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Environmental Report

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Delivering a greener, more sustainable worldEnvironmental Report

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As a business, we are always looking to reduce our impact on the environment from recycling to minimising our carbon footprint, improving the rights and well-being of our employees, and building and maintaining high standards amongst our supply chain.Bidvest Noonan is a market-leading facilities services group that operates across the UK and Ireland. The business employs over 27,000 well-trained and highly-engaged people to deliver services, including cleaning, security, front of house, and many more.“Climate change has become the defining issue of our time. It presents an immediate challenge that we must face together. At Bidvest Noonan, we are embedding sustainability into every facet of our business and working with clients to decarbonise and protect the environment.”Declan Doyle, Chief Executive Ocer

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Working together for a better tomorrowOur Journey to Net Zero Cleaner Energy and Lower Emissions How we are driving down our emissionsWe are making buildings smarter and greenerWe are managing energy usage intelligentlySaving Water and Preventing PollutionWe are cleaning with less waterEco-friendly cleaningReusing thousands of litres of water each yearLess waste and more recyclingSaying no to single use plasticsCrushing itSecuring our sustainabilityGiving products a second lifePromoting BiodiversityBeekeeping and BiodiversitySupporting Indigenous Biodiversity56810121416212224 2628303233343638Contents

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5BIDVEST NOONANWorking together for a better tomorrowAt Bidvest Noonan, we strive to be an exemplary corporate citizen and to lead by example. That’s why in 2021, we launched Sunrise, our ESG program. Sunrise operates under four workstreams: Community, Workplace, Environment and Marketplace.Within the Environmental workstream, we are working hard with our colleagues and supply chain partners to reduce our impact on the planet, from removing single-use plastics and minimising the waste we generate to embracing technological change. We are facing a climate crisis. The IPCC report 2022 warned that the world is set to exceed 1.5ºC of warming within the next two decades and said that only the most drastic cuts in carbon emissions from now would help prevent an environmental disaster. It is incumbent on us all to play our part. This includes governments, organisations, and as individuals. We must all act together. At Bidvest Noonan, we work hard to reduce our Carbon Footprint and minimise the impact our services have on the climate. We have begun our journey to Net Zero, there will be challenges ahead but we are committed to taking all the necessary steps to achieve our goal.We have split this document into a number of sections to allow you to easily follow and understand the journey we are on and the steps we have already taken. The key message for us all, is that we must act now, if the recent pandemic has taught us anything, it is how quickly we can adapt. I have every confidence that, together, we will deliver a more sustainable planet for future generations.John KingEnvironmental, Social and Governance Director

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT6Our Journey to Net ZeroAt Bidvest Noonan, we are aware of the crisis the world faces because of climate change. We are committed to playing our part to help achieve the key goal of the Paris Agreement, limiting global warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels.

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7BIDVEST NOONANIn 2021, Bidvest Noonan developed a carbon plan which will see our business become operationally Net Zero by 2035.In addition, we are challenging our supply chain partners to improve their environmental performance and we aim to be fully net zero by 2045, verified by SBTi.We project that our carbon emissions will decrease over the next four years to 3,438tCO2e, this is a reduction of approximately 29%. In order to continue our progress to achieving Net Zero, we have adopted a number of carbon reduction projects, many of which are covered in this report.We have a commitment to be operationally Net Zero by 2035.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT8Cleaner Energy and Lower Emissions “Mitigating and adapting to climate change are key challenges of the 21st century. At the core of these challenges is the question of energy — more precisely, our overall energy consumption and our dependence on fossil fuels. To succeed in limiting global warming, the world urgently needs to use energy efficiently while embracing clean energy sources to make things move, heat up and cool down.”- European Environment Agency

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9BIDVEST NOONANCleaner Energy and Lower Emissions

