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Clean Water improves access to drinking water

Environment

Clean Water improves access to drinking water

2020

Since 2020, Teréga has been working with another organisation, EcoAct, in a carbon offsetting scheme: Clean Water. The aim is to develop access to drinking water for rural communities in Eritrea. The project has knock-on benefits, because in addition to improving sanitary conditions for the people, it also helps preserve the forest, previously being cut down for fuel to boil the dirty water.

Well restored through the Clean Water project in Eritrea

Objectifs

The Clean Water project has a twofold objective: to protect the environment and ensure local communities have sustainable water supplies.

Objectif n°1

To restore

wells in Eritrea

Objectif n°2

To protect

forests against deforestation

Objectif n°3

To develop

the local economy by freeing up time among children and women

Objectif n°4

To create

jobs on the ground to monitor the project

Teréga: committed to responsible offsetting

In 2017, Teréga launched an internal programme to write environmental responsibility into its business plan: BE POSITIF. The aim of our process is to set up practical actions to avoid the impacts linked to our activities and reduce those which cannot be avoided. Finally, greenhouse gas emissions that cannot be cut and cannot be avoided as part of the proper running of our facilities are offset.

As part of our carbon offsetting scheme, we have chosen to work with the EcoAct organisation, which develops international projects that meet the standards of two highly respected offsetting certification schemes: VCS and GoldStandard. Those certifications recognise high-quality projects, operating in total transparency.

Our environmental approach involves the whole company, and so a number of projects were put to the vote among our employees. It was Clean Water’s “knock-on benefit” approach, linking health, social and environmental issues, that won over Teréga’s workforce.

Clean Water: helping people to protect nature

Clean Water’s objective is to preserve the forest, a natural carbon sink, and at the same time improve living conditions for local populations in Ethiopia and Eritrea. At present, drinking water is not accessible in certain rural regions within those countries. For day-to-day needs, people use the water from lakes or rivers, putting themselves at risk of contracting serious diseases. So that they can drink that unclean water, they devote a large amount of their time to collecting wood to boil the water, which also leads to a problem with deforestation.

By restoring dilapidated wells, Clean Water should enable 24 million litres of water to be produced every year, saving 20,000 trees in the process. Jobs are also created on the ground to allow the long-term maintenance of the wells, and thus ensure a sustainable supply for local communities. Since 2020, Teréga has been investing in the Eritrea-based project. We offset 100,000 tCO2e in 2020, representing a budget of about €600,000.

Figures since Clean Water was launched

378

wells repaired since the start of the project

218 263

people supplied with drinking water

777 699

tonnes of CO2 saved

24

million litres of drinking water produced each year

Head of the Environment Department and CSR

Laëtitia Mahenc

laetitia.mahenc@terega.fr

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