Performance
We believe that respect for the environment is critical to the success of our business and our aim, therefore, is to continuously improve our performance.
Information on key performance issues is set out below. More detailed information on these and other performance issues is available in our Corporate Responsibility Report 2006.
Compliance
Following on from our improvement in 2005, our compliance with statutory limits on both air and water emissions improved further during 2006.
Climate change and energy use
Climate change has assumed a prominent place at the top of the political agenda and is an issue of substantial public concern. Although typical CO2 emissions from steelmaking per tonne of steel are now around 50% lower than 40 years ago, we recognise that our industry is still a significant contributor to global CO2 emissions.
Management systems
We have achieved our target of securing certification to the international environmental management system standard, ISO 14001, at all of our European manufacturing sites.
Investment in environmental protection
We are committed to reducing our environmental impact whenever it is practicable and cost-effective to do so.
Measurement
We are continuously investing in improving the quality of our measurement and modelling capability.
Emissions to air
Our most significant releases to air, in addition to the greenhouse gases are particulate material, sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), dioxin and fluride.
Water Consumption
Relatively large volumes of water are used to make steel, although the amount of freshwater that we use is difficult to quantify accurately. This is because our large sites have complex water distribution systems, which use and then reuse water from a variety of sources such as wells, rivers, canals and reservoirs. To reduce our overall water consumption we employ a wide range of techniques.
Water Quality
Most of the water we abstract is used for non-contact cooling and is returned directly to the watercourse from which it was taken, with no deterioration in quality.
Resource efficiency
We are committed to improving the efficiency with which we use the earths resources. This is a fundamental aspect of sustainable development and one of our key policy principles. The first priority of our waste management strategy is to optimise the consumption of materials within our processes
By-products
Thanks to improvements over recent years in raw material selection and process control, our by-products meet tight quality control requirements that enable them to be used as alternative, or secondary, raw materials in sectors such as cement and chemicals.
Biodiversity
Due to a combination of factors, from our ownership of large tracts of relatively undisturbed ground, to the application of site-greening strategies at many of our sites and the efforts of enthusiastic employees, wildlife groups, schools and voluntary bodies, our sites provide a haven for a surprisingly rich variety of wildlife.
Nuisance
Our processes are large and complex and many of our production facilities are located close to residential areas. We recognise our obligation to the communities in which we operate, and we face an ongoing challenge to ensure that we do not cause nuisance or distress to local residents.
Supply chain
We believe that our responsibility for managing environmental impact goes beyond our manufacturing facilities
My Order
Energy & Power
- Linepipe
- OCTG
- Process pipe / Petrochecmical
- Jackets
- Topsides
- Power generation
- Renewable energy
- Drilling and well completion