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT10Cleaner Energy and Lower Emissions How we are driving down our emissionsThe Bidvest Noonan fleet comprises over 800 vehicles across the UK & Ireland and it represents circa 93% of our Scope 1 & 2 emissions. We are addressing the impact our fleet has on our Carbon Footprint. By making changes to our approach to fleet management, we will significantly improve our environmental performance.We are concentrating on 5 key aspects to reduce our vehicle emissions:1. We are moving to a fully Electric Fleet. We have a new fleet policy that puts Electric Vehicles at its heart, with a goal of switching 50% of our fleet to electric vehicles by 2026 and 75% by 2028. 2. We are retraining our drivers to ensure they are aware of the impact their driving behaviour has on the environment and the simple steps they can take to improve their carbon footprint while behind the wheel. 3. We are ensuring our teams are using the most energy ecient vehicles to carry out their work.4. We have optimised our maintenance regimes so the vehicles in our fleet consume as little energy as possible.5. We have changed how we plan our routes. We are using route planning software to provide optimal routes for our drivers to maximise eciency, ensuring shorter distances and avoiding trac black spots.The future is electricOur fleet represents c93% of our scope 1 & 2 emissions, we have developed a strategy to achieve zero emissions from our fleet by 2035.“

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11BIDVEST NOONANOur move to electric machineryWe constantly invest in our equipment to improve our performance for our clients and the environment. We increasingly use electric powered equipment and machinery in our operations. In recent years, our grounds maintenance teams have introduced electric road sweepers, lawn mowers, leaf blowers, chainsaws, hedge trimmers and many other pieces of equipment.Electric motor advances have enabled manufactures to produce equipment with comparable power to that older fuel combustion driven machinery. Our shift to cordless electric-powered equipment has a number of benefits including a reduction in noise pollution and emissions. The non-requirement for gasoline and its low noise output is beneficial for both animals and plants.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT12Cleaner Energy and Lower Emissions We are making buildings smarter and greenerBidvest Noonan uses smart building technologies to monitor and control the environmental performance of our buildings. Smart buildings use a combination of technologies to improve the eciency, utilisation and environmental performance of buildings and assets while creating a safe and comfortable environment for occupants. We use sensors and dashboards to design solutions for clients by understanding the current and historical usage of their properties. This means we can monitor building occupancy, power down unoccupied rooms, spaces, or even entire floors to save energy, and only make them available again when needed.The insights provided by our smart technologies enable us to make significant cost and energy savings in areas such as lighting, heating and air-conditioning systems while providing optimum conditions for building users.Smart Building Technology provides:Detailed usage of CO2, humidity, lighting, temperature, and much more.Real-time and historical analysis for better planning and management of energy use.An analytics dashboard containing powerful information to optimise building eciency and save costs.Environmental SensorsUsing data to design solutions and achieve energy savings

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13BIDVEST NOONAN“With energy costs rising rapidly, acting in a sustainable way is more attractive than ever before. We have found with the right technologies and some imagination we can cut emissions and energy consumption while reducing costs for clients.”- John King, Environmental, Social and Governance Director

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT14Cleaner Energy and Lower Emissions Interact is a leading company specialising in the provision of services for the built environment. Interact joined the Bidvest Noonan group in 2021 and has long history of reducing energy consumption for clients in a wide range of sectors across Ireland. Interact develops and implements energy management programmes that result in the immediate and measurable reduction of energy use. They are committed to helping clients reduce their running costs and subsequent environmental impact.The team monitors energy usage across all utilities such as water, gas, electricity, steam, compressed air, and ventilation systems for both building and manufacturing processes throughout our clients’ facilities. Interact Energy Management methodologies include:• Interval Metering systems• Life cycle cost analysis (LCCA)• Thermal imaging• Sta awareness and training• Setting of achievable energy targets• Provide Auditable reports• IoTTechnologiesWe are managing energy usage intelligentlyInteract has helped companies save over €1m in combined operational energy and reduced carbon footprint of over 3,000,000 kg CO2 in the last 5 years.

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15BIDVEST NOONAN

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT16Saving Water and Preventing PollutionWater is a precious resource that should not be wasted. At Bidvest Noonan, we work hard to reduce our water usage at every opportunity. We work with our clients and suppliers to produce water savings plans, often introducing new environmentally friendly technologies that make more ecient use of water.

