How Posts are going green

The Universal Postal Union is proud to present a selection of best practices from across the globe on greening the Post. Some postal operators are already aware of the importance of minimizing their carbon footprint. Others are forging ahead with success.  

Uniforms from PET bottles : At Korea Post, uniforms for mail carriers are made from recycled PET bottles. The process involves slicing recycled bottles into tiny pieces and refining the fibres that result. Up to 11 bottles go to make a uniform. Approximately 389,000 bottles have been used to make uniforms for Korea Post’s 35,000 mail carriers.

 PhilPost gets flushing :  Philippine Post is in the process of replacing tank-filled valve flushing mechanisms in its toilets with more water-efficient toilets, and also introducing new taps that turn off automatically when a certain amount has been consumed.  There has been a significant reduction in PhilPost’s water consumption since 2007 as a result.

Correos changes the lightbulbs : Correos de El Salvador has changed 75 per cent of its incandescent tubes from 40W to 21W to reduce consumption of electricity in its buildings.  In addition, Correos imposed restrictions on the use of air conditioning equipment. These actions cut electricity consumption by 9 per cent between April and October 2010. The operator has also used reduced-capacity pipes to cut its water consumption by 80 per cent

 Bringing efficiency into sorting : Deutsche Post DHL has acquired 288 energy-efficient sorting machines which will reduce the operator’s carbon emissions by nearly 5000 tonnes per year.

 Green procurement in Rwanda : Rwanda Post has a green procurement policy in place, requiring potential subcontractors to make a viable plan for waste disposal part of their bid.

Cutting fuel use :Tanzania Post now carries out regular emission checks and servicing of its fleet. Fuel spending fell 4 per cent between 2009 and 2010 as a result.

Canada Post's environmental principles :In its environment policy, Canada Post has defined the following environmental principles: – protecting the environment by conducting business in a socially responsible manner and by integrating environmental protection into the way the Post operates;

– complying with applicable environmental standards and regulations and establishing an environmental management structure that will ensure compliance;

– conserving resources through the implementation of energy conservation strategies and recycling programmes, and by encouraging the purchase and use of supplies that are recycled, recyclable, reusable, renewable or otherwise environmentally sustainable;

– managing the ongoing reduction of environmental risks and issues;

– making employees at all levels responsible for complying with the environment policy.

SAPO's environmental policy :  In 2008, the South African Post Office established an environmental policy with the following six pillars:

– protecting and enhancing the environment;

– avoiding adverse effects;

– using and managing resources efficiently;

– considering environmental issues early;

– contributing to sustainable outcomes by partnering with others;

– continuous improvement of environmental performance.

Moroccan Post's environmental policy : The Moroccan Post has committed itself to implementing an environmental policy to operate its business by:

– positioning sustainable development as the central goal of the institution; –

– controlling and evaluating the environmental impact of its business;

– complying with laws and legislation concerning the environment;

– contributing to the awareness of society to environmental problems and efforts to protect the environment;

– preserving natural resources by reducing water consumption, electricity and raw materials;

– improving working conditions for its staff in terms of standards of health and safety; and

– sharing its environmental experience with all stakeholders.

Royal Mail reduces emissions : Royal Mail has set a target of reducing transport-related CO2 emissions by 20%. Between 2003 and 2008, the road transport element of its mail operation's CO2 emissions was reduced by 13.4%. During the same period, the CO2 emissions relating to air and rail transport were reduced by 11.5%.

New Zealand Post and reducing greenhouse gases : New Zealand Post has set several concrete targets for environmental performance which include reduction of GHG emissions. The Post has a goal of reducing GHG emissions by 12% between 2008 and 2012. It achieved 3.6% and 5.2% reductions in 2008–2009 and 2009–2010 respectively

Slovenian Post's ISO certification: Slovenska Posta was awarded the ISO 14001 Environment Management Certificate in 2005 for its implementation and use of an environment management system. It has set up a special company intranet site for its employees where all the company's environment documents are published.

