Towards circular economy
“A society without waste is Blue Lagoon’s motto in protecting our serene environment.”
A society without waste is the motto of Blue Lagoon in protecting our serene environment and the goal of the Resource Park in the re-use of resource streams. When designing and developing new experiences or products, one always looks at the natural resources and residual resource streams to evaluate how they can be better utilized. The operations of Blue Lagoon include various other waste materials / residual resource streams which the company works equally hard on to sort and separate for reuse or recycling, thus creating added value for the company and the local community.
Circular packaging
All of Blue Lagoon’s new products are designed and manufactured in eco-friendly circular packaging, primarily in cardboard, aluminum and glass instead of plastic. Products in plastic packaging are only sold to clear warehouse stocks, but will then be produced in circular packaging. All paper used for packaging comes from responsible forestry and is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified. We are constantly striving to reduce waste in operations by diminishing the amount of packaging and choosing multiple-use over single-use materials. To follow up on this ideal, the company will place greater emphasis on the multiple-use packaging of skincare products in its operating units in the coming year and launch refill stations in its stores in Reykjavík.
COSMOS (COSMetic Organic and natural Standard) is a cosmetics standard with a strong emphasis on environmental protection in cosmetic production methods, ranging from the responsible use of resources, to the use of eco-friendly packaging and detergents, as well as ensuring the best quality ingredients in cosmetics for the benefit of consumer welfare and nature.
Waste
In 2021, the recycling rate was 35%. However, the company aims to enhance its sorting and achieve a recycling rate of over 50%. The volume of waste decreased in accordance with the reduction in the number of visitors during COVID-19 and was 60% less than in 2019. Due to atypical operations during the year, a higher recycling rate was not achieved.
Paper – 50 trees less
All paper purchased by the company is PEFC or FSC certified, i.e. the producer is responsible for the responsible utilization and cultivation of forests.
In 2021, 44% fewer A4 sheets were printed compared to the previous year and 7 times fewer sheets than in 2016, which is equivalent to having to cut 50 trees less in 2021 to produce printing paper compared to 2016. This result can be attributed to many improvements within the company, such as electronic signing and the increased use of cloud solutions.
The company now only offers its customers paper and reusable bags for sale to reduce unnecessary waste. The number of paper bags sold increased in line with the increase in visitors, but the volume of reusable paper increased tenfold between years.
In 2020, two out of every 100 bags sold were reusable, but in 2021 this number grew to 13 out of every 100. The number of print rolls also decreased by a third, despite an increase in the number of visitors, and they have decreased more than tenfold since 2018.
Plastic – A plastic-free experience
For the past two years, Blue Lagoon has mapped its plastic footprint with regard to disposable plastics in guest experience processes and products for their customers. During this time, the company has worked systematically to reduce its plastic footprint and aims to eliminate all disposable plastic from its guests’ experiences. The company’s plastic footprint has been reduced by 78% since 2019. This success can be attributed to changes in the supply of flip-flop sandals, reusable glasses in the lagoon, reusable carrier bags, the more eco-friendly packaging of the company’s food and skincare products and other enhancement projects.
Sigurður Long
Information technology & digital development
“We are placing particular emphasis on digital solutions that increase the efficiency and flexibility of both our employees and customers. The goals of these projects are to boost staff efficiency and customer satisfaction through, among other things, increased flexibility in booking. We will use digital solutions to significantly reduce printing and, at the same time, diminish the number of printing areas. The Blue Lagoon’s human resources team has put a special effort into modernizing human resource tasks by increasingly using electronic solutions instead of paper. We are focusing on increasing technological innovation in the company with a view to improving its overall economic and environmental wellbeing.”