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17BIDVEST NOONANSaving Water and Preventing Pollution

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT18Saving Water and Preventing PollutionWe are cleaning with less waterWe invest in the best cleaning equipment the industry has to oer. For us that means equipment that achieves great cleaning results while reducing our environmental impact. In the past year, we have increased our use of i-Drives and i-Mops and introduced new technologies including cobotic cleaning machines. Many of our cleaning machines and cobots use integrated solution recovery systems to achieve high cleaning standards without harsh chemicals and using just a fraction of the water.Clean water for allFor every litre of water used in an i-mop, the Made Blue Foundation provides a litre of drinking water to those in need. They have already provided over 1.2 million litres of clean drinking water.How technology helps us save water

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Introducing a new breed of cleaning cobotsThis year, we introduced cleaning cobots to a number of our sites. They are extremely ecient, in terms of energy through optimal mapping and using a fraction of water per hour of traditional scrubber driers. These machines can also be combined with our aqueous ozone systems to remove the use of chemicals.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT20Saving Water and Preventing PollutionOur transport sector team eciently clean more than ten thousand vehicles every day. They clean each one to the highest standards and achieve the fastest turnaround times possible. To dramatically reduce water consumption, our team implemented a number of dierent methods that, combined, have had a significant eect.• Reduced the size of the nozzles through which the water is sprayed onto the bus• Reducing the pressure of the water that is sprayed onto the bus• Implemented a misting system that uses 25% of the water than a normal nozzle would use• Implemented the use of an enzyme-based vehicle wash agent that improves the quality of the recycled water and reduces rinse water by about 50%.How our transport sector team dramatically reduced water useWe have introduced cobotic scrubber dryers to clean train and bus stations. They recycle water through a 4-stage filtration system to maintain consistent operation levels throughout its run time.

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21BIDVEST NOONANOn average it takes around 1,300 litres of water to wash a single bus. This figure is dependent on many factors including nozzle size, pressure of the water systems, water reclaim size and the time taken to run each bus through the wash.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT22By using Eco-label produts,we are preventing thousands of litres of harmful chemicals entering the environment every year.

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23BIDVEST NOONANWe currently use Ecolabel certified cleaning chemicals across many client sites. Ecolabel certification is a guarantee of reduced environmental impact. The substances used are less hazardous and there is reduced waste on packaging.The benefits of using Ecolabel cleaning chemicals include:• They comply with strict restrictions on the number of hazardous substances present, and they cannot be acutely toxic• They limit deforestation and degradation of ecosystems by requiring certification schemes for the sustainable production of palm oil, which is commonly used to produce detergents• They limit the amount of plastic and waste destined to landfill• They ensure less water and energy consumption by guaranteeing that their detergents have optimal cleaning performance even at low temperatures.Eco-friendly cleaningBidvest Noonan has installed aqueous ozone systems at many client sites across the UK and Ireland. Aqueous ozone is a safe, eective, and environmentally friendly cleaning solution. Aqueous Ozone is produced when electricity is used to add an extra oxygen molecule to O2, creating O3. 90% less water used83% less plastic waste76% less cleaning chemicals usedTurning water into an environmentally friendly cleaning agentThe benefits of our aqueous ozone system include:Cleaning with green chemicals

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT24Saving Water and Preventing PollutionReusing thousands of litres of water each yearWe have introduced rainwater harvesting systems on several of our sites to utilise natural resources and minimise mains water for landscaping, flushing toilets, and washing windows. Using rainwater is more sustainable and reduces costs significantly. Our rainwater harvesting systems capture water and use filters to remove any unwanted debris, then treated to take away bacteria. Rainwater harvesting is projected to reduce mains water usage by thousands of litres every year, improving sustainability and reducing dependency on water supply. Our rainwater harvesting systems are assisting our clients to meet their environmental targets and reduce their water costs.Rain Water Harvesting – Use of natural resourcesOur rainwater harvesting systems are reducing water charges for clients while providing a source of water for irrigation of fruit and vegetable gardens and other initiatives.Rainwater usage is projected to reduce mains water usage by thousands of litres per year, improving sustainability and reducing dependency on water supply for gardens.We are helping many clients to reduce their use of water and make cleaning operations more environmentally friendly by installing a simple-to-use water recycling system.Comac InAqua is an external purification system that allows dirty water to be loaded directly from any floor scrubber. The system filters the dirty water used for cleaning floors and makes it available for reuse. The polluting substances are automatically collected in the bags and dehydrated.Water Recycling SystemUp to 150 liters of clean water can be created from dirty water - in just 30 minutes.

