to reduce the net energy demand. To
achieve this aim, I believe that collaborating
with university and research organisations, and
with representatives of civil society is fundamental, as is being actively involved in political
and regulatory processes.
A.-M. F.: Absolutely! In our case, after developing highly targeted solutions, we work on
putting them together in the form of supplies of
services. The aim: to improve our response to
our customers’ requirements. For example, we
offer our public partners solutions that combine
an energy & climate assessment with operational suggestions that cover both energy efficiency
and renewable energies, as well as a strategic
multi-network (water, sanitation and energy)
assessment. Furthermore, we are increasingly
looking at equipment choices on the basis of
the “cost of ownership”, i.e. by weighting the
purchase price of machines using the costs relating to their maintenance and energy supply,
throughout their life-cycle. By offering its expertise in this way, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
is preparing for its plant and equipment to be
incorporated into the smart regional electrical
grid of the future!
(1) General tax on polluting activities.
w Watch the video on innovations
relating to energy efficiency.
> or on http://www.suez-environnement.com/our-innovations
5 600 GWh
this is the annual amount of renewable
energy produced in plants operated by
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT. This represents
150% of the power generated by France’s
installed solar panel capacity in 2011.
—
50%
this is the percentage of a local authority’s
or company’s energy consumption that the
treatment of water and waste can represent.
16
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_INNOVATIONS
THE POZNAN RECOVERY UNIT
A PROJECT IN POLAND
THAT IS INNOVATIVE IN THREE WAYS
© CAMILLE MOIRENC / HEMIS / CORBIS
ON 8 APRIL THIS YEAR, THE SIGNING OF A PUBLICPRIVATE PARTNERSHIP (PPP) AGREEMENT BETWEEN
THE CITY OF POZNAN AND SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
marked Poland’s entry into a new era.
Indeed, at a time when there is only one incineration plant in the
country (with a capacity of 60,000 tonnes), both parties undertook
to design, build, finance, operate and maintain a new energy recovery unit with the capacity to handle 210,000 tonnes of waste per
year. The first stage in an investment policy aimed at promoting
alternatives to storage in accordance with the obligations imposed
by the European Union - this project is different in terms of its
concept, which is innovative in three ways. The first innovation is
from a contractual standpoint, since the public-private partnership
(PPP) model had not been widely implemented in Poland. “To set up
the project, Poznan was trying to obtain funding from the EU Cohesion
Fund(1). A PPP appeared to be the best way to attract this subsidy,
to the extent that the private concession holder secures 100% of
the financing when the agreement enters into effect, while enabling
the European Union Cohesion Fund to intervene at a later date in the
form of a subsidy”, Thierry Fossé, Corporate & Projects Finance
Director, explains.
The second innovation lies in the choice of financing terms. The
structure of the project and the construction of the recovery unit,
which amount to €220 million, will be financed by the shareholders
in SITA Zielona Energia, who will contribute 20% (see box), in partnership with a consortium of three Polish banks, which will provide
80% of the financing. “These banks will provide the long-term loan to
finance the project”, adds Thierry Fossé. “The loan will be repaid solely
from the cash flow generated by the project, while the banks will bear
all the risk in the event of a shortfall in income.” This recovery unit
will also be an innovative facility from a technical standpoint.
For the first time in Poland, it will combine reclaiming waste and
recovering energy. Construction of the plant will begin in mid-2014.
“Poznan’s success is based on combining the experience that
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT has acquired in PFIs (Private Finance
Initiatives, similar to PPPs) which have already, since then, been implemented in the United Kingdom, with the drive of SITA Polska’s teams,
the quality and commitment of all the members of the Project Team
that developed all the parts of the offer, and with the high degree of
thoroughness displayed by the City’s services”, Jean Erkes, Senior
Vice President Waste Projects sums up, “and it is a good example of
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s ability to offer its customers innovative
solutions.” This global expertise will contribute to making this project a model that is likely to be followed by several other Polish cities.
(1) The Cohesion Fund is one of the European Union’s regional policy instruments and
it aims to help Member States to catch up from an economic and social standpoint, and
to stabilise their economies.
SPOTLIGHT ON LOCAL OPERATORS
The City of Poznan selected the tender from SITA Zielona Energia, a joint-venture
set up by SITA Polska and Marguerite Waste Polska, a subsidiary of the Marguerite
investment fund. Sponsored by six benchmark European financial institutions,
(including the European Investment Bank), the fund was set up in order to invest
in large infrastructure projects in the energy and transport sectors. The Poznan
agreement will generate revenues of almost €850 million for SITA Zielona Energia
over an operating period of 25 years.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
TALENTS_
17
IN 2003, KEVAN SPROUL JOINED SITA UK. Ten years on,
he is more motivated than ever: “I love my job,” he says, “because
I work in a dynamic organisation, where progress is made every day.”
Before joining the Group, Kevan had had a plethora of enriching experiences spanning some 18 years, in areas as diverse
as hospitality, leisure and advertising.
After a full and varied career, Kevan Sproul is now Director of
Human Resources at SITA UK.
Ready to rise to new challenges, he and his team are the
brains behind Employee Engagement, an innovative HR management programme. The programme aims to strengthen the
professional engagement of employees at a time when the company is undergoing a major transformation in order to meet the
needs of the market, which is now focused on waste recovery.
“When the economy is going through a period of major turbulence,
and when competition is fierce, employee engagement is one of
the keys to a company’s success. An employee’s commitment has
a direct impact on the quality of customer service, and this affects
the company’s performance. Insofar as the manager spends every
day with their team, supervising the development and fulfilment of
their staff, it is fundamental to optimise the relationship potential
and make the most of everyone’s skills.”
But how does he achieve employee engagement? First of all,
by listening to them. Then, by taking into account their suggestions and proposals. With this in mind, as part of the Employee
Engagement programme, two surveys were conducted in
2011 and 2013 to find out what members of the various teams
thought of their managers, and their suggestions for ways
to improve their work efficiency. “For instance, a simple hello
from the manager in the morning can change a group’s dynamic,
strengthen the bonds between its members and help improve its
results,” says Kevan Sproul. This is essential because at SITA UK,
everyone plays a role in waste recovery.
The promotion of dialogue and compromise between managers and their teams seems to have had good results. Two years
after the programme was launched, Kevan Sproul notes that
“the concepts of involvement and commitment are now part of the
everyday language and culture of SITA UK.” With conviction, he
adds: “As a company, in these respects, the possibilities that exist
today are not what they were ten years ago. We are moving in the
right direction. It’s really exciting!”
KEVAN SPROUL / DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES AT SITA UK
© G.BLONSKY / CAPA PICTURES
“EMPLOYEES WHO FEEL INVOLVED
DO THINGS BECAUSE THEY
WANT TO DO THEM, NOT BECAUSE
THEY HAVE TO DO THEM.”
Employee Engagement:
the key to the company’s success
— Employee Engagement is at the heart of the SITA UK
corporate project. Focused on improving the relationship
between managers and their teams, the programme
was rolled out in two phases. A survey conducted in
2011, entitled U Say, was first used to measure the
commitment of all employees, and to find out how they
viewed the relationship with their manager. In the following
six months, a feedback session brought together heads
of department and their teams. These sessions resulted
in the signing of a “Commitment Charter”. To date,
500 charters have been signed.
18
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
News from
France…
2013-2014 INITIATIVES PRIZES
SUPPORTING INNOVATIVE
PROJECTS IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES
The FONDS SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
INITIATIVES and the Institut de France
launched the 2013-2014 edition of the Initiatives
Prizes, which reward the most innovative solutions providing access to water, sanitation and
waste management. Candidates can submit
their applications until 15th December 2013 at
www. prix-initiatives.com, in the ‘Access to
Services’ category for non-profit organisations
and in the ‘Social Entrepreneurship’ category
for social enterprises. A sum of €50,000 is available for each prize.
UP
PUBLICATION OF THE
NEW ‘CAHIER DE L’EAU’
CREATED WITH
LUC FERRY
Luc Ferry, the writer and
former French Minister
for Youth, State Education
and Research, chaired the
second Expert’s Forum of
the ‘New Ideas about Water’
programme, launched
by Lyonnaise des Eaux at
which a new notebook
entitled ‘Water Science and
Technologies – Innovating to
Promote Sustainable Water
Management’ was created.
