and Outstanding could be possible. The UK Green Building Council framework for net zero carbon buildings has also been applied. Engagement We look not only at the impact of our buildings themselves, but also our potential to influence wider planning through our relationship with our local councils and communities, including extensive public and community engagement onsite. Our staff are at the forefront of ensuring these new spaces align with our sustainability objectives. From energy conservation measures to waste reduction initiatives, we rely on the active engagement of our employees to implement and champion sustainable practices. Achieving high environmental standards can also offer co-benefits for staff, through increased comfort, well-regulated temperatures and improved lighting. Between 2024–2030 our aims are to: • embed best practice in environmental performance in our new spaces; including but not limited to achieving (i) BREEAM Excellent and PassivHaus accreditation for Boston Spa Building 33, (ii) achieving BREEAM Excellent and 40% whole life carbon savings for St Pancras Transformed, and (iii) targeting BREEAM Excellent and net zero in operation from opening (c.2030) for our new Leeds site • reduce lifetime carbon emissions (embodied carbon from the build itself and operational carbon when it is running), for example by prioritising materials that have recycled materials, are locally sourced and/or have long life-cycles; utilising low carbon technology such as solar panels and air-source heat pumps; and prioritising green transport methods • deliver net zero carbon in operation by 2050 at the latest, with a maximum of 10% of this achieved through offsetting, using the first full year of operation as a baseline • create new spaces which are nature-positive, meeting or exceeding planning targets for biodiversity net gain while engaging our communities in growing • design for climate resilience, taking into account potential climate change scenarios. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 22
1.4. Collection management Collection management is the set of policies, processes, technologies and people that are in place to ensure efficient and coordinated management and processing of collections, so that they are accessed by users and remain relevant. Doing this more efficiently will reduce our energy use and associated carbon emissions and reduce the materials we store and use. We have: • a physical collection of over 170 million physical items. Most are held in specially constructed storage facilities located at our London or Yorkshire sites • an even larger digital collection, with multi-millions of items and individual files, sized at over 3.7 PB of data [2024], some digitised physical items and some ‘born-digital’ • collection metadata; the structured information required to efficiently manage, access and preserve the collection. The continually expanding collection therefore requires increasing quantities of storage in both physical and digital spaces. Minimising the carbon footprint of this growing collection through maintaining and upgrading spaces towards best practice can both ensure the longevity of the collection as well as enabling sustainable practice. To date environmental parameters for all storage areas has adopted a pattern of seasonal drift. In St Pancras, out-of-hours shutdowns in basement storage areas reduce energy consumption. Implementation of a new Library Services Platform and a Digital Repository will streamline key Collection Management workflows, gaining greater consistency and efficiency in the digital areas for collections and metadata. Sustainability aspirations will influence the digital collection management and preservation processes that are built upon the new estate. The computer power required of large-scale processing of collections will be factored into decision-making and prioritisation. Risk assessments and business need will drive decision-making around retention of multiple copies of items, including access copies as well as preservation masters. In all of this we will need to move in step with sector bodies and with those other libraries and museums with whom we regularly loan items for exhibitions. Between 2024–2030 our aims are to: • continue to review environmental parameters and seek further ways to reduce energy use while maintaining the collection, including engagement with sector bodies and peers • implement the latest generation of Library Services Platform and Digital Repository to gain efficiencies and consistencies in managing metadata and digital collections • better understand the impact of the content strategy and collection expansion to ensure collection growth is planned and appropriately accommodated within storage capacity • evolve environmental practice across core library functions and practices and test and explore new and innovative approaches and solutions for positive environmental change. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 23
1.5. Technology infrastructure Following the cyber-attack of October 2023, and the ongoing delivery of our Rebuild and Renew recovery programme, our renewal will be sustainable where possible. The increasing reliance on technology within the Library, as demonstrated by the impact on operations and services following the cyber-attack, necessitates an understanding of the climate impact of these services and how we can help reduce this in the coming years without degrading service. The entire technology estate will rationalise the number of devices, to reduce waste and power consumption. The new computer infrastructure will be up-to-date and power efficient. Legacy systems will not be returned as they were, if not sustainable, and a combination of cloud storage and local storage will be used, to achieve reliability and ease of access while reducing carbon emissions. Technology can help deliver sustainability by concentrating on: • a sustainable recovery: Projects within the Rebuild and Renew programme will follow a set of agreed sustainability principles, where possible. Guidance and training have been offered • energy efficiency: Procuring energy-efficient devices and implementing power management techniques; powering down of environments when not required, and consolidation of the physical and virtual server estate • cloud computing: Cloud computing takes advantage of investment providers have put into data centre efficiency, runs our services on the same infrastructure as other organisations, and is often powered by renewable energy while reducing reliance on hardware • network infrastructure: By investing in our network infrastructure and associated collaboration software, technology can help ensure that teleconferencing and virtual meetings can become as effective as onsite meetings thereby reducing the carbon footprint associated with business travel • software practices: There is an emerging recognition that how we develop software can reduce our carbon footprint, e.g. by moving to event-driven architectures rather than wasteful polling, thinking about the use of data, how caching reduces data exchanges, and understanding the energy usage of the application especially during development. There are challenges though, including the growing use of AI, electronic waste and tackling digital inequality (access to technology and digital resources, globally and within the UK, is not equitable, so the challenge is to ensure digital services help bridge this gap rather than make it wider). Between 2024–2030 our aims are to: • ensure a sustainable recovery from the cyber-attack and other subsequent change programmes. This involves rationalisation, piloting the Library’s Principles for an Environmentally Sustainable Recovery in the Rebuild and Renew programme, and learning from this for the future • embed sustainability in our digital strategy and AI policy, including understanding our digital carbon footprint, the impact of AI, and methods /protocols to reduce this while maintaining security and access • implement practical methods to reduce lifetime carbon emissions from technology. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 24
