Fundación Occident organises the second edition of the GCO corporate volunteering sessions

"A total of 163 GCO employees participated in the campaign organised by Fundación Occident, in collaboration with the Ecomar Foundation, in the towns and cities of Madrid, Sant Adrià de Besòs (Barcelona), Getxo and El Vendrell."

GCO continues to promote sustainability and environmental care with a new edition of its corporate volunteering sessions. Specifically, a total of 163 employees of GCO (Occident, Crédito y Caución, GCO Ventures and Prepersal) collected a total of 705.2 kg of waste material from the beaches of El Vendrell (Tarragona), Fòrum beach (Sant Adrià de Besòs), Getxo (Biscay) and San Juan reservoir (Madrid) over several days. The initiative was organised by Fundación Occidente and the Ecomar Foundation.

The employees of Prepersa were the first to participate in this coastal clean-up activity on 17 June, when they gathered on the beach of Sant Salvador in El Vendrell (Tarragona) to collect a total of 154 kg, of which 113.9 kg was debris, 17.8 kg of waste matter, 11.6 kg plastic containers, 9.2 kg glass, 1.5 kg paper, and 2,200 cigarette butts.

In Getxo (Biscay), GCO employees met at Arrigunaga beach on 20 September and collected a total of 196.2 kg of rubbish, which is 6.9% more than the previous edition. 111 kg of this waste corresponded to debris, 57 kg to waste matter, 22 kg to plastic and 5 kg to glass. 390 cigarette butts were also collected.

In Madrid, volunteers met on 27 September on the beach at San Juan reservoir, where they collected a total of 232.9 kg of waste, which represents 48% more rubbish collected compared to last year. 165.67 kg of the material collected was debris, 43.67 kg of waste matter, 14.17 kg of containers, 8.69 kg of glass, 0.7 kg of paper, and 520 cigarette butts.

In Barcelona, a total of 42 volunteers gathered at Fòrum beach in Sant Adrià de Besòs, where they collected a total of 122.1 kg of waste, which is 45% more compared to last year. The rubbish collected consisted of 43.6 kg of debris, 35.1 kg of waste matter, 27.3 containers, 7 kg of glass, 8.7 kg of paper and also 1,230 cigarette butts.

Commitment to sustainability

Apart from the clean-up and rubbish collection on the beaches, the aim was to raise awareness among participants about the problems of debris in the sea and on the shores of rivers and reservoirs, working alongside specialists from the Ecomar Foundation in the clean-up activities.

The CEO of Fundación Occident, Ignacio Gallardo-Bravo, explained that "with these initiatives we want to facilitate meetings and participation among all of the Group's employees across different programmes and actions, and promote its commitment to society and the enviornment".

In this regard, president of the Ecomar Foundation and winner of two Olympic gold medals, Theresa Zabell, thanked “GCO employees for their commitment, dedication and efforts in taking care of the true blue lungs of our planet, our seas and oceans”. 

In terms of its environmental policy, GCO reiterates its commitment to the ongoing improvement in environmental performance and the fight to combat climate change, along with compliance with all environmental regulations.