DHL's ISO certification : DHL's sites and mail processing centres are certified ISO 14001, which guarantees that the environment is respected in the daily management of the buildings. Efforts focus mostly on fuel and electricity consumption.

Portuguese Post improves reporting port: Portugal's CTT published its corporate responsibility report in alignment with the GRI G3 guidelines in 2006. The GRI index provides a standardized method for reporting organized by topic.

Training on CO2 inventory: Brazil Post specialists received training from the Getulio Vargas Foundation, a non-profit institution with a technical/scientific and educational focus, accredited by Brazil's Ministry of the Environment and the World Resources Institute as the only institution authorized to adapt the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard to the Brazilian corporate reality,  with a view to setting up a carbon-dioxide inventory and putting in place emission management measures.

Using carbon offsetting to achieve neutrality :  Itella (Finland) aims to reduce its carbon-dioxide emissions by 30% by 2020 (compared with 2007). To achieve this target, Itella is improving its energy efficiency and using renewable energy sources with lower emissions in all of its operations, and is offering customers carbon-neutral products by means of a carbon-offsetting scheme.

 TNT's Planet Me : TNT launched its "Planet Me" programme in 2007 to raise awareness of climate change and serve as a framework for TNT's efforts to reduce CO2 emissions. Its primary objective is to reduce the environmental impact of the company's operations and to boost its financial performance by improving fuel efficiency.

Planet Me comprises the following three focus areas:

–Count Carbon: Measuring and monitoring CO2 performance.

–Code Orange: Improving the CO2 efficiency of operational activities.

–Choose Orange: Engaging personnel to adopt sustainable behaviour at work and home.

As part of the programme, TNT has made a commitment to improve CO2 efficiency by 45% by 2020 across its global operations.

Using small-engined motorcycles : In main cities like Beirut, Liban Post uses small-engined motorcycles, instead of cars or vans, for mail distribution and some collections. Small vehicles emit less polluting gases.  Around 100 distribution circuits out of 235 are covered by motorcycles and 10 on foot. Post offices mainly use vans to perform mail handling and large-volume pick-ups or deliveries. The difference in fuel consumption between the motorcycles and cars currently used amounts to some 60% (car 150 km/20 l compared to motorcycle 390 km/20 l). In addition, the cost of insurance and annual taxes are lower for motorcycles than for cars.

Fuel consumption limits : VNPT (Viet Nam Post) sets fuel consumption limits for transport and electric generators. These limits, which are defined through surveys, help to raise awareness of the need to control consumption and promote economies among staff. VNPT attempts to achieve fuel consumption of 20 litres per 100 kilometres.

 Energy savings plan : Correos (Uruguay) has followed an energy savings plan based on government directives since 2005. In that year, the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining (MIEM) put in place mandatory energy saving measures and efficiency plans, in particular for the public sector. The work also focused on communication policies that emphasized awareness, commitment on the part of middle and senior management and the voluntary commitment of all employees. Thanks to the major efforts made, the MIEM's objectives, revised annually, have been achieved each year. The plan for the head office and sorting plant calls for the almost complete replacement of incandescent and mercury vapour bulbs with low-energy bulbs and the replacement of a significant percentage of fluorescent lamps using magnetic ballast with those using electronic ballast.  To disseminate the cost-saving measures, the plans are accompanied by a communication plan, involving staff meetings, posters in the workplace, e-mail, the in-house magazine, and the company intranet. In addition, there are examples of operators reducing their consumption of natural resources like water through direct action.

Reduction of water consumption : Correos de El Salvador is working to reduce its consumption of water by means of reduced-capacity pipes, which lead to an 80% reduction in water consumption.

 Rationalization of mail routes : After participating in the GHG inventory implemented by the UPU, Mauritius Post started a rationalization of mail routes. The number of routes was reduced from 22 to 16 in order to increase operational efficiency.   At the same time, Mauritius Post has centralized its delivery service. This involves the "clustering" of three or four neighbouring offices to one large delivery centre. The number of delivery offices has been reduced from 90 to 47. Through these actions, Mauritius Post has achieved a decrease in the mileage covered by postal vehicles and reduced fuel consumption, and at the same time improved the efficiency of deliveries of postal items.  The Post estimates that there has been a 25% reduction in CO2 emissions from its fleet.

