Shred-it Celebrates Earth Month and our Commitment to Environmental Sustainability 

April marks Earth Month, including Earth Day on 22 April. Earth Day’s theme, “Our Power, Our Planet” focuses on a commitment for everyone to unite behind renewable energy. At Shred-it, we believe in doing our  part to help protect the health and wellbeing of the people and places around us - safely, responsibly and sustainably in mind. We deliver essential solutions that protect the environment, people and public health. 

Our commitment to the environment lasts all year round. Our services provide safe alternatives that help divert medical waste from landfills, shred and recycle our customers’ confidential information, reduce single use plastics through reusable sharps waste and pharmaceutical waste containers, and treat pharmaceutical waste prior to disposal to help ensure active pharmaceutical ingredients do not end up in waterways. 

In celebration of Earth Month, we have planned several sustainability-related initiatives for team members, their families and our customers. The month’s events include nature walks and litter picks, confidential shred events and an art competition to get our team members’ younger sustainability champions involved!  

As part of our commitment to protecting our communities and the environment, we join many like-minded organisations including our NHS customers on their own road to net zero. 

Our partnership with Arbor Day Foundation (ADF) has also helped protect and restore critical ecosystems by planting 6,000 trees in the English Community Forrest. According to estimates provided by the ADF, Shred-it UK reforestation efforts will result in the following positive impacts on the environment over the next 40 years: 

• Sequestering 3415 metric tonnes of CO2* 
• Avoiding 64 million litres of water runoff*
• Removing 13.98 tonnes of air pollutants* 

*Estimates calculated using iTree, a state-of-the-art, peer-reviewed software suite from the USDA Forest Service that provides urban and rural forestry analysis and benefits assessment tools.

In keeping with this year’s theme of “Our Power, Our Planet”, Stericycle is proud to highlight our Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities. Many of our EfW facilities operate on NHS hospital sites where, depending on location, we work collaboratively to power highly-efficient and reliable steam boilers that generate heat and hot water. 

Visit our Shred-it Corporate Sustainability Update to learn more about our commitment to sustainability.