WASTE MANAGEMENT

Sun International remains committed to ZWTL for all local units. This is part of our commitment to minimising our waste footprint, improving efficiencies and saving costs. Although our progress here is slower than expected at our local units, we remain committed to achieving our target. By reducing our waste-to-landfill, we reduce our carbon footprint, create job opportunities, improve our reputation and positively impact our bottom line.

Wild Coast Sun received the first ZWTL rating in South Africa from the Green Buildings Council of South Africa. This was achieved by appointing two local enterprise development companies and a recycling company to manage the onsite waste, which created 13 jobs. It also resulted in by-products (compost and building bricks) being produced, which were sold as additional income to the enterprise and supplier development partners.

The focus across the group is to improve the reporting of waste data, minimise the generation of waste, and increase waste separation at source that in turn results in more effective waste recycling and cost reductions.

During 2019, the total waste measured throughout our local units was 7 495 tonnes (2018: 6 863 tonnes), a 9% increase. The increase in the total volume of waste can be attributed to improved data reporting, a waste reduction at certain units (Carnival City, Carousel, Flamingo, GrandWest and Maslow) and recycling rates above 70% at seven units.

Annual waste reduction targets at each unit ensure ongoing progress towards achieving ZWTL. Monthly reporting and tracking of waste reduction and recycling initiatives allow us to analyse trends and monitor year-on-year cost savings at the local units.

In 2019, GrandWest, Table Bay, Carnival City, Maslow Hotel, Central Office, Sibaya and Boardwalk completed the transition to new waste service providers that are aligned with the ZWTL programme. In 2020, there will be external waste audits at GrandWest, Boardwalk and Time Square and internal audits at the remaining local units to ascertain progress in achieving the ZWTL goal.

In 2019, Sun City obtained environmental approval for a waste pyrolysis plant to assist the unit achieve ZWTL. The project implementation is expected in 2021. The unit will apply to postpone the closure of the properties’ landfill site to 2021, and in the interim will continue existing waste management and recycling practices.

In 2020, GrandWest will investigate an onsite solution to transform non-recyclable waste that would have ordinarily been sent to landfill into a viable reusable product. This should assist the unit in achieving ZWTL.

ENERGY MANAGEMENT

Our energy management initiatives focus mainly on improving energy efficiency, energy optimisation and energy conservation. We aim to achieve this by continuing to implement different unit specific energy-saving initiatives, investing in renewable energy projects at relevant units and focusing on behavioural changes related to electricity consumption by our employees, concessionaires and customers.

Through the eco-intelligence dashboard, we can track energy consumption and energy usage against our reduction targets, analysis trends and anomalies. Slower than expected progress has been made with linking our dashboard to real-time electronic electricity meters.

Local units that implemented electronic meters in 2019 were able to identify anomalies and implement corrective actions. The remaining units are expected to implement Phase 1 of the project in 2020 with Phase 2 and 3 expected to be rolled out between 2021 and 2022. Through the electronic electricity meters, the group aims to improve reporting and monitor high consumptive use to identify efficient energy solutions.

The total amount of electricity (Scope 2) purchased by our local units was 231 403 213 kWh (2018: 249 911 965kWh), reflecting a 7% decrease. 10 of the 16 local units reduced their consumption, with the highest reduction (9% or seven million kWh) achieved by Sun City. This was achieved primarily by switching off the resort’s pool heating system. Other ongoing interventions include replacing old equipment with more efficient alternatives, conducting onsite energy audits and continually engaging with employees and guests to improve energy awareness.

Ongoing load shedding continued to impact our operations. This contributed to the decrease in our kWh energy consumption but resulted in increased diesel costs for generators. As a result of our improved fuel data reporting, we were able to determine the cost impact loading shedding had on the local units in 2019 (over R8 million).

Units continued to improve reporting on LPG gas, specifically Flamingo, Sibaya, Time Square and Windmill. The data reflects a 4% increase in consumption in 2019 (675 723kgs) when compared to 2018 (652 230kgs).

Energy data for Latam was reported for nine units across Chile, Argentina and Panama. The year-on-year comparison indicates that five units reduced in electricity consumption, while five units reflected an increase in diesel usage for generators. For LPG, the general trend was an increase in usage for eight units.

Our two African operations showed a decrease in electricity consumption due to less energy supply from the national supplier in Nigeria and in Swaziland due to energy efficiency measures. LPG is only reported for Royal Swazi and the decrease in 2019 was due to equipment maintenance. Nigeria accounts for 99% of the diesel usage for generators and experienced a 3% increase in 2019, due to more frequent use of generators (linked to less energy supply from the national supplier). Royal Swazi also experienced more frequent power outages, which increased diesel usage.

Total Scope 1 emissions increased by 66% (2019: 27 334 tonnes; 2018: 16 459 tonnes), largely due to improved reporting of refrigeration gases (81% increase) and increased generator diesel consumption (57%). Total emissions for Scope 2 in 2019 was 240 692 tonnes CO2e (2018: 237 416 tonnes CO2e), a 1% increase that can be linked to the 9% increase in the Eskom grid emission factor (2019: 1.04; 2018: 0.95). To achieve our 2023 intensity target of a 15% reduction, the local units need to achieve an annual 2.6% reduction when compared to the 2017 baseline data. The local units exceeded the 2019 reduction target for Scope 1 and 2 by being 13% above the target. This is directly linked the increases in the Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions and improvement in the reporting of person hours worked. Only four units achieved their 2019 reduction targets: Carnival City, Head Office, Maslow and Sun City.

A key initiative in reducing our energy and emissions is exploring renewable energy projects. An internal working group was established to identify and evaluate how best to approach this. The responsibility for the development and implementation of renewable energy projects will be that of the newly appointed engineering manager. Although unitspecific projects were identified in 2019 by Sun City and Meropa, it was recommended that an overall group strategic approach for alternative energy supply be developed going forward, to assess the energy profile for local units and identify suitable units for pilot projects.

BIODIVERSITY

Our impact on biodiversity remains largely the same. In addition to our standard management measures to protect important biodiversity, many units continue to monitor and support biodiversity initiatives in and around their operations. Although most units have a limited impact on biodiversity, units such as Wild Coast Sun and Sun City are situated in sensitive areas and we continue to monitor their impact. We participate, where applicable, in protecting the areas we operate in, such as rhino protection and the protection of our coastline (specifically near sensitive fauna and flora). Sun International is also a member of the WWF.

Sun International operates in the food and beverage industry, where supplying sustainable seafood is important. We appreciate the global concern over exploiting marine resources and the environmental impacts of fishing and aquaculture activities on marine ecosystems. Our partnership with WWF-SASSI ensures we continually implement a sustainable seafood strategy across our food and beverage outlets and restaurants. We are committed to driving positive change in the way we source and serve seafood in our restaurants by:

In 2019 we completed our WWF-SASSI 7th organisation assessment, where we:

• updated our seafood policy
• identified all red-listed species for removal from our procurement database
• commenced with tracking the traceability of our purchased seafood with the assistance of our suppliers
• had relevant managerial and procurement staff attend WWF-SASSI training
• updated all menus with new WWF-SASSI logos and communicated our commitment to souring seafood responsibly.