Environment

Sustainable products, energy efficiency and renewable energy, minimisation of CO2 emissions, waste reduction, water consumption

Management approach

Vetropack is committed to the conservation of natural resources. The objective here is for production operations to have the lowest possible impact on the environment. On the one hand, this is necessary in order to position glass as a product that is more sustainable than other packaging materials. On the other hand, a minimal environmental impact is important because an increasing number of stakeholders are now focusing on environmental issues. The political pressure being exerted in energy-intensive industries is growing and politicians and interest groups are demanding that effective measures be taken to reduce CO2 emissions. Ultimately, efficiency measures lower costs as well.

The impact of the glass industry on the environment and natural resources largely results from the energy-intensive melting processes utilised at glass-production facilities. Energy efficiency in the supply chain is primarily influenced by raw materials and packaging materials processing and the transport of raw materials and finished products. Vetropack therefore focuses on increasing the energy efficiency of its furnaces and increasing the proportion of used glass in production. Another important way to conserve natural resources is to reduce the weight of glass containers. Production operations already conserve water resources to a very large extent because water is used only as a coolant in glass production and its consumption is regulated in a closed-cycle system. Vetropack also seeks to produce as little waste as possible. Such waste that is produced mainly results from the processing of used glass, and this in turn is due to the fact that large amounts of foreign materials are still being deposited into used-glass collection containers.

The Environment specialist group is responsible at the Group level for coordinating and monitoring all environmentally relevant activities. This group develops and issues binding guidelines and minimum requirements on the basis of the Vetropack corporate strategy and sustainability policy and the Group’s environmental management targets with respect to energy and water consumption, emissions and waste volume. During the year under review, the furnaces in Nemšová, Slovakia and Gostomel, Ukraine were either repaired or completely rebuilt. Because the latest technological knowledge is incorporated into the planning process for every furnace repair or new construction project, the specific energy consumption of the aforementioned furnaces was reduced in each case.

Information on the environmental footprint of the glass packaging they use is becoming increasingly important to major customers. Vetropack therefore reviews the progress it makes in terms of environmental performance using various indicators for which annual targets are defined. The achievement of these targets is then continually monitored. The indicators used here include various data on energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption and waste volume. Vetropack evaluates its environmental management activities by means of internal inspections and audits and – where required by law – inspections by certified external institutions.

Disclosures

GRI 301 Materials
301-2 Recycled input materials used
GRI 302 Energy
302-3 Energy intensity
GRI 305 Emissions
305-1 Direct GHG emissions (Scope 1)
305-2 Energy indirect GHG emissions (Scope 2)
305-4 GHG emissions intensity
GRI 306 Effluents and Waste
306-2 Waste by type and disposal method

GRI 303 Water and Effluents
303-1 Interactions with water as a shared resource

In general, no water is needed to produce glass. Water is used only as a coolant and its consumption is regulated in a closed-cycle system. Cooling water occasionally needs to be replaced, and Vetropack reviews its water consumption on an annual basis (see 303-5).

303-2 Management of water discharge-related impacts

The quality of wastewater discharge systems must comply with the minimum standards of national and/or local governments. Vetropack complies with all wastewater discharge regulations that apply to its production sites.

303-5 Water consumption