Meadfleet achieved carbon-neutral status at the beginning of 2021 and since then we have continued to work with United Nations-backed charity Ripple Africa and their fuel-efficient stoves carbon offsetting scheme. Alongside our customers, we also support Ripple Africa’s sustainable tree-planting scheme.
Fuel-Efficient Cookstoves
To offset our emissions, we support Ripple Africa’s fuel-efficient cookstoves project in Malawi. This provides a safer and more sustainable alternative to the ‘three-stone fires’ that are typically used. The key benefits of Ripple’s stoves are:
- They are cheaper and easier to build.
- Three-stone fires require at least 4 bundles of wood a week, whereas the fuel-efficient cookstoves only require 1 bundle. Not only does this reduce the time outsourcing wood, but it also reduces the number of trees being cut down for fuel.
- Less smoke is produced and the fire is contained within the cookstove, making it safer to use and reducing the risk of burns.
We recently received this update from Ripple, showcasing how much of a difference the stoves are making.
Tree Planting
Meadfleet residents have been extremely generous by donating trees when paying their invoice online. In the last 6 months they have collectively donated 536 trees and Meadfleet topped this up to 1000 trees which were donated to Ripple Africa in December 2022.
It is estimated that one tree can capture a tonne of CO2 within its lifetime, meaning that these trees alone will capture 1000 tonnes of CO2 in their lifetime!
A huge thank you to all of our residents who donated to Ripple’s tree-planting scheme. These trees bring the total number of trees donated from 2021 – 2022 to 3000!
About Meadfleet
Meadfleet is a multi-award-winning, carbon neutral management company founded over 25 years ago. Responsible for over 350 developments throughout England and Wales, we take a sustainable approach to open space management. Our Ecology and Conservation team ensure areas are managed to encourage biodiversity and we are partnered with leading insect charity Buglife, to help make the open spaces we care for more pollinator friendly. In 2021 we were awarded first place in the Pollinator category at CIRIA’s BIG Biodiversity Challenge Awards for their Bee Friendly campaign.
Appointed by housebuilders and local authorities and with a portfolio of more than 350 developments, all with a variety of requirements that include full infrastructure, complex sustainable urban drainage systems, biodiverse species habitat, street lighting, grass care, shrubbery, woodlands, wildflower meadows and play equipment, Meadfleet are the professional and sustainable solution to open space management.
Established in 1995, we are specialists in residential open space management and our aim is to protect and enhance these areas long into the future. We are committed to providing an excellent service and continually improving our environmental credentials, demonstrated by certification in BS EN ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management and BS EN ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management.
We are delighted to be a Carbon Neutral Company, the first in our sector to achieve this. As one of the most experienced and trusted open space management companies in the UK, we take our role seriously. We believe taking climate action is important for companies like Meadfleet and the housebuilders and local authorities we work with.
We’ve signed up to the United Nations (UN) Climate Neutral Now initiative, launched in 2015 to increase climate action. We have pledged to measure, reduce and offset our carbon emissions with carbon credits every year. What’s more, we’ve also chosen to obtain carbon offsetting credits, equivalent to more than our estimated total emissions since Meadfleet first began in 1995.
Meadfleet employ experienced regional managers to proactively manage open spaces and respond to customer queries. As voluntary members of The Property Ombudsman Scheme, we offer our customers access to free, independent redress should this be required.
At Meadfleet we’re passionate about keeping open spaces safe and attractive and also believe it’s important to manage and enhance areas for the benefit of wildlife. We run regular customer initiatives such as giveaways of wildlife friendly seeds, bee hotels and bird nesting boxes. Our Bee Friendly campaign was awarded top prize in the pollinator category at CIRIA’s Big Biodiversity Challenge awards.
Meadfleet’s in-house Ecology and Conservation Team is at the centre of our business culture, leading our approach to open space maintenance. With experience in creating and managing a wide variety of habitats we ensure areas are maintained sensitively and appropriately and oversee continual biodiversity improvements. We understand the additional requirements of Biodiversity Net Gain, both in relation to planning and the 30-year covenant. Meadfleet are uniquely placed in the market to provide the management and maintenance skills required to ensure delivery of the ongoing requirements of biodiversity net gain on residential schemes in perpetuity.
We know that a good quality, natural environment will enhance a local neighbourhood, improve well-being and contribute to improved house values.