The aim is to change our
outlook, and break the mould
for water!
w www.lyonnaise-des-eaux.com
> Media Section
© LASSOURIS ARNAUD / GDF SUEZ
© ALEXIS CHOPARD / VISIGO
c
AQUITAINE
ANGLET AND BIARRITZ SELECT
LYONNAISE DES EAUX
The ‘Côte Basque Adour Urban District’ has renewed
Lyonnaise des Eaux’s sanitation contract for the Anglet and
Biarritz municipalities, for a 10-year period, for an amount of
€40.5 million.
The agreement covers the collection of waste water from
both towns and the treatment of Biarritz’ s waste water. It will
take effect on 1 January 2014, and, in particular, provides for
part of the payment to be indexed against performance criteria. The local authorities will have real-time access to the
operating data via an extranet platform.
RHÔNE-ALPES
DEGRÉMONT
SITA HAS RENEWED ITS CONTRACT
WITH SAINT-ÉTIENNE MÉTROPOLE
OPERINSTANT™, THE MOBILE
MANAGEMENT APPLICATION
In June 2013, ‘Saint-Étienne Métropole’ renewed its trust in SITA for the collection
of household and similar waste for part of its area, i.e. 78,000 residents. This six-year
contract represents revenues of €13 million.
In addition to its expertise and experience, SITA was chosen for its management
solutions which offer real-time management of the service, complemented by a full
communication system for its users and a plan to improve selective waste collection.
SITA is positioning itself as a genuine local business partner that employs 150 people,
including 32 people in Saint-Étienne Métropole’s waste collection service.
Thanks to Degrémont’s OPERINSTANT™
application, operators can now manage water
treatment plants remotely and in real time.
The application, which is available on smart
phones and tablets, simplifies the day-to-day
inspection, maintenance and operating
processes of the plant. The app has been
designed to work with all inspection methods
and is simple and easy to use!
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
IN BRIEF_
745 European and
US listed companies
have been analysed and compared by the Vigeo
rating agency as part of its study on transparency
and integrity in their responsible lobbying practices.
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT ranks among the 10 best
companies.
And, to strengthen its policy of transparency and integrity
to an even greater degree, the Group adopted an internal
corporate conduct code in early 2013, which includes eight
key commitments.
Presenting its financial results
for Q3 2013 on 24th October,
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT posted
solid operating performance
with steady improvements made
since the start of the year thanks
to optimised asset management,
commercial momentum and the
positive effects of the Compass
productivity plan. The Group
also recorded growth in Q3, with
revenues up by 0,2 %.
19
La Maison pour Rebondir
in figures
2012
year of creation when SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
set up the first “Maison pour Rebondir”, a
professional reinsertion organisation, in an
underprivileged district in Bordeaux.
30
jobs for the future within
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT following the
agreement signed at the Maison pour Rebondir
on 17 October this year.
384
LYONNAISE DES EAUX
FIRST WATER
GOVERNANCE CHARTER
SIGNED IN ALSACE
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
IS JOINING THE CLUB FOR
“COMPANIES THAT
SUPPORT FOOD BANKS”
The Group has signed a partnership agreement with the French Food Bank Association
for a period of three years. The agreement
focuses on three areas: socially inclusive
sponsorship, which will involve the Group’s
employees during the National Food Bank
Collection Campaign on 29 and 30 November
2013; skills sponsorship, in order to support
local initiatives between Group entities and
voluntary organisations, and financial sponsorship and to contribute to the purchase,
renewal, or upgrading of equipment, in keeping with the aim of avoiding waste.
INNOVATIVE RECOVERY
TWO NEW FACILITIES
FOR SITA
In the Sarthe Department, SITA’s new-generation waste sorting centre was opened in
Valor Pôle 72, the regional eco-cluster at
Le Mans in September in the presence of
Stéphane Le Foll, the French Minister for
Agriculture and Food. The facility already
recover 16,000 tonnes of sorted waste every
year from nine local authorities, including
Le Mans Métropole. It will be able to process
up to 45,000 tonnes per year.
In the Lyon Urban Area, SITA and Cofely
Services have opened Ambrea, the biomass
heating plant that feeds the Rillieux-la-Pape.
The eight-year operating contract will reduce
the District’s energy bill by 5% and reduce
CO2 discharges by 80%. 90% of the sustainable
heat will be produced from renewable energy
and from energy reclaimed by the household
waste energy recovery unit operated by Valorly,
a SITA subsidiary.
w Discover the film about
the opening of Valor Pôle 72
> or on www.suez-environnement.tv / Waste section
56
have received individual support, of whom
52 are currently in employment, or on work &
study training programmes.
61
have received training on how to set up a
business, 40 of whom are currently setting up
their business, while 12 have set up a business,
and six have found paid employment.
© LAURENT PASCAL / ABACAPRESS
SOLIDARITY
© GAUTIER PALLANCHER
To mark Biobernai, the organic farming
trade show which is held in Alsace in
September, the Pays de Sainte Odile
Inter-District Council has signed a local
water governance charter. This charter
specifically provides for the sharing of
technical information in real-time
between Lyonnaise des Eaux and the
local authority. This is a valuable tool for
making decisions relating to water
services and for raising users’
awareness of the efforts made to obtain
high-quality water.
people have been made aware of the Group’s
businesses.
DEGRÉMONT INDUSTRY
A NEW PLANT HAS BEEN
CONSTRUCTED BY ONDEO IS
IN PICARDY
Last September, Ondeo IS, a Degrémont
Industry, opened a new plant to treat the residual waste water generated by Dow Water &
Process Solutions in Chauny, in the Aisne
region, in the presence of a large number of
elected officials and representatives of the
Seine-Normandie Water Agency.
As an international operator in the chemicals
and water sector, Dow has chosen Degrémont
Industry’s active charcoal filtration technology,
in order to eliminate organohalogen compounds (1) before they are discharged into the
River Oise.
(1) Organohalogen compounds are used as conservation agents in
cosmetics. They are known as halogenated conservation agents
because their molecules contain chlorine, iodine or bromine.
20
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
… and the world
INDIA
TWO CONTRACTS FOR
IMPROVING WATER
SUPPLY NETWORKS
In October, SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT was
awarded two contracts
amounting to €20 million in
total. The City of Bangalore, the
Group and SPML, its Indian
partner, signed an eight-year
contract with the Bangalore
Water & Sewerage Board, the
authority responsible for water
and sanitation. The aim is to
improve the networks that
supply 400,000 residents, and
to increase their yield from
58% to 84%.
The City of Pimpri-Chinchwad,
in Western India, has selected
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
helium technology to detect
and repair leaks in its network.
UP
INCREASED PRESENCE
IN THE CHINESE WASTE
SECTOR
SITA Waste Services has been
awarded two new contracts in
Hong Kong.
The first contract involves
operating the North Lantau
transfer plant for a period
of 10 years and €35 million
in revenues. The second
contract, which was awarded
to SITA Waste Services
and ATAL Environmental
Engineering, its partner
company, involves the
transportation of dehydrated
sludge by sea on a 50-50
basis for a period of 10 years
and €75 million in revenues.
The Group is therefore
strengthening its position
as the market leader in the
Chinese waste management
sector, and is bringing a new
and innovative transport
solution using custommade vessels with hybrid
engines. In Macao, SITA Waste
Services also renewed its
waste collection and cleaning
services contract for a
ten-year period and
€200 million in revenues.
©OLIVIER DOULIERY / ABACAPRESS
© HAUTEMANIERE NOEL / GDF SUEZ
c
UNITED STATES
PROTECTING NEW ORLEANS
AGAINST FLOODS
Degrémont is set to supply 17 Climber® mechanical bar
screens as part of the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Permanent
Canal Closures and Pumps (PCCP) project. Following Hurricane
Katrina in 2005, permanent facilities have been built to contain
the canal waters and drain them using pumps.
The Degrémont bar screens will protect the project’s three pumping stations, which will be commissioned in 2017.
EUROPEAN UNION
REFORMS TO THE PUBLIC
PROCUREMENT PROCESS:
NEW OPPORTUNITIES
The adoption of new rules for the award of public contracts
and for entering into concession agreements represents a
major challenge for the Group as the preferred partner for local
authorities.
