We carried out a rigorous socio-economic investment appraisal for our supercomputer that showed a net benefit to UK society in excess of £500 million.

Our HQ building has a very efficient water management system. Rainwater is retained onsite and is harvested and used for WC flushing.

The Met Office has initiated a mercury replacement program. Mercury is used widely in thermometers but is a very toxic material. We're looking into safer alternatives which are still accurate enough for scientific use.  

In FY 2010/11 we recycled 74% of our waste at Exeter HQ. The target for FY 2011/12 is 77%.

A new recycling scheme at Met Office Belfast sends only 10% of waste to landfill. The rest is recycled.

The Met Office has an Environmental Working Group which meets monthly to discuss ways to cut-down on energy and utility consumption. Small savings here and there soon mount up...

Outside of normal working hours the lighting in the HQ office areas use motion sensors on a timer. Reducing the timer from 15 to 10 minutes produces 21.33 tCO₂e less per year.

The Met Office has been the first organisation in the world to run a supercomputer using DC power.

The powerful Met Office supercomputer needs to be kept cool. In 2010 we installed clear plastic curtains around the supercomputer. This cold aisle containment system enables hold and cold aisles to be segregated.

The Met Office is the first government organisation to achieve the Wildlife Trust Biodiversity Benchmark Award.

The Met Office has a Biodiversity Working Group. The Exeter site has a wildflower meadow covering 1.2 hectares. We have everything from wild orchids to beehives.

Pilots globally use our WAFC aviation charts and practice Green Flying. Our supercomputer is estimated to reduce aviation's CO₂e emissions by 30 million tonnes globally over its 5 year lifecycle.