1.6. Transport and travel Transport and travel accounted for 9% of our carbon emissions in 2023/4, however, we only gather and report certain categories currently: • work-related transport and travel – data is gathered and reported. o Travel and transport generated 589 tCO2e in 2023/4 (9% of the Library’s total core emissions). Reductions have already been made; emissions are down 24% from the first year of measurement (2008/9) o Of the travel emissions, the majority (70%) come from flights, with 20% from delivery & distribution, including the link van which delivers daily between our sites, and 10% from fleet, road and rail combined • object and collection transport – the link van only is reported, couriers / loan items are not • staff commuting and visitor travel – data is not yet gathered. Against the mandatory Greening Government Commitments we are on track. Greening Government Commitment 2017/18 baseline 2023/24 Progress Status Reduce the number of domestic business flights by at least 30% by 2025/6 28 10 -64% On track Travel and transport at our sites Emissions caused by staff commuting, visitor travel and deliveries in non-Library vehicles come under scope 3 and so are not currently measured. However, we already know our two main sites are in very different situations when considering sustainable and active travel (see sustainable travel hierarchy). St Pancras is well-served for public transport and nearly all UK staff and visitors arrive by active or sustainable travel methods. It has cycle parking for staff and visitors and staff showers. The St Pancras extension will deliver extensive new cycle parking. Multiple deliveries come to our site and to our neighbours within the Knowledge Quarter. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 25
Boston Spa is rural and poorly served by public transport. The vast majority of staff and visitors arrive by car. It has cycle parking and one electric vehicle car charging post. Multiple deliveries come to site, from different publishers and distributers (around 55 per week). Our two fleet cars are being replaced by electric, at end of operating life. Boston Spa Renewed includes the provision of electric vehicle charging in the loading bay for delivery vehicles. We have 1.5 million visitors every year, of which one in four are international, the majority of whom fly to London. Many of these visitors will be visiting London for multiple purposes. For those visiting solely to access our collection, for example for research, we can reduce travel to a degree through digitisation of regularly used collection items, allowing for remote access. Loans We are mandated to lend collection material to institutions both within the UK and internationally. Upholding standards of care and security is vital during all parts of this process as the collection is most at risk while in transit. On average more than 200 individual items are lent to over 40 venues annually. Since 2021 the rapid introduction of virtual installation at borrowing venues has reduced the need for air travel by couriers. Combined consignments with other London or UK based institutions demonstrates a shared endeavour across the sector to reduce impact of loans travel. A risk-based framework is used within the Library to assess the need and mode of transport for loan consignments to embed the new practices and provide appropriate levels of care and security accordingly. Between 2024–2030 our aims are to: • update our travel guidance and expenses policy, applying the sustainable travel hierarchy, prioritising active and sustainable travel over cars and flights where possible • reduce petrol and diesel vehicle travel to our sites through (i) a fully electric fleet, (ii) installing electric vehicle car charging for staff and visitors, (iii) engaging with publishers and distributers to reduce the number of individual deliveries to site, (iv) working with the Knowledge Quarter to consolidate the use of delivery vehicles, and (v) seeking a new inter-site transport service (the link van) with lower carbon emissions • continue to reduce the emissions from international and national loans. By 2025, we will publish a new strategy that addresses ways of making transportation for loans, exhibition touring, and public library displays greener, including the continuation of our risk-assessed approach of virtual installations and shared couriers wherever possible, reviewing the use of shipping rather than air freight (in line with the updated Bizot protocol) and consideration of new forms international touring • gather improved information on travel to site (covering how staff, visitors and learners come to site) and on all forms of business travel. Continue to reduce emissions from transporting visitors and staff to and from Boston Spa site • explore the feasibility of teams having appropriate carbon budgets for business travel, to enable decisions to consider carbon alongside purpose, cost and time. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 26
1.7. Waste, materials and water The Library consumes considerable materials through our purchased goods and services. Based on a desktop study in 2021, they make up the majority (80%+) of our scope 3 emissions. The things we buy have environmental impacts from their production and from the subsequent waste at end of life (see also Section 4.4 on procurement). Against the mandatory Greening Government Commitments, we are largely on track, barring water. Greening Government Commitment 2017/18 baseline 2023/24 Progress Status Reduce the overall amount of waste generated by 15% by 2025/6 457 tonnes 243 tonnes -47% On track Reduce waste sent to landfill to less than 5% of overall waste 0% 0% n/a On track Increase the proportion of waste recycled to at least 70% of overall waste 66% 65% 5% below target Close to target but at risk Reduce paper consumption by at least 50% by 2025/6 3,412 A4 reams Equivalent 1,939 A4 reams equivalent -44% On track Reduce water consumption by at least 8% by 2025/6 50,699 m3 3 63,960 m +26% Off target General waste and the circular economy We send zero waste to landfill (disposal) and are committed to maintaining this. Our aim at all times is to minimise waste and to dispose of it appropriately. We employ the widely recognised waste hierarchy, sending the majority of our waste for recycling and the remainder for incineration. While this waste incineration is ‘green’ in that the heat generated is converted into energy, it still represents carbon emissions. We are close to target on recycling; our performance is reduced because we exclude examples of re-use, such as donating furniture to local schools and community groups. Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy_2024_Final Issued.docx 27