Although further harmonisation of the rules for concession
agreements is still possible, this reform should nonetheless
enable the Group to rely to a greater extent on its know-how, its
capacity for innovation and the quality of its offers in order to win
new contracts in Europe.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
IN BRIEF_
21
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
350 million €/year
100/100
it is the amount of the contract awarded to Agbar, Spain.
In addition to water distribution, the Barcelona Metropolitan
Area has also entrusted the subsidiary with the management of
sanitation in its 24 municipalities.
The Area and Agbar have entered into a joint venture called
Aigües de Barcelona, Empresa Metropolitana de Gestió del
Cicle Integral de l’Aigua, S.A.. This public-private partnership,
with a share of 85% for Agbar and 15% for the local authority,
has been agreed for 35 years. With its 940 employees, Aigües de
Barcelona will supply three million inhabitants with water.
for the development of
human capital
91/100
for protecting biodiversity
95/100
© VISIGO
for its environmental policy
AUSTRALIA
1st CONTRACT FOR DEGRÉMONT INDUSTRY
WITH SMARTRACK™ TECHNOLOGY
In July 2013, Degrémont Industry signed a contract to design,
build and commission an innovative industrial discharge filtration system with Thalès Australia, which will generate revenues of AUD 2.8 million (€1.95 million).
SmartRack™, the product of five patents, is a universal rack
that enables inter-changeability of ultra-filtration modules.
The system will be installed at the Mulwala plant in New South
Wales and will have a capacity of 1,000m3 per day.
UNITED KINGDOM
NEW CONTRACT FOR SITA
In July, SITA UK was awarded a €62 million contract to manage
residual household waste in the county of Northamptonshire.
This seven-year contract is to manage up to 79,000 tonnes
per year.
The waste will initially be stored from 2015 it will be turned into
fuel (a replacement for coal) at a new SITA UK plant in Rugby,
England.
RECYCLING
WORLDWIDE DEPLOYMENT
OF NEW AUTOMATED
SYSTEMS
In September, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT and
ZenRobotics, an international leader in robotic recycling, signed a framework agreement
for the deployment of new robotic recycling
and waste sorting systems.
Tested since 2011 by SITA Suomi, the
ZenRobotics Recycler™ (ZRR) recycling system can extract raw materials from construction and demolition (wood, stone and metal)
waste in a safe and extremely efficient way,
boosting sorting rates from 70% to 90%.
BRAZIL
DEGRÉMONT
INDUSTRY HAS BEEN
AWARDED AN OIL
CONTRACT
ONDEO SYSTEMS AND SFR ARE ENTERING
INTO A PARTNERSHIP
© DR
LET’S CONNECT
THE CITY OF TOMORROW
Ondeo Systems, a Lyonnaise des Eaux
subsidiary and the European leader in the
remote metering of fluids, primarily water and
gas, is partnering with SFR Business Team to
develop solutions of the future for cities in
France and abroad. Working together with the
French leader in telecommunications services
will enable the company to develop a “universal”
remote metering system.
This will enable it to offer controlled
management tools to smart cities throughout
the world!
These are the marks that
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
obtained as part of the
Dow Jones Sustainability
Indexes (DJSI) annual rating,
which was published on
12 September this year.
The Group is once again
selected for inclusion in the
Europe and World indices
for 2013/2014. These are
excellent results that make
it the leader in the “Multi
and Water Utilities” category,
ahead of American Water
Works and United Utilities.
UNITED STATES
UNITED WATER
AWARDED IN
MASSACHUSETTS
In October 2013, the waste water treatment
plant in the town of Cohasset (7,500 inhabitants) was nominated The Massachusetts
Water Pollution Control Association’s best small
treatment plant in the state. The site has been
run by United Water since January 2011.
In July 2013, Degrémont
Industry was chosen by Keppel
FELS to design and supply four
water treatment units to
Petrobras, its end-customer.
Degrémont Industry will fit out
two floating oil production platforms with units to eliminate
sulphates, which improve the
recovery of oil, and two salt
water desalination units in
order to reduce the crude oil’s
salinity level.
This augurs well in a country
that will be the world’s sixth
largest oil producer by 2020!
_SOLIDARITY INITIATIVES
© AQUASSISTANCE
22
01_
01_Carine July, one of the
organisation’s volunteers,
went to Africa to carry
out a waste management
appraisal and advisory
assignment. She learned a
great deal from meeting the
local inhabitants.
02_In 2009, Cyclone Aila
devastated South-West
Bangladesh. Aquassistance
sent emergency teams
and equipment to supply
drinking water to the
population.
03_Claude Boucher,
one of the organisation’s
volunteers, performed an
appraisal and technical
assistance assignment
relating to water treatment
in Laos.
04_Aquassistance operates
in a number of African
countries, like Senegal,
where the organisation
is performing a waste
management appraisal
and advisory assignment.
SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT’S
COMMITMENT TO
SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
THE FONDS SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT INTIATIVES SUPPORTS
AQUASSISTANCE, AN INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
ORGANISATION, CREATED BY SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT EMPLOYEES. THE
ORGANISATION INVOLVES HUNDREDS OF VOLUNTEERS EVERY YEAR
WHO ARE ALL (CURRENT OR RETIRED) GROUP EMPLOYEES. THEIR GOAL
IS TO IMPROVE ACCESS FOR THE MOST UNDERPRIVILEGED POPULATION
GROUPS TO DRINKING WATER, SANITATION AND WASTE MANAGEMENT.
IN 1994, RWANDA WAS IN THE GRIP
OF A CIVIL WAR. At the request of General
Management, volunteer employees from
Lyonnaise des Eaux went to the country to provide assistance to the victims. As part of their involvement, the volunteers also contributed to emergency repairs on plants and networks in order to
supply displaced population groups with drinking
water. They were convinced of the effectiveness
and need for this kind of intervention, so decided
02_
to unite and to set up a specialised humanitarian
organisation, Aquassistance, which is open to all
Group employees.
The foundation of Aquassistance marked the
beginning of the Group’s commitment to social
solidarity. The organisation began by working in
the field of drinking water, and then expanded
into the sanitation and the waste management
fields thanks to the involvement of employees
at SITA. “We now get involved every time that
assistance from experts in the water, sanitation
and waste businesses is justified. We make our
human and professional skills available, together
with appropriate material and financial resources”,
says Sylvain Planchon, the Chairman of the
organisation.
© AQUASSISTANCE
AQUASSISTANCE
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
SOLIDARITY INITIATIVES_
MATERIM FOFANA /
CHAIRMAN OF THE ADIME (1)
04_
Over 50 assignments per year
Aquassistance currently has 750 members and
150 volunteers who can be called upon. Seven
permanent employees run the organisation.
The Fonds SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
Initiatives provides funding of €1.1 million per
year to the organisation (i.e. over half its budget).
Thanks to this financial support and to the high
number of volunteer experts, Aquassistance carries
out between 50 and 60 assignments per year throughout the world.
No less than 1,256 days were spent working on
on-site assignments in 2012, in fields as varied as
supplying drinking water, building latrines, storm
water drainage, assistance with collecting and treating waste, and setting up landfills, etc.
© AQUASSISTANCE
03_
© AQUASSISTANCE
“THE RESIDENTS
OF BOTH VILLAGES
WILL HAVE FOUNTAINS
WITH TAPS.”
Materim Fofana is the Chairman
of ADIME, which is involved in
improving living conditions in the
village of Mountan-Kagoro in Mali
where he was born. Materim is
very involved in community life,
and received the rank of Knight
of the National the Order of Merit
from the President of the French
Republic in 2009.
“Both our organisations (2) asked for
Aquassistance’s help with a project
to build a drinking water supply and
sanitation network. The aim was to
help two villages in Mali where our
organisations were set up. In the
village of Mountan-Kagoro, there
are only two drinking water hand
pumps for over 3,000 inhabitants,
and there is only one pump
in the village of Guessébiné,
which has 2,500 inhabitants.
The women must wait a very long
time to get barely a bucket of
water. The queues are long and
distressing. The quality of the water
is poor, and the pumps regularly
break down. The inhabitants of
both villages will have fountains
with taps in 2014 if everything
goes according to plan, thanks to
Aquassistance and many other
partners(3)!”
“The success of our projects is made possible
thanks to the financial support provided by the
Fonds SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT Initiatives
and to the partners that we contact, depending on the
projects. Obviously, it is also made possible thanks to
the commitment of our members! They take part in
preparing and executing projects on a voluntary basis
in their free time, and put their skills at the service
of their convictions”, Sylvain Planchon continues.
