Our response to
The climate crisis
We believe we have a specific mandate to actively seek to protect the environment.
Our aims
As a church we know that the day-to-day activities of St Nicholas have an impact on the environment in ways which are both positive and negative and we believe we have a specific mandate to actively seek to protect the environment.
In 2020 we set the aim for St Nicks to be net zero by 2030. We wish to minimise our harmful effects wherever and whenever practicable and would love you to join as we look to combat the climate emergency together.
Through A Rocha’s Eco Church award scheme St Nicks has attained an overall award of silver for our response to the environment crisis with a gold award in worship and teaching. We are excited to be working towards further Eco Church awards in the areas of buildings, lifestyle and community and global engagement.
Environmental Policy
The Church holds to the ‘Five Marks of Mission’ agreed by the Anglican Consultative Council of the Anglican Communion, which states that part of the Church’s mission responsibilities is to strive to safeguard the integrity of creation, and sustain and renew the life of the earth.
St Nicholas aims to be net zero by 2030 with the majority of the church aware of and actively engaged in combating the climate emergency together and will work to minimise the impact of its operations through a continuous improvement program.
The Church recognises that the effective implementation of the policy represents an opportunity to improve performance by reducing environmental risks and impacts, and increasing the efficiency of our operations.
Our focuses
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Change to reusables on Sunday with the congregation encouraged to bring keep cups.
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Switch to a green energy supplier and consider carbon offsetting.
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Include teaching on the environment on Sundays and at other events in order to raise awareness.
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Make eco minded purchases including cleaning materials, office supplies, packaging free groceries etc.
In particular, we will:
Comply with all relevant existing environmental legislation and other requirements
Reduce harmful emissions wherever practicable
Seek to reduce consumption of materials in our operations and promote recycling and the use of recycled goods
Manage energy and water usage wisely in all our operations
Incorporate environmental considerations into the procurement of goods and services.
To achieve these we will:
Allocate sufficient management resources to ensure effective implementation of the environmental policy.
Make use of the A Rocha Eco Church Scheme to raise awareness of shortcomings and areas of improvement
Perform periodic audits of our activities to ensure compliance with Bristol Diocese and the wider Church of England’s requirements, UK Government legislation and policy requirements.
Review this policy on a regular basis to take account of new developments in environmental management and legislation
