The Environment
OHL ŽS has been applying principles of sustainable development, i.e. balancing economic development with an environmentally-friendly approach and social responsibility.
The attitude of the company to environmental protection is defined by the managing standard of the company titled “Ecology Rules”, being further specified in detail for the Transport Construction Branch in the “Contract Management with Respect to the Environment” standard, and for the Surface Construction Branch in the “Construction Management Rules” standard. The “Construction Cost Management – Envi Accounting” document dealing with environmental costs is loosely related to these issues, and also the “Construction Cost Management – Identification and Evaluation of Environmental Aspects and Impacts” document.
All these internal documents are based on statutory requirements summarized in the “Register of Statutory Requirements” and obligations arising from EMS and EMAS certified systems.
OHL ŽS and Waste Management
Waste management is executed by employees authorized for the area of waste management or, as the case may be, by managers in individual locations in accordance with the “Ecology Rules” managing standard. Waste production is continuously registered on the site of the waste origin and in the information system database. Costs expended in this area are annually evaluated by means of envi accounting. In general, it may be stated that waste production depends on the type of implemented construction projects, and also that we have been successful in keeping the amount of dangerous waste at low levels. This effect is caused, besides other things, by the increased application of used product repurchasing.
OHL ŽS and Chemical Management
In accordance with the Ecology Rules, the management of dangerous chemical substances and agents (DCSA) is executed by employees responsible for chemical management. All dangerous chemical substances and agents are recorded, storage facilities and workplaces with these substances are equipped with valid safety data sheets or (if applicable) rules for their handling and other requisites ensuring safe handling with respect to employees’ health and environmentally-friendly handling. Concurrently, the central corporate database of safety data sheets and rules is created on the portal of the company. During the reconstructions carried out in past years, condensers with PCB content were replaced and now should not occur in practice.
The general trend the company applies in the area of DCSA utilization is their gradual replacement with substances friendlier to employees’ health and to the environment.
OHL ŽS and Air
Nowadays, the company has only minor stationary sources of air pollution. The boiler plant utilizing solid fuels in Sibiřská Street, Olomouc was equipped with a new, more efficient boiler of adequate capacity last year. Furthermore, there are gas boiler plants in the Brno-Slatina premises, where minor repairs were planned and carried out to ensure that regulations on flue ways are met. The gas boiler plant in Heršpická Street (BAUHAUS), Brno, which is a medium pollution source, no longer belongs among the assets of the company.
The above specified sources of pollution are regularly reported and any fees stipulated by law (if assessed) are paid for them. The reporting duty does not apply to the other operated small sources of pollution, hence only flue ways are examined and the efficiency of combustion is measured.
OHL ŽS and Water Management
The area of water protection is secured in compliance with the Ecology Rules by employees in charge of water management. Sewage treatment in all permanent bases of the company is outsourced through the operators of water distribution and sewage collection systems in respective locations or through specialized companies securing the treatment of sewage and septic tank sludge. Wherever it is necessary, regular sewage analyses or controls of tightness of sewage collectors (the Brno-Slatina premises) are carried out. A review of the Emergency Plan in the Brno-Maloměřice premises was carried out and approved by the water management authority, having subject-matter and local jurisdiction, training was provided and the emergency plan was put to practice.
Activities of OHL ŽS Related to Environmental Protection
- Education of employees
- Penalties for damage to the environment
- Certification
In 2007, the regularly held annual courses for managers and other professions were carried out, providing training to foremen and site engineers and other production engineers on the organisation of environmental protection in our company and all environmental legal regulations, the knowledge of which is required for the performance of the respective function.
In 2007, the Czech Environmental Inspectorate imposed a fine on OHL ŽS, a. s. for causing damage to the root system of some lime trees on the site of the “Sewer System Olomouc Reconstruction – Collecting Pipe E”, as, in this case, the project preparation stage was neglected, the applicable technical standard governing works carried out in the close vicinity of wood species and in the area of their root systems was not applied which led to the above specified damage. As a response to this situation, a training course dealing in detail with the issues was integrated into the current training system with the aim of avoiding any similar failure in the future. Under the certified ISO 140001 system, a supervision audit was carried out last year without detecting any serious deficiencies.