When a project is submitted to Aquassistance,
it is reviewed by the central management team
and must be approved by the Board of Directors.
An initial appraisal team is always sent to check
the project, perform a technical assessment, and
prepare funding applications. “Our involvement
cannot be temporary. We seek to make it relevant,
23
CLAIRE GAYRAUD /
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER &
HEAD OF RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT FOR SITA SUD-OUEST
“GETTING INVOLVED
IN SOCIAL SOLIDARITY
PROJECTS IS ALWAYS
VERY ENRICHING.”
As an Aquassistance volunteer,
Claire Gayraud has been
contributing her skills, her drive
and her commitment to the
organisation since 2008.
“I have taken part in a large
number of assignments, including
four in Madagascar, two in Senegal
and three in the Democratic
Republic of Congo. These were
appraisal, and technical and
financial audit assignments, or
waste management feasibility
studies. Being in contact with the
local population is an enriching
experience, especially since this
is shared with other colleagues.
It is also a personal experience.
We have to remain humble and
modest, as Sylvain Planchon
explained during briefings. We need
to forget our personal situation in
order to be completely available to
other people. In this field, knowing
how to adapt is crucial. Every
culture provides its own answers.
We must agree to learn from one
another. As far as I’m concerned, as
soon as one assignment ends, I’m
thinking about heading off on the
next one…”
effective and sustainable. We support local initiatives, partnership and the transfer of skills”, Sylvain
Planchon explains. More than 80 development
assistance projects are currently in progress in
24 countries.
To find out more:
w www.aquassistance.org
(1) ADIME, Association pour le Développement Intégré du village
Mountan et Environnant (Organisation for the Integrated
Development of the Village of Mountan and the Surrounding Area).
(2) ADIME and ACVDG, l’Association Comité Villageoise de
Développement Guessébiné (Village Committee Organisation for
the Development of Guessébiné).
(3) The partners are: ADIME and ACVDG, which have their head
office in Asnières-sur-Seine; Aquassistance; the Seine-Normandie
Nanterre Environmental Agency; COALLIA (Paris); the Abbé Pierre
Foundation (Paris); the Adoma Foundation (Paris); the City of
Asnières sur Seine’ and the two villages in question in Mali.
24
_SPECIAL REPORT
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
P
Decontamination
of water and
air, recreational
areas, and
resources for
the production
of materials,
etc… 24 services
performed by
ecosystems have
been identified.
Source: United Nations. Millennium
Ecosystem Assessment Report published
in 2005.
© WILLIAM DANIELS
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
incorporates the protection of
biodiversity at its sites, as in this
case at its Pecq-Croissy (France)
drinking water production facility,
where it has created a catchment
area to replenish the water table.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
SPECIAL REPORT_
25
BIODIVERSITY:
PROTECTING, RESTORING
AND CREATING
OPPORTUNITIES
FOR THE PAST 20 YEARS, BIODIVERSITY HAS BEEN RECOGNISED AS A
MAJOR CHALLENGE AT GLOBAL LEVEL. TO COMPLY WITH INCREASINGLY
STRINGENT REGULATIONS, ECONOMIC PLAYERS LIKE SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
HAVE BEEN FOR MANY YEARS COMMITTED TO PROTECTING, AND EVEN TO
RESTORING THIS BIODIVERSITY AS PART OF THEIR BUSINESS ACTIVITIES.
26
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_SPECIAL REPORT
© ANTOINE MEYSSONNIER
01_and 02_An increasing proportion
of the Group’s infrastructure is
seeking to integrate its architecture
into the landscape, primarily via
green roofs.
02_
03_
© WILLIAM DANIELS
03_SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
commitment is reflected particularly
in its desire to develop solutions for
promoting biodiversity.
© ANTOINE MEYSSONNIER
01_
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
SPECIAL REPORT_
27
PROTECTING
AND PRESERVING
BIODIVERSITY
ONE OF SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT'S COMMITMENTS
SINCE IT WAS SET UP IN 2008, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT HAS MADE PRESERVING AND
RESTORING BIODIVERSITY ONE OF ITS PRIORITIES. THIS IS REVIEW OF THE STRATEGY
APPLIED AND OF THE PRACTICAL INITIATIVES IMPLEMENTED.
A
full overview of biodiversity could not be provided
just by drawing up an inventory of and describing the living
species which make up a specific eco-system. This is a specific kind of biodiversity. Biodiversity means much more than
this; it is the sum of all the relationships established between
various living creatures, both between one another and with
their environment. It is now obvious that we are currently
seeing a period of intensive destruction that has very worrying
consequences. In fact, for the past 100,000 years, the natural
extinction rate was one species in 1,000 every 1,000 years. The
rate is now 1,000 times faster, according to the report drawn up
by the IUCN (1)! Who is responsible? It is human beings who are
destroying and polluting natural habitats. Even if climate change
also plays a role, we must emphasise that the presence of human
beings remains the most destructive factor, including chemical
pollution due to pesticides and insecticides, over-exploitation of
marine resources, destruction of tropical forests, and the anarchic introduction of species, like cats in New Caledonia, for
instance, which are a real nuisance and have been responsible
for the disappearance of lizards and other animals.
Faced with this alarming assessment, political and business
players are seeking to get involved in order to reconcile the
environment with business and to draw up a genuine Law of
Nature. This desire resulted in the adoption of an international
treaty, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), by almost
200 countries at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.
Since then, it has been complemented by the 2003 Cartagena
Protocol, which focuses on preventing bio-technological risks,
and the 2010 Nagoya Protocol on access to genetic resources.
The Conferences of the Parties to the CBD bring together all
the signatory countries, including France, on a regular basis.
Moreover, France made a tangible commitment, by launching
its first National Biodiversity Strategy in 2004 (see box), which
aims to stop the decline in biodiversity in France.
w
1.8 million species
have been identified to date.
36% are threatened.
Source: IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).
28
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_SPECIAL REPORT
The current destruction
of biodiversity is 50 to
500 times higher than
the natural extinction
rate for species.
FIGHTING TO PRESERVE BIODIVERSITY
IS A STATED GOAL
— Since it was set up, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT has taken
on board the urgent need to take tangible measures and to
make a commitment to preserving biodiversity. In fact, to mark
International Biodiversity Year in 2010, the Group attended the
French Biodiversity Conference, and subscribed to the Second
National Strategy for Biodiversity in France in 2012. “To date,
we have signed the general legislation that identifies the major
goals to achieve in the coming years,” says Frédérique Raoult,
Director of Sustainable Development and Communications.
“Adhering to the National Strategy for Biodiversity has enabled
us to systematically include biodiversity and to incorporate it
as an additional and differentiating factor in our services and
business activities.”
Indeed, as a global player in the water and waste management sector, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT is very conscious of
the potential environmental impact of its business activities. Its
commitment is therefore in keeping with its desire to reduce its
impact on host environments, and to develop solutions to restore,
strengthen and promote biodiversity. Furthermore, a large number of the Group’s activities benefit directly from positive and
productive interaction with natural environments, and therefore
depend on preserving their equilibrium. As Frédérique Raoult
emphasises: “On the one hand, our activities have a direct impact
on biodiversity, including the landscaping of our facilities and the
discharges emitted. On the other, our waste and water treatment
solutions enable the physical, chemical and biological impact of
human activities on natural environments to be limited. Improving
the quality of these treatments concern for biodiversity has always
been implicit.”
Furthermore, a biodiversity officer was appointed in 2008;
the position is currently held by Jeremy Alonso. “The aim is
primarily to represent the Group’s stance on biodiversity internally
and externally contributing to compliance with our commitments,
and supporting the subsidiaries in their operational and R&D
w
initiatives”, he explains.
Source: IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).
01_
© OLIVIER DOULIERY / ABACAPRESS
w
SPOTLIGHT ON THE NATIONAL STRATEGY
FOR BIODIVERSITY
France launched its National Strategy for Biodiversity in 2004. This strategy
represents the crystallisation of France’s commitment in respect of the Convention on
Biological Diversity. Following on from the first stage which ended in 2010, the new
2011-2020 National Strategy for Biodiversity aims to increase the commitment of the
various players at every regional level and in all business sectors.
