IN 2020, EY'S CLIMATE CHANGE AND SUSTAINABILITY TEAM HELPED MAATS PIPELINE PROFESSIONALS CALCULATE AND DOCUMENT THEIR CARBON FOOTPRINT. MAATS PIPELINE PROFESSIONALS MANUFACTURES AND rents MACHINERY THAT IS USED TO LAY PIPELINES, PRIMARILY IN MAJOR INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.

Given market demand, Maats wants to lead the way in the supply of climate-neutral products. Defining the value chain and collecting data on the business processes allowed us to determine Maats’ carbon footprint. And Maats also takes responsibility for emissions that occur elsewhere in the chain. The current footprint was used to identify the most polluting processes, and reduction plans were drawn up on that basis. After all, ‘prevention is better than cure’. For a number of processes, however, there is currently no suitable alternative. These CO2 emissions are offset.

A number of parties offer offsetting projects in the form of reforestation, green energy generation and nature conservation. As things stand, this is only financially viable through international projects. CEO Gerben Wansink is watching Minister of Agriculture, Carola Schouten, very closely. Earlier this year, she announced a plan to plant 17 million trees in the Netherlands by 2040. Maats wants to be one of the first to use this plan as part of its own offsetting activities.

More and more Dutch companies, large and small and in all sectors, are realizing the importance of reducing their CO2 emissions. These developments are crucial in the global fight against climate change, as formulated in goal 13 of the Sustainable Development Goals.

EY has helped us to understand the complete picture of our carbon footprint and to translate that into opportunities. As a result, we shall be able to market our rental machinery carbon-neutral to our clients worldwide.