Switching to rail : In April 2009, Norway Post's major road transport route between Oslo and Bergen became fully rail-based. As a result, a total of 1,250 trucks have been replaced by rail.

Leading an intercompany order group for electric vehicles : La Poste (France) leads an intercompany order group that has committed to ordering 50,000 electric vehicles by 2011. La Poste could eventually add 10,000 of these vehicles to its mail and parcel delivery fleet.  La Poste pilote le groupement de commandes interentreprises, qui s’est engagé à commander 50 000 véhicules électriques d’ici à 2011. A terme, 10 000 de ces véhicules pourraient intégrer la flotte de l’opérateur pour la livraison du courrier et des colis.

Alternative-fuel vehicles : Although electric vehicles represented only a small fraction of the USPS delivery fleet in 2008, together with other types of alternative-fuel vehicles they constituted nearly 20% of its 220,000 vehicles – about 43,000 – representing the largest civilian fleet of alternative fuel-capable vehicles in the world.

Bi-fuel vehicles : With over 1,300 bi-fuel (methane/petrol) vehicles, Poste Italiane has the largest methane fleet in Europe.

Biodiesel vehicles : In 2009, Brazil Post used over 200 biodiesel vehicles in its operations.

Double decker trailers : Thanks to the introduction of over 300 double decker trailers, Royal Mail can now carry 50% more mail in one vehicle. This has already reduced its annual mileage by 7.6 million miles, saving 7,000 tonnes of CO₂.

 Eco-driving training in Belgium : BPost trains its van drivers to drive ecologically, which allows the operator to save 5–7% on fuel. Around 2,300 employees have already taken the course, which represents 40% of all relevant staff.

 Slashing fuel consumption : La Poste (France) has slashed its fuel consumption, cut its CO₂ emissions by 8% on average, and given 60,000 postmen and women eco-driving lessons, which. among others, have reduced the number of road accidents involving postal vehicles.  Through its Mobigreen subsidiary the group has been working on a full range of eco-driving services – awareness raising and training – in order to transmit its know-how and experience to any private or public organization that uses vehicle fleets and wants its staff to employ eco-driving techniques.  Between 2007 and 2009, La Poste achieved cost savings of 10 million EUR.

Eco-driving contest in Hungary : Since 2009, Magyar Posta has organized a "Green Day" conference in the field of logistics each year. During these conferences, participants can listen to talks on environmental protection and vehicle operations, and on the closing day of the conference an eco-driving contest is held.   A trained driver who uses an environmentally friendly driving style may reduce the fuel consumption of the vehicle by as much as 5–10%, translating into a reduction in emissions. Magyar Posta estimates that these conferences have resulted in 20 million HUF of savings.

Integrated fleet management system : In November 2008, Hellenic Post installed an integrated fleet management system based on telematic technologies. The aim was to improve customer service, cut the costs of transport operations, increase productivity, and improve security.  The system is based on 550 in-vehicle GPS devices, telecommunication equipment (antennas), operational and administration software, and a geographical mapping platform containing data on the country's road network.   The fleet monitoring system provides a continuous real-time overview of the company's fleet, and offers reporting tools for the operations department.  It also provides private and business customers with accurate information on the time of vehicles' arrival at and departure from specific points of interest (letter boxes, post offices, etc.). It will be used in the future for the provision of special services (e.g. dynamic and ad hoc pick-ups and deliveries), which require awareness of fleets' location and status.

 The system offers a well-designed and simple web-based graphical user interface. As such, it does not require high computer literacy and users are able to familiarize themselves with it within a very short time.

 Optimizing route planning : Post Danmark has a tool for optimizing route planning in the countryside and in towns which limits the number of kilometres driven according to pre-specified estimates. The tool is based on a geographical information system, which collects and processes digital maps. This information is then combined with information about delivery points in Denmark. Following its implementation in 2007, the system reduced the number of kilometres driven by car by 2.5 million kilometres.  Today, the system is used continuously to streamline Post Danmark's routes and the number of kilometres driven.