The Strategy has set preserving, restoring, strengthening and promoting biodiversity as
a joint goal, as well as ensuring the sustainable and fair use of the biodiversity. From a
practical standpoint, the 2011-2020 National Strategy for Biodiversity introduces a
consistent framework, so as to enable public and private project backers to contribute
to the goal on a voluntary basis, by assuming their responsibilities.
The Government is currently looking at an equivalent initiative in Spain, and Agbar has
already become involved in order to align itself with this national initiative.
Source: www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
01_The Group is aware of the
environmental impact of its
activities. It is therefore seeking
to reduce these effects.
SPECIAL REPORT_
29
02_At the end of 2012, about 60%
of the Group’s 240 sites situated
near a space protected in terms of
biodiversity, have put in place action
plans to preserve it.
SHELA PATRICKSON / HEAD OF THE ICLEI CITIES
BIODIVERSITY CENTER
“CITIES ARE INCREASINGLY
TAKING BIODIVERSITY INTO
ACCOUNT.”
To what extent is biodiversity a focal point for cities’ policy
concerns?
— Biodiversity is increasingly being taken into account, although it
is not, unfortunately, being incorporated into construction
activities to a sufficient degree. Obviously, everything depends on
countries’ legislation and on their level of implementation.
Can you give us some examples of model cities?
— It is hard to choose, as there are a great many of them! I could
mention Edmonton, in Canada. The city works closely with local
communities, and there is a strong stakeholder involvement
policy, so as to raise public awareness and to include biodiversity in
local district management structures. There is also the City of
Cape Town, in South Africa, for instance, which has developed a
local biodiversity network that takes various factors into account,
like the services provided by ecosystems, and climate change.
What are the goals of the ICLEI City Biodiversity Center?
— The Center aims to motivate, steer and support local
authorities and their partners, so that biodiversity and the services
it provides is included by in local decision-making processes.
From a practical standpoint, the City Biodiversity Center offers
programmes and projects that provide technical support and
assistance to local governments, together with practical tools,
guidelines, and many other resources. For instance, the Local
Action for Biodiversity (LAB) programme, which was launched in
partnership with the IUCN in 2006, is based on sharing the best
practices of local governments that are considered as pioneers.
The programme offers a five-stage process, from the review
stage to the implementation of initiatives on the ground, including
stakeholder involvement, and drawing up and approving a Local
Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (LBSAP).
© ANTOINE MEYSSONNIER
02_
03_
© WILLIAM DANIELS
ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability(2),
which was founded under the sponsorship of
the United Nations Environment Program, is
an organisation that supports local sustainable
development projects throughout the world.
Interview.
03_SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT is carrying out a
large number of development and innovation
projects aimed at preserving and restoring
biodiversity. In France, research performed by
Lyonnaise des Eaux has in particular led to the
creation of Libellule Areas in order to counter
pollutants in waste water.
30
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_SPECIAL REPORT
01_
© PHILIPPE MENCIA
01_The actions of SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT also
includes educating people and
stakeholders of the importance
of biodiversity, as in this example,
with the ‘Pathways to Biodiversity’
launched by SITA in France.
02_Thanks to the application of ecological
best practices, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
ensures the redevelopment of environments
by making them favourable to the
recolonisation of local fauna and flora.
02_
w
— Priority No.1 is to improve the environmental footprint
of its facilities and services. What does this mean in fact?
The aim is to increase significantly the number of action plans
implemented at sensitive facilities that are located in or close to
a protected area. “At the end of 2012, around 60% of the 240 facilities identified as located close to an area that was protected due to
its biodiversity had introduced an action plan”, Thomas Perianu,
Director of Sustainable Development, explains, “and there are
now a large number of initiatives in all our subsidiaries.”
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT, which is genuinely committed to a demanding environmental approach, is also introducing biodiversity protection and restoration plans by forming
partnerships with institutions, organisations and expert bodies.
Examples include SITA Espérance, a SITA subsidiary in
Guadeloupe, which has entered into a partnership with the
Guadeloupe National Park in order to reintroduce the manatee, a marine mammal that is currently threatened, to its natural
environment. In the United Kingdom, the SITA Trust Fund
is financing a number of projects to encourage biodiversity,
including a project to preserve a threatened butterfly species. In
France, SITA has made a commitment alongside the National
Natural History Museum to approve and update the inventories
of national fauna and flora, as well as inventories of the natural
habitats of various species(3).
INNOVATION TO HELP PRESERVATION
— The Group is implementing a large number of research,
innovation and development projects aimed at preserving and
restoring biodiversity. In France, Lyonnaise des Eaux’s Libellule
Areas(4) are part of the Artificial Wetlands research project.
These projects aim to demonstrate that wetlands created at the
outflow points from water treatment plants could represent an
effective additional treatment to combat a certain number of
pollutants. This means that a water treatment facility and an
artificial wetland that improves the treatment of waste water
coexist on the same site, while hosting a number of plant and
animal species that also provide an amazing educational and
leisure area, which enables the infrastructure to blend into the
landscape: the benefits are therefore multiple.
© PHILIPPE MENCIA
A STRATEGY THAT HAS BEEN DEPLOYED
SINCE 2008
By 2016, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT will
make a commitment in inproving the
environmental integration of its
sites in the line of actions plans built
with local residents.
ACTION ALSO INVOLVES RAISING AWARENESS
— The Group’s efforts in the biodiversity field also involve raising
awareness among the general public and communicating with its
stakeholders. In France, SITA renews its ‘Pathways to Biodiversity’
programme every year, and opens the doors of its non-hazardous
waste storage facilities. The aim is to understand how biodiversity
is factored into the waste treatment cycle. Another example is
that of Lyonnaise des Eaux in France, which set up an educational trail in its first ‘Libellule Area’ which was created in
2009 in order to raise the public’s awareness of the water cycle
and of the biodiversity of wetlands. Communication campaigns
are conducted throughout the year, through the publication of
educational booklets and SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s regular
contribution to various working groups like those organised by
the MEDEF or the EPE (Companies for the Environment).
(1) IUCN: International Union for Conservation of Nature.
(2) the ‘International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives’.
(3) See the interview with Gilles Boeuf, Chairman of the National Natural History
Museum, in SUEZ Environnement Magazine No. 11.
(4) Libellule: Biological Freedom and Combating Emerging Pollutants.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
SPECIAL REPORT_
31
Humanité et Biodiversité (Humanity and Biodiversity) is a recognised public interest
organisation that aims to contribute to saving the diversity of the living world.
It acts as a source of recommendations that aim to influence political and
business decision-makers. It keeps a legal watch, to improve regulations and
ensure that they are complied with. The organisation carries out awarenessraising campaigns for all audiences.
© B. REEVES
To find out more:
w www.humanite-biodiversite.fr
HUBERT REEVES / CHAIRMAN OF
THE HUMANITÉ & BIODIVERSITÉ ORGANISATION
“THE HARDEST THING IS TO
FIND WAYS OF MOVING ON
FROM THE WORLD OF THE
20th CENTURY TO THE WORLD
OF THE FUTURE”.
Hubert Reeves, the Franco-Canadian astrophysicist,
has been the Chairman of the Humanité & Biodiversité
organisation since 2001. He advocates protecting the
environment and has decided to make a tangible
commitment to protecting it. Interview.
You point to threats to biodiversity,
but also to threats to humanity.
Do you really believe that human
beings could disappear one day?
— Threats to biodiversity are also
threats to humanity, which is
part of biodiversity and depends
on it. Our species has used its
intelligence to take advantage of
nature’s riches, but that treasure
is running out and we will be
very vulnerable when it has been
exhausted. How will we feed
ourselves if the soil’s fertility is
compromised?
How will we clothe ourselves
without the textiles provided by
current plant biodiversity, or
by chemical processes using
the hydrocarbons that we have
inherited from past biodiversity?
The basic needs of so many
human beings may no longer
be met for an increasingly
large proportion of the world's
population.
Can we rethink biodiversity without
making human beings the focal
point of the system?
— Human beings have caused this
crisis. They could find the solution
and solve the problem. They are
highly intelligent.
Among the vast number of living
species, only human beings
have developed the arts, science
and technologies to a very high
level. Only they can set the
record straight. However, they
must first decide to put their
intelligence at the service of the
living world. This is happening,
but not yet to a sufficient degree.
We do not yet know whether the
destructive forces or the powers
of transformation, which are both
currently at work, will win out.
