Modern Slavery Policy Statement

Introduction

This statement sets out Evergreen Water Solutions (EWS) Ltd.’s actions to understand all potential modern slavery risks related to its business and to put in place steps that are aimed at ensuring that there is no slavery or human trafficking in its own business and its supply chains. This statement relates to actions and activities during the current calendar year.

As part of the engineering industry, EWS recognises that it has a responsibility to take a strong approach to slavery and human trafficking.

EWS is absolutely committed to preventing slavery and human trafficking in its corporate activities and to ensuring that its supply chains are free from slavery and human trafficking.

This statement covers the activities of Evergreen Water Solutions Ltd and all subsidiaries:

EWS works closely with several engineering companies with expertise in scalable wastewater treatment systems and for municipal and industrial applications, offering a turnkey engineering service. EWS incorporates the initial design and planning to the implementation and delivery of projects. EWS’s expertise in wastewater treatment covers infrastructure development, package sewerage treatment systems and advanced treatment technology for wastewater recycling with the strictest treatment requirements.

Our Head Office is in Hinckley, UK and we have engineers based in the UK and permanent and temporary staff working on site at various locations within the UK and Ireland. We also outsource warehousing facilities and transport services.

We work with several OEM suppliers for the main components of our equipment. We also procure a wide range of goods and services from a variety of suppliers across the world to maintain our equipment and to support our business.

EWS takes its social responsibility seriously and is committed to conduct our business in compliance with the highest ethical values. We apply high employment standards across our business, complying with relevant employment, health and safety and human rights laws to ensure that all of our employees are safe.

In relation to the requirements of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 we aim to highlight and act against any practices in which our employees or subcontractors are:

  • forced to work through mental or physical threat.
  • owned or controlled through mental or physical abuse or threat of abuse.
  • dehumanised, treated as a commodity or bought and sold as property.
  • physically constrained or whose freedom of movement is restricted (e.g., through the retention of passports or tracked movements)

Our Directors and Management Team conduct regular site visits and we request feedback from employees (permanent and temporary) and clients in which any relevant concerns could be reported. We also have an anonymous and confidential whistleblowing policy in which concerns can be reported. We have not to date received any reports that would raise concern that any such practices exist within our business.

We have made key employees aware of ‘red flags’ which could signal concerns relating to modern slavery and to explain how they should respond if they identify any concerns.

We also expect our suppliers to adopt a similar approach in relation to the protection of workers. Our Supplier Code of Conduct, which all new suppliers are required to sign up to, sets out the minimum standards we require from them. It specifically requires our suppliers to comply with workers' fundamental rights and that their workers should:

  • be paid in compliance with local laws.
  • not be required to work more than the maximum hours of daily labour.
  • be free to form or join a worker’s council or union, where appropriate
  • not be subject to any form of forced, involuntary or debt bonded labour.

In addition, we have undertaken a risk assessment of our existing suppliers. We have identified those which supply unskilled labour; security services; cleaning services; and OEM suppliers that are in countries where there is a higher prevalence of modern slavery according to the Global Slavery Index. We plan to request that these suppliers confirm compliance with our Code of Conduct as a priority. We have extended this requirement to all new and existing suppliers.

We consider these steps a proportionate response to the risks we face in relation to modern slavery. We continue to monitor the risks and controls in this area and will respond appropriately if the risks increase.

Declaration

This statement is made pursuant to section 54(1) of the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and constitutes Evergreen Water Solutions’ slavery and human trafficking statement for the current year.

Robert Mannion - Managing Director

Date: 20/01/2025

Evergreen Water Solutions Ltd