Pet crematorium in East Boldon picks up top environmental award

Pet Cremation Services (PCS), based in East Boldon, has earned a silver award from Investors in the Environment (iiE) for its work to reduce its impact on the environment.

To secure the award, PCS, which provides a cremation service for owners when they lose their beloved pets, improved its recycling, reduced the use of gas and electricity, and changed shift patterns to condense the hours that the site operates in an effort to save energy.

PCS also transformed a piece of wasteland into a memorial area with shrubs, seats and ornaments so owners can take time to reflect when they take their pet to the crematorium or go to collect their ashes.

Mark Dorner, the crematorium site manager who over the green initiatives, has revealed that the improvements made are just the start as the team eye up the top iiE award.

He said: “As a pet crematorium, we are caring by nature so looking after the planet is a natural extension of caring about owners and their pets.

“As a business, we want to embrace more sustainable ways of working as we know how animals and the planet interact, so it is our duty to do something to protect the environment.

“The whole team has pulled together to look at ways we can operate as sustainably as possible and minimise our impact on the environment.

“By making even just small changes, we can achieve our targets and help to create a more sustainable future.

“We now hoping to achieve the top iiE green award.”

On the back of receiving the iiE silver award, PCS is now planning further improvements at its East Boldon site, with investment in a new cremation machine which will be more energy efficient.

The team is also planning to carry out a litter pick around their local community this coming spring.