How can we get economic growth
and biodiversity to coexist?
— The two are related. There is no
economy without raw materials.
The most difficult thing, however,
is to find ways of moving from
the world of the 20th Century to
the world of the future. Transition
periods are difficult. We know
what we need to leave behind, but
we do not know the future. We can
make mistakes. It is hard to be
certain about the path to take: in
the end, will we have reached an
impasse or found a beautiful way
out? Sustainable development
requires three platforms that
are all treated equally, while our
organisation’s area of expertise
focuses on the environment.
To create steps that enable us
to move from one world to the
next, together, we obviously need
contributions from the worlds of
economics and social sciences,
which both contribute to the
compromises required in a society
that remains democratic, as no
one has yet invented a better
system. The sword of Damocles
hanging above our heads should
strengthen social solidarity,
including in the world of politics.
In your opinion, what role should
governments, local authorities
and companies, etc. play in
preserving biodiversity?
— Everyone must be involved,
but the decision-makers bear
the responsibility. Can the taking
of a decision be followed by its
implementation without the
support of public opinion? It is
therefore important that the
Government, first and foremost,
and all the organisations and
individuals involved, from local
authorities to simple members
of the public, are well informed,
hence the need to increase
research, purveyors of knowledge,
public discussions, and properly
organised participative democracy.
Representative democracy needs
to be strengthened in order
to meet the challenges more
effectively.
32
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
_SPECIAL REPORT
01_As part of its partnership with SITA,
the National Natural History Museum
(France) is drawing up and updating the
inventories of national flora and fauna.
02_The Melbourne (Australia)
desalination plant blends perfectly
with the landscape, between a green
roof and the reconstructed sand dunes
that surround it, on which millions
of regional plant species have been
planted.
BIODIVERSITY MUST BE
PROTECTED AT GROUND LEVEL
THE PROTECTION AND RESTORATION OF BIODIVERSITY ARE AMONG
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’S COMMITMENTS. HOW IS THIS VIEW OF GREEN
GROWTH REFLECTED? A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF INITIATIVES THAT HAVE
BEEN IMPLEMENTED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD.
© THIESS / DEGREMONT
1.
© GRTGAZ / COULIERD
2.
SCIENTIFIC INNOVATION
IS SUPPORTING BIODIVERSITY
In 2008, SITA France entered into an agreement with the Natural History Museum
which was renewed in 2011. The Environmental Quality Indicator (EQI), a tool that
enables the biodiversity of non-hazardous or inert waste storage facilities to be
classified, together with the related challenges, and the resulting protection and
restoration of the natural environment to be managed and monitored, was designed
within this framework. The use of the EQI at the Villeherviers facility since
2008 demonstrates the effectiveness of initiatives to promote biodiversity for the
protection of environments and species. By the end of 2013, 46 waste treatment
facilities will have undergone an EQI assessment. To increase the performance of
assessments at treatment facilities and to boost their relationship with partner
environmental organisations, training in using this tool has been offered since 2012.
Another innovation for the support of biodiversity is MESANGE (Method for Ecosystem
Services Assessment and Nature General Evaluation), a tool developed by SAFEGE. The
tool enables biodiversity to be assessed according to an approach based on ecosystemic services. The tool provides a decision-assistance framework for regional
operators by factoring in nature from a local standpoint that is in keeping with uses and
management methods. SAFEGE uses MESANGE in its research on the preparation of
a Green and Blue Corridor for the Orléans Val de Loire Urban District (see ‘Reconciling
Development and Conserving Biodiversity’) to make the biodiversity cores and corridors
as operational as possible.
INTEGRATING INFRASTRUCTURE INTO
THE SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT
’Green infrastructure’ has become a genuine concern, especially at
European level. The aim is, in fact, to protect ecosystems in natural
and semi-natural areas. The European Commission’s target for
2020 is therefore to maintain and reinforce ecosystems through
green infrastructure, and to restore at least 15% of damaged
ecosystems. These are principles that the Group’s subsidiaries are
keen to implement in order to create genuine additional local value
for facilities and infrastructure
For instance, for the past two years SAFEGE and Lyonnaise des Eaux
have taken part in the GIREL research programme for the
environmental restoration of the Mediterranean coastline. The aim is
to ensure that the infrastructure of the Marseille Sea Port (Grand
Port Maritime) contributes to improving the local marine
environments on a micro-regional scale.
In Australia, the desalination plant built in Melbourne by Degrémont
has a green roof, extensive landscaping, and a reduced footprint,
which means that this green facility limits its impact on the
environment. A 225 hectare nature reserve has been created around
the plant in order to protect the fauna and flora.
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
SPECIAL REPORT_
04_In these Libellule Areas, Lyonnaise
des Eaux is protecting the fauna and
flora native to the region, through an
initial planting of local species that
are appropriate for its environmental
targets. The catchment areas and the
flora growing there require minimum
upkeep.
© OLIVIER DOULIERY / ABACAPRESS
4.
05_The creation of a Green or Blue
Corridor in the Orléans Urban District
by SAFEGE will enable the provision
of the tools required to reconcile
urban development in the area with
maintained environmental continuity.
© ANTOINE MEYSSONNIER
03_Some of the Group’s subsidiaries
are developing strategies to protect
wildlife around their facilities.
33
3.
EXEMPLARY BEHAVIOUR IN THE FIELD
In terms of biodiversity conservation, the strong commitment of
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT has been taking shape in the field
throughout the world.
In France, Degrémont has worked with Naturama, an environmental
education organisation, as part of the construction of the Saint-Fons
waste water treatment plant. This partnership has, in particular,
enabled hedges to be planted, together with a wildflower meadow, so
as to preserve the area’s wildlife and plant biodiversity by building the
Saint-Fons waste water treatment plant. This partnership In Jersey
City in the United States, United Water has developed a strategy to
protect biodiversity and wildlife so as to preserve the area’s wildlife
and plant biodiversity.
The aim of this strategy, among other things, is to raise the
awareness of the employees who work at its facilities on a daily basis,
and specifically includes forests and a strategy to protect biodiversity
and wildlife marshes that are home to a wide variety of animal
species. In Santiago, in Chile, the Agbar construction of the
wastewater treatment plant required the former waste water
treatment basin to be abandoned. In exchange, Agbar built an
artificial lagoon that provides a habitat for water birds.
© WILLIAM DANIELS
USING THE
SERVICES PROVIDED
BY ECOSYSTEMS
In 2009, Lyonnaise des Eaux set
up its first Libellule (LIberté
Biologique Et de LUtte contre
les polLuants Emergents)
downstream of the St JustSt Nazaire-de-Pézan waste
water treatment plant in France.
In practice, this biodiversity area
makes it easier to eliminate
residual micro-pollutants in
waste water, before it is
discharged into the natural
environment. Areas therefore
provide an additional waste
water treatment solution based
on natural decontamination
powers. Three years after the
area was created, research has
shown that the Libellule Area
enables the thermal impact of
discharges into the natural
environment. Furthermore, for
part of the year, the water is
re-oxygenated by flowing
through the Libellule Area,
primarily thanks to the oxygenproducing plants in the last
catchment area. The Libellule
Areas are in fact genuine
artificial nature reserves that
serve many purposes and
provide many local benefits,
apart from their
decontamination capacity.
5.
RECONCILING DEVELOPMENT
AND THE PROTECTION OF
BIODIVERSITY
The Research, Innovation and Sustainable
Development Department at SAFEGE has
developed an innovative method for creating a
Green and Blue Corridor, which is particularly
appropriate at regional operational development
level. In practice, the Green and Blue Corridor is a
national network of natural environments which
enables species to travel. The service that SAFEGE
offers to local authorities consists in identifying the
factors that make up this network at regional level,
and in drawing up operational initiatives to protect,
restore and promote the Green and Blue Corridor,
in accordance with local socio-economic issues.
To date, SAFEGE has already performed several
appraisals, and assignments to help set up a
Green and Blue Corridor, primarily in Central
France.
34
_INNOVATIONS
CIT’EASETM
THE FIRST COMPREHENSIVE
AND INTERACTIVE CONTROL
PANEL FOR LOCAL AUTHORITIES
ENCOURAGING THE MANAGEMENT OF CITIES AND
INTERACTION BETWEEN ALL PARTIES INVOLVED, is
what Cit’EaseTM is aiming for. This unique tool assembles all
the region’s data and services, in order to provide a better view
of them and to promote them.
