As projects built and managed by VINCI have a direct or indirect influence on natural environments, preserving these environments plays a key role in the Group’s design, construction and operations processes. Throughout the project life cycle, the Group’s priority is to have as little impact as possible on natural environments, while adapting to emerging ecological and climate challenges. VINCI provides solutions that address these issues, such as water management (water treatment plants and processes), and ecological restoration and transparency (reconfiguring stream and river channels, wildlife crossings, etc.), while continuing its innovation programme to bring relevant, effective solutions in all stages of a project.
To this end, by 2030 VINCI pledges to:
In 2022, VINCI business lines followed their road maps that take natural environments into account and sometimes adjusted their targets. To support them in these endeavours, several VINCI companies have forged partnerships with the scientific community and non-profit organisations (see paragraph 3.1.5, “Dialogue with stakeholders”, page 228) to inform their programmes with accurate expertise.
A governance approach for biodiversity preservation has been in place for several years to coordinate the Group’s commitments (see paragraph 3.1.1.1, “Internal governance”, page 221). A Biodiversity Task Force, comprised of about 90 ecology experts and environment managers from VINCI’s different activities, meets three times a year. It is responsible for monitoring the regulatory environment, developing scientific expertise, analysing risks, promoting initiatives and sharing best practices.
In 2020, VINCI continued its support for the voluntary initiative act4nature international, launched by the French organisation Entreprises pour l’Environnement and many other partners. The Group is one of the 67 companies to be part of the coalition, which aims to integrate biodiversity issues into all business strategies and models, and at every level in an organisation. VINCI’s action plan covers five main points (https://lc.cx/IkkKOE) and was approved by the act4nature international Steering Committee, made up of representatives of environmental NGOs, scientists, government authorities and business networks. Progress on road map implementation is reviewed regularly and publicly disclosed. Several Group entities are also involved in act4nature programmes at the national level. For example, ANA, the company that manages the airports in Portugal, became a signatory to act4nature Portugal, an initiative from the Business Council for Sustainable Development (BCSD) Portugal. The Road France Division and the Earthworks, Maritime and River Works delegation of VINCI Construction are recognised members of the Entreprises Engagées pour la Nature – act4nature France programme, supported by the French Office for Biodiversity and the Ministry of the Ecological Transition, for their action plans to promote biodiversity.
Group businesses take steps to prevent environmental incidents, reduce noise and light pollution and improve air quality in both the construction and operating phases. VINCI’s duty of vigilance plan, in accordance with regulations (Law 2017-399 of 27 March 2017 on the duty of vigilance of parent companies and subcontracting companies), details the structures in place to prevent any harm to the environment (see paragraph 4.4.3, “Tailored actions to mitigate risks and prevent serious impacts”, of the Group’s duty of vigilance plan, page 278). All Group business lines also conduct employee training and awareness initiatives (see paragraph 3.1.4.2, “Training and awareness”, page 227).
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Environmental management plan Performance indicators
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Training Performance indicators
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As the Group’s business activities could be responsible for pollution and environmental incidents, its environmental ambition aims to prevent these events by systematically implementing an environmental management plan. Procedures and measures planned in case of an environmental incident are outlined in the Group’s duty of vigilance plan (see paragraph 4.4.3, “Tailored actions to mitigate risks and prevent serious impacts”, page 278).
Water quality
On sites (motorways, airports, quarries, etc.), retention ponds are created to allow suspended solids in run-off and pumped water to settle, and to limit the potential impact of any accidental pollution. For example, on VINCI motorways in France, 100% of salt piles are covered and 90% of motorways in service have been equipped with either natural water protection systems or engineering structures that address potential problems to prevent accidental pollution in the surrounding natural environment. On the Escota network, five nets were installed along outlets in order to recover large amounts of waste and prevent it from reaching the roads and waterways. The multiple walls on these pollution traps retain both large waste (plastic bottles, aluminium cans, etc.) and micro-waste (polystyrene debris, cigarette butts, etc.).
At worksites, a range of systems can be deployed depending on needs (impermeable loading areas, anti-pollution kits in machinery, anti-pollution pads, temporary retention ponds, etc.). Large earthworks sites employ new techniques to limit the release of suspended solids into the natural environment. The Earthworks, Maritime and River Works delegation of VINCI Construction’s Networks France Division has developed a module for treating surface water during worksite operations, via filtration combined with the microdosing of flocculant, which is thus only used to the extent necessary for processing. The amount of flocculant is strictly adapted to the water load and flow rate, thus allowing discharge without suspended solids being released into surrounding ditches or waterways.