LEED certification : In 2009, Canada Post registered three new building projects for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification.  LEED is an internationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance and environment-conscious buildings.  Building to LEED Canada criteria helps Canada Post reduce GHG emissions, lower overall energy costs, and reduce its impact on the environment. It also benefits its employees and its customers by providing safer and healthier workplaces.

Green roof in NY : A USPS building in New York has been developed with a "green roof". It reduces the amount of polluted storm water runoff into the New York municipal water system by as much as 75% in the summer and 40% in the winter. The green roof is more energy-efficient than a traditional roof and is projected to save the operator 30,000 USD on annual heating and cooling costs.

 A emission-free depot :  TNT opened its first CO2 emission-free depot in 2009. The adoption of sustainable solutions within this building has resulted in energy savings of more than 70%. The building is designed to allow in as much daylight as possible, reducing the amount of artificial light required, and produces its own energy through more than 300 solar panels. Water is pumped from the ground for heating and cooling, and rainwater is collected for flushing eco-toilets.

Optimization of chiller plant : SingPost embarked on a green initiative in November 2006, focusing on the optimization of the chiller plant of its then eight-year old headquarters, Singapore Post Centre. The project, which cost 1.9 million SGD, was completed in June 2007. Employing a total system approach in retrofitting its central chilled water plant room, SingPost made enhancements to the piping system and replaced conventional motors with high efficiency ones. A new 24-hour web-based monitoring system was introduced at the same time, enabling better visibility and management of the entire system resulting in optimal availability.

Using solar energy : Togo Post is looking to operate solely on solar energy. The offices in Guérin-Kouka and Elavagnon, Est-Mono, have been operating on solar energy since 2003, and those in Mandouri and Pagala have been doing so for two years now.  The operator decided to pursue this policy not only for the obvious environmental reasons, but also because solar energy offers a solution to the inadequacies of the traditional electricity grid.
Moreover, solar energy is a way to bring internet access to cities and towns that have no electricity, thus enabling the Togo Post to offer its clients access to banking services and express transfers, which are increasingly being provided electronically

Green purchasing team : In 2008, USPS formed a Green Purchasing Team. The team has actively worked to educate and inform customers and suppliers about the operator's Green Purchasing Plan. In 2008, USPS spent more than 251 million USD on environmentally preferable products, including remanufactured automobile parts, retread tyres, recycled content paper products, custodial products and "Cradle to Cradle" certified shipping boxes and envelopes.

 Eco-responsible paper : Since the end of 2009, 100% of the paper BPost (Belgium) uses for its own needs is recycled or comes from responsibly managed forests (bearing the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) label, for example). In 2008 this percentage was still 68%. In 2009, around 95% of postage stamps were printed on FSC paper.

Eco-responsible business trips : DHL is one of Deutsche Bahn's first key accounts to use its new, climate-friendly Umwelt Plus (environment plus) ticket for all business trips.  This means that 100% of the electricity used comes from renewable energy sources. The agreement with the German train operator was concluded with retroactive effect as of 1 January 2009. The 74,319 tickets used in 2009 thus resulted in savings of around 2,134 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Using solar energy : Magya Posta has used solar energy in its national logistics centre since the end of 2008.  Thirty-six solar collectors measuring 62 m2 are located on the flat roof of the toilet block. The solar collector system controls have been linked to the building monitoring system.  The system is estimated to save 4,300 m3 of natural gas per year. The solar collector system has cut energy consumption by 36.7% and CO2 emissions by 13%.

In 2009, Magyar Posta saved about 20,000 kWh by using solar energy.

Using solar energy to run operations :  In Tanzania, some post offices have been using solar energy for lighting, running of computers and fax machines, among others, for some 10 years.  For Tanzania Post, the only cost associated with solar energy is the initial investment of installation. With no ongoing expenses, the system eventually pays for itself.

