Financial Review - Bouygues

outside the company.Thus, in accordance with the 2001Environment Charter, relevant indicatorswill be introduced over the nextfew years, meeting the following criteria: prudence and rigour: it is difficult todraw up reliable figures in a very openbusiness in which measurement andevaluation systems differ widely fromone country to another. Priority will begiven to a small number of indicators,ensuring that they are both reliableand representative. They will be communicatedas they are developed; continuous improvement: there isrelatively little room for manoeuvre inColas' businesses because the regulatorycontext of competitive publictendering limits the scope for underbidding.It is therefore reasonableand legitimate to seek continuousprogress, which is central to ISO14001 certification, an approach thatColas is introducing in all its businessareas; proximity and adaptation to localconditions: in a company that has1,200 establishments (includingindustrial production facilities) in fortycountries and carries out some 90,000projects each year, individual operationstend to be both small-scale andvery short. As a result, each situationgives rise to its own set of problems.Colas is very keen on devolvinginitiatives to individual establishmentsso as to optimise their action in thelocal context.Colas' approach to the environment istherefore founded on a dynamic visionin which the environment is not just alegal obligation but also an opportunityfor progress and innovation, valuesthat are central to the company mindset.A number of specific actions wereaccomplished in 2004.Recycling of construction wasteProgress was made in techniques forrecycling or recovering asphalt mixes,such as: the Valorcol process (factory recyclingof asphalt mixes), the Novacol process (in situ renovationand recycling of pavements), the Thermocol RED process (in siturenovation and recycling of porousasphalt), which was awarded theSETRA certificate under the RoadInnovation Charter, a number of major projects inFrance which demonstrated the feasibilityof incorporating 25%, 50% oreven 65% of milled materials in compositeroad structures with hydraulicbinders, in the context of technicallyand economically effective and competitivealternatives (25% of milledmaterials were included in 32 km ofthe new wearing course of the A26motorway), an increase in the amount of recycledmaterials in the United States(where much higher rates of asphaltrecycling are allowed than in France)in both tonnage and percentage terms(2.3 million tonnes, representing12.6% of the total output of asphaltmixes compared with 11% in 2003).The recycling of recovered gravel andaggregates continued to rise in 2004,with an increase in the number of recyclingfacilities across France and inthe tonnage of recycled materials.Progress was made with the Ecosolprocess for recycling earthwork spoildeveloped by Screg Ile-de-France -Normandie in the Essonne département:125,000 tonnes were recycledin 2004 compared with 80,000 tonnesin 2003. It now accounts for over halfthe surplus spoil accepted at theLimeil and Marcoussis sites, thusavoiding the need for landfill solutions.In contrast, the Ecoballast railway ballastrecycling activity has had to behalted because of lack of demandfrom railway customers for reused ballastin new railway works.Certification of industrial plantsColas carries out its industrial activitiesin France at classified establishmentsthat are subject to authorisationand have to comply with various environmentalrules and standards.Licences to operate quarries includeundertakings to restore sites, definedwith devolved government agencies(DRIRE) and prefectoral authorities,and given material expression inaccounting provisions for rehabilitationwork.Colas continues to modernise itsindustrial base, taking account ofenvironmental concerns. To give oneexample, the Perrier facilities at Mionsnear Lyon have been completely renovatedand now include crushing,asphalt mixing, concrete mixing andrecycling in a single, integrated unit.The plant has a total capacity of 900tonnes per hour and gives the Lyonregion a real urban development facilitylocated less than 10 km away fromthe city centre. It also demonstratesthat nuisances can be fully controlledeven in a dense urban environment.The number of ISO 14001 certificatesdoubled in 2004 and has now passedthe 100 mark. The real enthusiasm ofColas staff for this area of progressreflects a deeply rooted commitmentto its two fundamental principles:40