Shrewsbury vets wins green award

Quarry Vets has earned an Investors in the Environment (iiE) bronze award. The iiE scheme is an environmental accreditation designed to help organisations reduce their impact on the environment by cutting resource use and waste production whilst also encouraging projects within the community.

The vets, in Brassey Road, off Old Potts Way in Shrewsbury, has been cutting waste by laminating in house laboratory forms, ordering glass-bottled milk and stocking syringes made from recycled plastic.

As a result, they have seen their carbon footprint fall from 62.22 tonnes of CO2, including electricity, gas, water, waste disposal, business mileage, and anaesthetic gases, in 2019/2020 to 55.9 tonnes.

They reduced gas consumption by 11%, electricity by 19% and water consumption has been reduced by 29% in the last three years.

The team have also created a wildlife garden at their surgery, introducing bird feeders, a bird table, a bug house and planting a wildflower garden to attract bees. It is proving popular with birds, including blue tits, great tits, blackbirds and dunnocks, as well as attracting bees, beetles and bugs.

Vet Charlie Hertel said: “We’ve all seen the effect of climate change with the recent heatwave, so it is even more important that we play an active role in protecting the planet. Veterinary practices produce a lot of waste, so at Quarry Vets we are aiming to take responsibility for our impact on the environment.

“Our success has been a great team effort and, as a practice, we want to embrace sustainable ways of working. The green team meet regularly, contributing new ideas to further reduce resource use and waste production.

“Signing up for the iiE accreditation has been worthwhile as it helps us to focus on what we need to work towards with regards to reducing our carbon footprint, and there is a huge sense of achievement in earning the bronze award. We’re now all really enthusiastic to continue our efforts and aim for the silver award.”