Using geothermal energy : Veresegyház is a town with rich thermal water resources. The thermal water is distributed to customers and public institutions (local authorities, kindergartens, post offices, etc.) through a three-circuit network.  The incoming thermal water is used for heating and hot water. During the summer months it easily satisfies the hot water demands of the post office. In the winter, the energy requirements over and above this are covered by two gas boilers, which operate as auxiliary heat supplies with the help of an automatic temperature regulator.  In 2009, Magyar Posta saved about 80,000 kWh of energy by using thermal water.

Going geothermal :  Recently Slovenia Post installed new heating systems in some buildings. In the new heating system, 25% of energy consumption comes from renewable resources, and geothermal heating is the main source of energy. The difference in consumption of energy between normal heating mode and heating with geo-probes and geothermal pumps is about 25%.

Using hydropower : All of the electricity bought and consumed by the Brazilian Post comes from hydropower plants. Electricity generated from hydropower is considered one of the cleanest forms of energy in the world.

Using green electricity : Itella (Finland) aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in all of its activities. One step in this direction is switching to electricity generated using renewable energy sources in its sorting centres, which typically use a lot of electricity. The proportion of green electricity will be increased gradually: in 2010, the proportion was 80%; as of 2011, 100% of the electricity used by Itella in Finland will be green.  Thanks to green electricity, Itella will be able to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions in Finland by 15%.

Tapping into green electricity : Today, 50% of all electrical energy consumed by Poste Italiane already comes from renewable sources (according to RECS – Renewable Energy Certificate System parameters).

Using green electricity : Since January 2009, all new contracts for Deutsche Post DHL buildings in Germany have to specify that energy will be generated from renewable energy sources such as wind or water power.
The vast majority of the operator's buildings are powered with green electricity. With approximately 8,000 sites in Germany, Deutsche Post DHL is one of the largest users of electricity.

Re-usable envelopes in Lebanon : Plastic re-usable envelopes, which can be used at least 15 times are being used by Liban Post, with a positive impact in environmental and budgetary terms.

Sturdy cardboard packaging : Japan Post Sankyu Global Logistics, a subsidiary of Japan Post, is providing international logistics using a returnable packing box that can be used up to 100 times. In one instance, by replacing cardboard boxes with this packing box, total costs can be cut by 30–40% and CO2 generated through the process of making and disposing of cardboard boxes can be reduced by 70%.

'Cradle to Cradle' certification : The United States Postal Service (USPS) supplies "Cradle to Cradle" certified packaging in services such as priority and express mail. This certification means that a product is designed with materials that are safe for humans and the environment.

GOGREEN : Since 2006  Deutsche Post DHL has offered carbon-neutral GOGREEN products.
The group offsets the CO2 emissions generated during the transportation and handling of customers' shipments through climate protection projects.  In 2009, the group offset 38,500 tonnes of CO2 for its customers and sent more than 700 million GOGREEN shipments. To offset carbon emissions, the group has launched a climate protection project in Lesotho, which will involve the introduction of 10,000 firewood and stainless steel stoves, which reduce CO2 emissions by 80% compared with conventional stoves. As a result, firewood consumption will be diminished and deforestation and soil erosion will also be reduced. This project is expected to generate 20,000 carbon credits annually, and the credits will be used for GOGREEN customers.

Pro clima :

Swiss Post enables letters, parcels and goods to be mailed on a carbon-neutral basis through its "Pro clima" scheme. For domestic items, customers pay a surcharge of 1 to 10 Swiss centimes to achieve carbon neutrality.
In 2010, the operator sent around 70 million items with a "pro clima" surcharge, which amounted to about 350,000 CHF in total. Swiss Post uses the collected surcharges to support a wind farm project in New Caledonia, which enables a total of 27,000 tonnes of CO2 to be offset.

Waste disposal policy :  The Philippine Post adopted a waste disposal segregation policy in 2007. Bins for waste segregation are placed at strategic locations throughout the headquarters complex, and personnel are encouraged to recycle paper and office supplies. Recyclable waste is sold and the proceeds are used to provide social assistance to staff.   In 2009, at Philpost headquarters, the Office of the Assistant Postmaster General for Administration started recycling biodegradable waste into compost/fertilizer. The compost is used to fertilize the garden outside the HQ.