“This new solution, which was launched at the Mayors and Local
Authorities’ Trade Show in November, results from an obvious
need: local authorities do not have a single platform to assemble
all the information and services that are of interest to the city
and its residents. Working together with GDF SUEZ, our strategic
partner, and via our businesses, we operate in a large number of
French local authorities. We have therefore developed this innovative tool in order to enable these authorities to manage their
area and to interact with all the other parties involved in the city,
including the residents”, Pascal Blanc, the Line Manager for
“Smart Services” products at SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
Innovation Department.
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
This innovative control panel, which is intended for local officials, the services provided by the city, and its residents, pools
and combines different regional data sets, like demographics
water quality, waste recovery, energy efficiency, transport
management and local weather conditions, etc. The Cit’EaseTM
collaborative platform also feeds back the data provided by
the public.
If the local authority is concerned about transparency
and sharing information, it can also make its Cit’Ease TM
platform accessible to the general public via the Internet.
“The publication by the Town Hall of some data like the household
waste recycling rate broken down by year and by district, can promote good practices and encourage residents to improve their
city’s performance”, Pascal Blanc highlights. Residents can also
interact directly via their city’s Cit’EaseTM platform, for instance,
by reporting a fault in the urban lighting system or the transport
network. To enable each local authority to customise this
control panel according to their needs; the Cit’EaseTM platform
also comes with a configuration tool that is easy to use.
The city then defines the options and services that it wants
to include. Moreover, Cit’EaseTM is an open platform that can
host all kinds of data and applications for a city. This means
that a city can model its control panel in accordance with its
wishes, for instance by adding an environmentally friendly
behaviour application or a district social network.
As a platform that can be adapted for all kinds of hardware
(computers, smartphones, tablets, and TV, etc.), Cit’EaseTM
offers an intuitive and fun interface. “We engineered a tool that
was designed by and intended for its users. In keeping with a
“design thinking” approach, we observed and assessed existing
uses, and ran co-creation workshops.”
This means that the smooth information flow enabled by
Cit’EaseTM helps the city to choose the right actions, assess
their result, and adjust them in a responsive way.
The standard version of the Cit’EaseTM is provided free of
charge alongside a service solution, and provides SUEZ
ENVIRONNEMENT with an opportunity to strengthen its position as local authorities’ preferred partner, and to promote its
innovative services to help cities become more attractive and
“smarter”.
w Check out the video
on Cit’EaseTM
© TIM ROBBERTS / GETTY IMAGES
> or suez-environnement.tv / Innovation section
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
TALENTS_
35
HELPING PEOPLE IS ALL PART OF THE JOB FOR SARA
DADOU, A CUSTOMER SERVICE ENGINEER AT SEAAL
(Algiers Water and Sanitation company). Sara Dadou is responsible for handling complaints at her branch in Algiers, a city
where water management became a priority in the early 2000s
due to the development of the facilities required to ensure a
24-hour drinking water service to all the city’s residents. When
a customer calls, she welcomes them, listens to them, and
asks them questions in order to understand the reasons for
their requests, and recommends customised solutions. This
job puts Sara in a position of responsibility, both in terms of her
customers and of her line management. It also requires important qualities like diplomacy, stress management, adaptability
and knowledge of the offers on a day-to-day basis. Sarah Dadou
was able to get a good idea of these issues beforehand over a
period of slightly more than two years. In fact, she was hired
by one of the SEEAL branches just after graduating, and held
cover positions in her branch’s various departments. “This initial
experience enabled me to sample everything and to learn the ropes
of the water management business”, she adds. I needed this experience before being placed in direct contact with a demanding
customer base.
In the three years that she has worked at SEAAL, yesterday’s
beginner has become a seasoned professional. “I been able to
count on the support of my colleagues, and have benefited from
several training courses, including an introduction to computer
software, improving customer relations, stress management and
new system features, to name but a few.”
Sara’s dedication is tested on a daily basis but has been
rewarded by the award of a “super X7 user” certificate based on
the name of the computer system used in her branch.
How does she see her future at SEAAL? Sara is ambitious
but she says it is a “step by step process, in order to develop in
a better way and ultimately reach more important positions.”
Which positions? After thinking for a moment, she mentions a
position as head of department, before returning to what seems
to matter most in her view, namely “getting better all the time
in order to make progress.”
SARA DADOU / CUSTOMER SERVICE ENGINEER AT SEAAL
— SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT has been helping Société
des Eaux et de l’Assainissement d’Alger (SEAAL) to
modernise its water and sanitation services since 2006.
This management contract has enabled it to achieve the
following targets: 100% of the water supplied to the capital
is drinkable and is available 24 hours a day, while skills
have also been transferred to SEAAL employees, primarily
thanks to the WIKTI tool (a know-how transfer programme).
The contract was renewed in 2011, when it saw its scope
extended to include the Tipasa Wilaya (Governorate)
West of Algiers, i.e. to an additional 28 districts and
600,000 residents.
© K. MOHAMED / CAPA PICTURES
“MY COVER POSITIONS HAVE
ENABLED ME TO SAMPLE
EVERYTHING AND TO LEARN
THE ROPES OF THE BUSINESS.”
Spotlight on SEAAL
36
_INNOVATIONS
SITA
AN EXPERT PARTNER
IN INCENTIVE-BASED PRICING
IN FRANCE
© LA ROBE À L’EAU
“PAYING IN PROPORTION TO WHAT YOU THROW AWAY
AND WHAT YOU SORT IS AN IDEA THAT HAS ALREADY
GAINED TRACTION IN NORTHERN EUROPEAN
COUNTRIES”, says Capucine Gautier, Director of Public
Procurement Marketing at SITA France. In France, however, a
consensus has only recently been reached on the “polluter pays”
principle, as applied to the general public and to the private
industrial sector. The Grenelle Law of 2009, which transposed a
European directive into French law, symbolises this consensus
as it makes incentive-based waste pricing compulsory as of
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
2014. However, “only 3.5 million French residents out of around
65 million currently have an incentive-based invoicing system...”
The market is therefore still very substantial!
SITA France is providing specific support to around 30 pioneering local authorities via its “Financial sorting incentive”. These
local authorities have switched from a conventional household
waste removal tax, which was part of local taxation, to a totally
transparent and customised system for counting the bins presented for collection within a period of two years. This was a
genuine challenge, both from a political and logistical standpoint,
which could only be taken up properly thanks to high-quality
support. “This is the reason why we now perform the survey that
enables us to identify the households concerned in a local authority
ourselves.” Our inspectors are equipped with portable terminals
in order to update the database in real-time, with no errors and
within the shortest possible time frame. We also distribute
equipment that includes their identification details to these
households, i.e. dustbins fitted with chips or RFID cards, which
are used to check the access to voluntary waste collection points.
Explaining the rules to residents, helping them make sense,
and taking part in public meetings form part of SITA France’s
new remit. With this aim in mind, emphasis has gradually been
placed on providing sophisticated management and communication tools. To extranet platforms, one of which is intended for
taxpayers, and the other for customers, have therefore been
developed in order to increase the amount of interaction. In the
future, a mobile application will enable residents to understand
how the service is organised or to receive “push” information.
“We will successfully involve everyone by making sorting easier and
by providing better information on what measures to take.”
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
MILESTONES_
Out and about
TO FIND OUT EVERYTHING ABOUT
WATER IN EUROPE
MAYORS AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES’
TRADE SHOW
This website offers a wealth of
information. It enables you to know
everything about water in Europe,
from drought to the quality of bathing
water, amongst other things.
This website provided by WISE, Water
Information System for Europe, an
organisation that disseminates all the
data on water as part of the European
policy of making public data available,
specifically grants access to the
Water Data Centre, which offers a
wealth of interactive maps, computer
graphics and comparison tables.
19/11/2013 w 21/11/2013
Paris, France
w www.water.europa.eu
FINDING OUT EVERYTHING ABOUT
MY WATER THANKS TO LYONNAISE
DES EAUX
Faced with increasing demand for
information from its customers,
Lyonnaise des Eaux is making a user
service website available. On this
website, all you need to do is enter
your postcode in order to access
all the data concerning the water
that you use every day, including
its taste, quality, mineral content,
and hardness (lime), amongst other
things . You will also be able to
find out about the number of tests
performed during the month and the
water channel, its origin and even its
price for some cities.