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25BIDVEST NOONANOur Industrial Cleaning teams specialise in professional carpet and upholstery cleaning of high capacity seating venues and mass carpeted areas such as cinemas, theatres, oces and local health authority properties. Bidvest Noonan have dedicated truck mount systems manned by a team of professional people with coverage all across the UK & Ireland.The TruckMount Hydramaster system not Sustainable Carpet & Upholstery Cleaningonly optimises operation time but provides a more sustainable method of cleaning carpet and upholstery. The system reduces our impact on the planet by collecting all wastewater and returning it to a dedicated tank fitted in the van. This wastewater is then pre-filtered to remove synthetic fibre and other non-biodegradable materials. The wastewater is then correctly disposed in a sanitary sewage system and not into a storm drain.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT26Less Waste and More Recycling“The concept of the circular economy and related policies have tackled resource use, production, consumption and waste at a high level. This concept aims to close material loops by maintaining the value of products, materials and resources in the economy for as long as possible. This effectively reduces waste generation and the use of virgin material, hence also reducing associated pressures.”- European Environment Agency

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27BIDVEST NOONANLess Waste and More Recycling

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT28Less Waste and More RecyclingSaying no to single use plasticsPlastic pollution has become one of the most important environmental concerns in recent years with production increasing at such a rate that it is becoming impossible to cope. Single-use plastics account for 40 percent of the plastic produced every year and can persist in the environment for hundreds of years. That is why we are determined to remove single-use plastics from our business. Reducing our use of premixed, ready-to-use cleaning chemicals is a key initiative to achieve this. We estimate this will enable us to remove c90% of our plastic chemical containers and remove c80,000 single-use plastic bottles per year. We are substantially increasing our use of concentrated chemicals and dilution control systems. These concentrated chemicals Continuous improvements to reduce our wasteare already widely used throughout the business and operate in various sectors and environments very successfully. By procuring our chemicals in a highly concentrated format we can dramatically cut the amount of plastic and cardboard used, together with reducing the frequency of deliveries, having a significant impact on our carbon emissions.““Humans use about 1.2 million plastic bottles per minute in total. Approximately 91% of plastic is not recycled. Roughly half of our global annual plastic production is destined for a single-use product.”- EarthDay.org

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Our sophisticated dilution control systems manage concentrations to precisely deliver the right dilution rate.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT30Less Waste and More RecyclingThrough bailing and compacting, clients can reduce waste volume by over 90% through the use of the machines in our fleet.“Crushing it Ancove, a highly innovative and award-winning Irish provider of waste management solutions joined Bidvest Noonan in 2021. Ancove provides clients with an easy and ecient way to achieve their waste disposal targets, reduce their carbon footprint and improve their green credentials. The team can provide waste audits to clients allowing them to understand their waste management needs, responsibilities and ensuring they remain compliant with all relevant regulations as well as identifying revenue generating waste streams. Ancove provide baling and compacting machines that are 40% more energy-ecient to clients nationwide. Every year, Ancove helps clients reduce their waste to landfills and promotes their circular economy processes. With the use of these state of the art machines, they can reduce waste collections by up to 80% which directly impacts carbon emission of our clients.By delivering an end-to-end service, Ancove can save clients significant waste disposal costs, reduce the number of maintenance call-outs in addition to minimising their carbon footprint and energy usage.How Ancove reduces waste volumes by over 90%