Waste audits : New Zealand Post carried out waste audits  at 88 sites up to June 2009. The data collected formed the basis for the group's calculation of its waste-to-landfill baseline and the setting of reduction targets for 2009/2010.

Lean green teams : United States Postal Service employees participate in cross-functional 'Lean Green Teams', helping the USPS reduce energy and material consumption and waste emissions. This led to savings of more than 5 million USD in 2010. The teams also helped USPS recycle more than 222,000 tonnes of material, which generated 13 million USD in revenue, and saved an additional 9.1 million USD in landfill fees.

Non-use of plastic bags : Since July 2009, Australia Post has stopped providing plastic bags for its customers. People are encouraged to use their own reusable bags and most post offices sell environmentally-friendly reusable bags.

No nylon bags : There has been a reduction in the Uruguayan postal operator's use of nylon bags. In 2008, it decided to implement a policy to phase out the use of nylon bags in making up items to be sent to business customers.

Using discarded sheets :

Since 2009, Maldives Post has been printing internal documents on the back of discarded A4 sheets already used for one-sided printing. In 2009, 625 reams of A4 paper were used (one realm contains 500 sheets). In 2010, 725 realms were used up to the end of October, but this figure could have been higher still if the Post had not adopted this policy of re-using A4 paper for internal documents.

 Waste recycling :

The Lebanese operator sorts its waste (paper, nylon, glass, food, etc.) and collects them in appropriate containers. A contractor collects it on a daily basis. The paper used in offices is recycled. All departments at Liban Post headquarters are equipped with recycling bins to collect paper, card and plastic. In November 2009, the operator launched its paper recycling initiative to collect recyclable material (paper and plastic), and with the help of Sukleen (the national waste management authority) it was able to deliver the large quantities of recyclables collected on a daily basis. The contractor then recycles the collected materials at local recycling plants and re-distributes them.
Liban Post estimates that 300 to 500 A4 sheets are sent for recycling each day, amounting to between 78,000 and 130,000 sheets, or 390 to 650 kg, per year. Based on the observations and estimates of the maintenance and cleaning contractors responsible for the waste collection at its headquarters, waste has fallen by up to 25–35%, mainly through people being more conscious of the recycling effort and doing their share in terms of reducing waste, reusing paper and printing less

Acting as hubs for waste collection : La Poste (France) has joined forces with  a company that gives used digital equipment a second lease of life by recycling or reconditioning and reselling.

Acting as hubs for waste collection : Japan Post participates  in a scheme to collect used ink cartridges for recycling with six printer manufacturers. In 2009, 1.3 million used ink cartridges were collected and sent back to the printer manufactures for reuse.  The operator has also set up a service that allows members of the public to send in their old electrical equipment for recycling. This provides a means for the Post to provide a service and encourage recycling, while complementing the recycling that it carries out itself.

 Acting as hubs for waste collection : In 1,500 USPS post offices, customers can obtain free mail-back envelopes for recycling inkjet cartridges, mobile phones, PDAs, digital cameras and other similar items. Postage is paid for by a nationally recognized company that recycles, remanufactures and remarkets inkjet cartridges, laser cartridges and small electronic items. In 2009, about 69,000kg of material was recycled through the mail-back envelopes.

 Awareness-raising stickers : At Cambodia Post, awareness-raising stickers are displayed in offices and toilets, which read:

– Please turn the light and water off before leaving.

–Save water and electricity, save the environment.

–Love the environment, love ourselves.

Changing everyday habits in Seychelles Post : All staff are informed through office memos, flyers and posters of the need to save water and electricity. Bills for both water and electricity have fallen as a result.

