Ford has unveiled ambitious plans to slash its water use and the amount of waste it sends to landfill across its European plants over the next five years.

The car manufacturer’s European arm has already cut landfill-waste generation by 40 per cent and reduced water use by 37 per cent since 2007. However, it announced yesterday a series of fresh targets as part of its New Green Manufacturing Plan.
The company estimates it will save €2.3m (£1.9m) by reducing the amount of water it uses by 30 per cent to produce 1.2 million vehicles a year, equating to about 1.3 billion litres or 1,100 litres for each car or van manufactured.

It also intends to send 70 per cent less waste to landfill across Europe, preventing 5.5 billion tonnes of waste being dumped, primarily by increasing the proportion of waste the company recycles and reuses.

Plants in Southampton, Bridgend and Dagenham will adopt the new targets alongside their European counterparts in Genk, Valencia, and Saarlouis and Cologne in Germany.

Ford said the plants in Saarlouis and Cologne have been leading the way in reducing waste and already send nothing to landfill.

“This plan represents our pledge to minimise Ford’s impact on the environment both before and after our customers get behind the wheel,” said Stephen Odell, chairman and chief executive of Ford in Europe.

“This goes hand in hand with our commitment to develop the most fuel-efficient vehicles. Sustainability makes just as much sense for Ford as a business as it does for the environment.”