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A
Corporate and social responsibility report
Annex III -
Reducing our environmental footprint through eco-efficient operations
337
Worldline
2016 Registration Document
and at end of life
Focus on the processing of payment terminals during use
Worldline is a member of Recupel, which recycles used
electronic appliances and light bulbs, and Bebat, which
repurposes old batteries by collecting, sorting and recycling
them.
In Belgium, Worldline adopts an exemplary approach to the
circular economy for electrical and electronic equipment.
payment terminals, or return them directly, as required by law.
Worldline Belgium also offers its customers a collection and
recycling service for used or end-of-life payment terminals.
Trade customers can either use special recycling containers for
The collection and preparation for recycling WEEE has been
officially authorized since 2015.
components are salvaged for use as spare parts for new terminals,
after undergoing rigorous quality control.
temporary storage. After analysis, Worldline endeavors to
repurpose these terminals: once cleaned and reprogrammed they
can be reused, enabling Worldline to be part of an effective
circular economy. Other terminals are disassembled and the
The terminals are then sent to warehouses where they are held in
European specialist in the recycling of ferrous and non-ferrous
metals. Printed circuit boards are managed and processed by
Umicore, which specializes in the recovery of precious metals.
boards, metal parts, housings) are sorted in special containers.
Worldline also optimizes its waste transport: it waits until
sufficient quantities of components have amassed to avoid
unnecessary emissions. The Company uses the Galloo group, a
Non-recoverable components (cables, batteries, printed circuit
“Hazardous Waste Collector” approval from the official
For this to be a success, Worldline has officially applied for
environmental management body for the Brussels region
(IBGE). This requires it to follow strict rules on storage, safety and
other environmental precautions. On average, Worldline
Belgium processes 50
tons of WEEE each year.
At the Blois site, recycling is handled by the Company Petit Plus.
The Company is committed to employing people with
disabilities, who make up around 90% of its workforce.
The management of waste payment terminals is similar in
France. Waste is processed by Lumiver Optimet and Defabnord,
in accordance with the European WEEE Directive (2012/19/EU).
Other environmental challenges
A.5.3.3.6
Water consumption
Although water is an essential natural resource, Worldline’s
operations do not impact the environment directly in terms of
water consumption or even in terms of water procurement, on
the basis of current local constraints. Water consumption has
not been identified as a priority area in Worldline’s materiality
matrix.
heat waves, water can also be used to supply some data
centers’ cooling units. Water spray can help to reduce peaks in
power consumption by air conditioning systems.
closed-loop circuit, so consumption is not significant. During
For datacenters, water is mainly required for cooling servers.
The water used for this purpose flows around a special
are then extrapolated for all Worldline employees worldwide.
For other activities, water consumption is associated with the
calculated using the data we have for certain countries, which
tertiary sector and mainly derives from standard office
consumption (employees, cooling systems, catering, etc.). Waste
water is disposed of in compliance with the applicable
regulations. Estimates of global water consumption are
Biodiversity
Although biodiversity, air pollution and land use are critical
environmental issues to consider, Worldline’s operations do not
directly impact those issues on the basis of current local
operations. This issue has not been identified as a priority in the
Atos materiality matrix.
generation, etc. In this respect, Worldline strives to minimize its
environmental impact and to ensure that its suppliers take
appropriate steps to mitigate their own impact.
However, Worldline’s operations, like those of other companies,
could have indirect impacts in the following areas, for example:
land use, energy consumption, GHG production, waste
Foodwaste
the remains. For example, to reduce food waste in foodservice,
Worldline tends to promote the consumption of vegetables or
to charge for the consumption of additional bread. Also, salad
bars have been set up to ensure a sale by weight.
ethical (devaluation of food) and economic (waste treatment
costs). Thus, good practices are carried out on the premises of
collective catering in terms of the management of purchases
and stocks, the conservation of food or the accommodation of
Worldline’s activities do not generate significant impacts on food
waste. Nevertheless, the Company ensures compliance with the
law on combating food waste and in particular article
4 which
incorporates this notion in the social and environmental
responsibility of companies. In fact, Worldline is aware that food
waste is an environmental problem (natural resource use),
Other atmospheric emissions [GRI 305-6] and [GRI 305-7]
oxides (NOx), have not been identified as a priority in Worldline’s
operations or in the materiality matrix.
substances (ODS), including sulfur oxides (SOx) and nitrogen
Unlike the CO
2
emissions described above, ozone-depleting
Other pollution
the Atos group and Worldline’s operations do not have a
significant or critical impact on other forms of pollution, such as
noise pollution. As a consequence, no relevant and appropriate
actions or measures need to be taken in this area.
Materiality matrix identification and analysis has highlighted that