Mauritius Post raises staff awareness : Circulars and newsletters are issued on a quarterly basis to raise staff awareness of the importance of reducing energy and water consumption. Following the first circulars and newsletters, Mauritius Post's energy and water consumption fell by 10%.  Mauritius Post promotes waste reduction and use of recycled materials among staff. Posters are displayed in post offices to disseminate products prompting post office staff to consider measures to protect the environment, such as eco-designed products made from recycled paper and other recycled materials.

Switch off when not in use :  A "switch off when not in use" initiative has been in place since the inception of the Tanzania Post in 1994.  The operator reminds staff of this initiative through  circulars and notices on staff boards. Tanzania Post estimates that these actions cut consumption of electricity by between 2 and 4%.

Organizing campaigns

Vietnam Post takes part in the Earth Hour and Environment Day campaigns.  Earth Hour is an annual international event launched by the World Wildlife Fund to encourage households and businesses to save electricity in non-essential areas for one hour on the last Saturday of every March.  World Environment Day is a United Nations event held each year on 5 June to raise worldwide awareness of environmental issues and encourage political action.  VNPT's participation in these activities has helped it to reduce water and electricity consumption in postal production activities.

Organizing campaigns :

Morocco Post sponsors campaigns to raise public awareness of environmental issues.  "Let our beach smile" is an annual campaign designed to offer visitors clean and healthy beaches suitable for recreational activities and water sports.  , Morocco Post contributes to public health infrastructure and equipment required for daily cleaning of the beach and waste collection.  This campaign also covers cultural, arts and sports activities. Another campaign involves planting of trees. To celebrate Earth Day, Morocco Post planted 100 trees in the Bettana area of Salé in 2008.

 Organizing campaigns :

"Thailand Post Youth Camp 2008: Thai Youths for a Green Environment" was a project to educate young people about Thailand's postal business and instil a love of nature and awareness of.  Thailand Post lent support to the project "Earth Conservation with Jaew" initiated by Samsip Yang Jaew, a TV talk show broadcast on Channel 3.
All post offices nationwide were turned into drop-off points for used drink containers. The project managed to reduce Thailand's waste by 208 tonnes, the equivalent of 188 tonnes of carbon dioxide. The used containers were recycled and used to make chairs, tables, and stationery items, all of which were later given to the Border Patrol Police School.
 Sorting rubbish : Slovenia Post sorts and separates paper, empty ink cartridges, empty batteries and other waste. About 75% of its waste is recycled.

 Selective waste collecting : Magyar Posta (Hungary) has introduced selective waste collections for some materials. Paper is collected at most of its premises. The Post is continuously expanding the collection of packaging waste and PET bottles.  Collected waste is handed over to contracted partners with the appropriate licence for further processing.   Hazardous waste is also collected separately, and forwarded selectively to the central hazardous waste collection points. Licensed partners transport the waste from these points. Under Hungarian law, only companies with an environmental protection authority licence may transport and treat collected waste.  In 2009, Magyar Posta collected 1,242 tonnes of paper, 40 tonnes of synthetic materials, and 111 tonnes of hazardous waste.

Organizing campaigns : Botswana Post, in common with other countries throughout the world, commemorates the annual World Post Day. An event on the theme of "A postal service committed to green growth" was held at Mmankgodi Village in Kweneng District. In line with the theme, Botswana Post planted trees at three schools, and then donated further trees to the Mmankgodi community as a way of emphasizing the importance of environmental conservation.

 Samoa Post's action plan : Samoa Post has launched a sustainable development action plan, the main targets being:

– Reduction of energy consumption: introducing small-engined vehicles that save petrol, and revising delivery routes to reduce costs and seeing how it hits its bottom line.

– Creating awareness of social issues: company obligations to the community.

– Saving the environment through waste reduction: recycling paper, saving electricity, promoting eco-driving, reducing printing needs, etc.

These actions have contributed favourably to Samoa Post's profitability. YTD results up to May 2010 were as follows:

– Fuel and oil expenses – reduced by 54% compared to YTD budget.

– Computing and equipment – reduced by 53% compared to YTD budget.

– Electricity – reduced by 12% compared to YTD budget.

Based on the visions and action plans, operators set concrete targets.