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31BIDVEST NOONAN

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT32Less Waste and More RecyclingSecuring our sustainabilityPaper-based documentation is quickly becoming obsolete. Our security business now uses paperless electronic systems to log, audit, and report. This method minimises our paper waste but also provides extra benefits such as improved data protection and reduced clutter.Our security business is increasingly using electric vehicles to carry out their mobile patrols. They are playing a big part in our goal to drive down our emissions. The shift to an all-electric fleet with zero emissions by 2035 is well underway. Our patrol drivers are being retrained on driving behaviour and route planning is constantly being optimised.How our security teams are embracing sustainabilityDressed for SuccessBidvest Noonan is providing suits that are surplus to the requirements of our security and front of house teams to charities that help unemployed people in need to dress for their interviews. This address a social challenge while keeping garments from landfill.

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33BIDVEST NOONANGiving products a second lifeWe launched our new Sourcing Solutions business unit in Ireland earlier this year. This new business unit meets our clients’ needs across a wide range of ancillary FM services that span areas ranging from janitorial supplies, washroom services, pest control, and many more. Our Sourcing Solutions business unit is committed to supporting sustainable initiatives by developing strong partnerships with suppliers that share our environmental vision. We provide our clients with eco-friendly products that are recyclable or made from recycled materials, including paper towels, toilet rolls, and utensils.We donate our surplus IT equipment, such as computers, mobile phones and peripherals, to charity partners who support charities, schools, and communities.We collect and send our waste batteries and electrical and IT equipment for recycling. This allows valuable resources, including plastics, metals and glass to be recovered for further use in manufacturing. It also ensures hazardous waste is disposed of safely, protecting our environment. We partner with companies that used accredited processes to guarantee 100% data destruction and optimal resource recovery.Sustainable Sourcing SolutionsRecycling IT equipmentSupporting Circular EconomyOur security professionals return outdated or malfunctioning electronic equipment, such as radios, cameras, and earpieces, to our suppliers who correctly dispose or repurpose them.

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT34Promoting Biodiversity“Nature can deliver at least 30 percent of the emissions reductions needed by 2030 to prevent climate catastrophe. Protecting biodiversity plays a crucial part in achieving these emissions reductions.”- Conservation International

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35BIDVEST NOONANPromoting Biodiversity

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT36Promoting BiodiversityBeekeeping and BiodiversityIntroducing beehives to make a positive impact on the environmentWe have recently introduced beehives across several of our contracts in Ireland and the UK, which has proven extremely beneficial for both the environment and corporate wellbeing. Bees are vital to the world’s ecosystem with approximately two-thirds of the world’s crops relying on pollination from bees and other insects to reproduce plans and seeds for human and animal consumption. The reduction of the bee population has led to a range of environmental threats. Reintroducing them via initiatives like corporate beehives contributes to increasing the bee population and benefiting the ecosystem. In addition to helping tackle the environmental threat of reducing bee populations, it has proven to benefit employee wellbeing, mental health, and productivity.

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37BIDVEST NOONAN“By carrying pollen from plant to plant, pollinators – of which bees are among the best-known – are instrumental in 35% of global crop production. Nearly three-quarters of crops that produce fruits and seeds for human consumption depend on pollinators to some extent”.- World Economic Forum

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ENVIRONMENTAL REPORT38Promoting BiodiversitySupporting Indigenous BiodiversityHow we are using wildflower meadows to protect wildlife At Bidvest Noonan, our landscaping teams cultivated wildflower meadows in dierent clients’ locations, ranging from pharmaceutical to retail, as a solution to return their open space to natural use, while reducing maintenance costs. Wildflower meadows are one method of supporting biodiversity by attracting a range of dierent species. It helps support dwindling populations of native pollinators including butterflies, moths, and bees, helping to sustain insects that pollinate crops. This is particularly important in increasingly built-up environments. Wildflower meadows also create an attractive display throughout the year, with a variety of colours, shapes, and smells. During the winter, wildflower seeds become an important food source for birds and small mammals. Recently, our teams have implemented a wildflower meadow on an area of 4 acres at a client’s site in Ireland. They have used a mixture containing dierent kinds of wildflowers that are typical of many meadows that once grew in Ireland. Before

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39BIDVEST NOONANAfter

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