Comprehensive and transparent
information!
w www.lyonnaise-des-eaux.fr
EVENT IMPACTS, ORGANISING YOUR
EVENTS IN A RESPONSIBLE WAY!
This website enables organisers of
public events to assess the multiple
effects that their project will have
on the environment. It also enables
them to view a large number
of tutorials and articles on best
practices in this area free of charge.
© ANTOINE MEYSSONNIER
On the Web
This trade show is the only national
forum (55,000 visitors in 2012) that
brings together all the main operators
in the public procurement market
and all their institutional partners,
or partners who specialise in
management, services, landscaping
and the development of French local
authorities.
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT will present
its innovations at the trade show,
and will chair several theme-based
conferences with its subsidiaries.
37
It’s in the air…
POLLUTEC HORIZONS
03/12/2013 w 06/12/2013
Paris, France
Pollutec Horizons, the ecotechnology, energy and sustainable
development trade show, is a
meeting place for professionals
concerned by the environment,
including: institutional and industrial
companies, service providers and
elected officials. This year, the main
focus of the trade show will be on
research and innovation, as applied
to waste management, the treatment
of waste water, renewable energy
and energy efficiency.
w www.pollutec.com
2014 IS INTERNATIONAL FAMILY
FARM YEAR
The United Nations General Assembly
has officially proclaimed 2014 as
“International Family Farm Year”.
During the year, the aim will be to
promote the image of family farms and
smallholdings by focusing the world’s
attention on their important role in
many areas, including reducing hunger
and poverty, improving food and
nutrition security, managing natural
resources, protecting the environment,
and sustainable development.
w www.fao.org/family-farming-2014
FREE FLOW,
THE BEST PRACTICE BIBLE
THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE
LOCAL WATER MANAGEMENT
FORUM
29/01/2014 w 30/01/2014
Rennes, France
This national forum for public and
IMSTEC 2013
private operators in the water sector
25/11/2013 w 29/11/2013
will celebrate its 50th anniversary in
Melbourne, Australia
January 2014. Mayors, chairman
IMSTEC 2013 (International Membrane of inter-district groupings, general
Science & Technology Conference)
and regional councillors, regional
highlights international advances in the professionals, project managers,
membrane technology field.
water engineers and environmental
This year, SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT
managers will once again discuss
will be represented through a
their experiences and best practices
conference chaired by CIRSEE
this year. This event is proof that
(International Water and Environmental the issue is gaining ground in all
Research Centre). The conference will professional sectors: 1,000 extra
focus on studying the life expectancy
visitors are expected compared with
of an organic membrane, a project
the 2013 event!
backed by the CIRSEE Water &
w www.carrefour-eau.com
Applications Procedures Unit’s experts.
w smcl.salons.groupemoniteur.fr
w www.imstec2013.com
w www.eventimpacts.com
You can find us on:
w Website: www.suez-environnement.fr
w eMag: www.emag.suez-environnement.com
w SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT TV: www.suez-environnement.tv
w YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/suezenvironnement
w Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/suezenv
The collective work entitled Free Flow
- Reaching Water Security Through
Cooperation, which was published by
UNESCO and launched at the World
Water Summit this year, provides
evidence of positive changes in the way
that water is used and managed via a
collection of the best experiences in
this area.
In fact, Jean-Louis Chaussade
has been invited to illustrate
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT’s
contribution to environmental issues
in the water sector, an article in
which he mentions the exemplary
case of Algiers, where only 8%
of the city’s water was drinkable
in 2006, compared with 100%
today following the involvement of
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT.
w http://digital.tudor-rose.co.uk/
free-flow/index.html
38
_PERSPECTIVES
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT MAGAZINE
BRIGITTE KAHANE /
FOUNDER OF THE ECODESIGN OBSERVATORY
ECO-DESIGN
© IDCOOK - WWW.IDCOOK.COM
USEFULNESS,
SUSTAINABILITY
AND RESPONSIBILITY
IN IDEAS
No.14 - NOVEMBER 2013
39
PERSPECTIVES_
is crucial, and initiatives are being implemented on
a global scale. From the 1970s, Victor Papanek(1), a
pioneer in the eco-design field, advocated useful and responsible
design based on principles that respect human beings and their
environment. The eco-design approach takes a product’s environmental impact into account as soon as it is designed. This implies
monitoring the choice of raw materials, practices, the transport
method, the lifespan and the end-life of a product. Since Victor
Papanek, the environment has changed.Eco-design now relies on
standards, primarily ISO 14062. However, although the regulations
guide companies’ practices, their approach remains voluntary.
Aside from processes, eco-design is an inspiring and practical
approach that enables industrial companies to take the increasing
challenges posed by waste management, and the increasingly
“finite” nature of the available resources into account. It therefore
leads to re-thinking the various players’ approaches, and promotes
the emergence of new, more environmentally responsible reflexes.
In the eco-design field, the manufacturing and consumption of a
product form an indivisible whole! Today, an increasing number of
consumers factor this responsible dimension into their purchasing
decisions. It is therefore in companies’ best interest to take environmental factors into account in their product and service strategy.
Meanwhile, the approach is yielding results. It not only encourages
differentiation on competitive markets that area source of profit,
while ensuring quite substantial cost savings! Eco-design makes
a huge contribution to innovation and is a wonderful tool for generating ideas to be developed. The responsible aspect will ultimately
become predominant. The same goes for efforts to “live well” together, with fewer resources and more users.
Building tomorrow’s world in a different way is not a utopian
concept. My work is a step in this direction, and initially involved
the foundation of Pimliko and then of the EcoDesign Observatory.
The Observatory is a catalyst for efforts, and provides the resources
required for innovative approaches in the sustainable development
field by integrating, Research, Creation, and Enterprise. The scope
is very broad. There are new materials to use, practices can be
rethought, and new services can be invented. We need to go forward
together now more than ever, in order to substantially reduce the
environmental impact of our human activities and to breathe life
into very ambitious projects!
01_A new design and rationalised
electronics mean that the main
environmental effects of SFR’s Evolution
neufbox have been reduced by 30% to 50%
compared with the previous generation.
New switches enable users’ power
consumption to be optimised in accordance
with their use (40% reduction). In addition,
the carbon footprint has been significantly
reduced, from 55kg to 36 kg eqCO2.
(1) In 1971, he published a book called Design for the Real World: Human Ecology and
Social Change (New York, Pantheon Books).
02_The COOKUP200 solar barbecue,
designed by IDCOOOK, a Sunited Group
brand, is a great example of eco-design.
This innovative eco-designed appliance
enables food to be cooked using only solar
power. Moreover, it was awarded the
“Janus du Design et de l’Industrie” prize in
2010, with a distinction for eco-design.
To find out more:
w www.pimliko.fr
w www.observatoire-ecodesign.com
© BRIGITTE KAHANE
© SFR
ECO-DESIGN
Brigitte Kahane, who trained
in eco-design at the ENSAM
and ARDI, founded the
Innovation EcoDesign PimliKo
consultancy in 2008, followed
by the EcoDesign Observatory
in 2010. Her close contacts
include several major groups
and SMCs. As the founder and
manager of the EcoDesign
Cafés, she has made them a
forum for sharing know-how
that brings together an
audience of French and
international experts,
competitiveness clusters,
companies and designers to
discuss innovative topics.
Brigitte Kahane is convinced
that innovation in the
21st Century will include an
environmental dimension, for
which EcoDesign is one of the
major innovation drivers.
MAKING THE PLANET
SUSTAINABLE
IS THE BEST JOB
ON EARTH.
That’s why SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT commissioned the ECONOTRE
waste-to-energy plant near Toulouse, in southwestern France, more than
10 years ago, and has been operating it ever since. With a treatment capacity
of 170,000 tons a year, the plant generates 100 Gwh of electricity, equivalent
to the electricity consumption of 55,000 households. Tomorrow, it will also
provide the energy to heat 100 hectares of greenhouses. Discover how on
emag.suez-environnement.com
SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT · Tour CB 21 - 16 place de l’Iris, 92040 Paris La Défense Cedex · RCS Nanterre 433 466 570
WASTE SORTING
REQUIRES ENERGY.
LUCKILY, IT ALSO
PRODUCES SOME!