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Environmental
Management
Sustainability Report 2006 |
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Environmentally Friendly Manufacturing (3)
Reducing Hazardous Substances |
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Chemical substances that are used in our lives
can damage the ozone layer, human health and the ecosystem unless
appropriately controlled. Kobe Steel shall continue to properly maintain
its environmental facilities; thoroughly control chemical use or reduce
the use of chemical substances; and switch to safer alternative substances.
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| Uncompromising Control Toward Reduction |
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Kobe Steel set up the Company-wide Chemical
Substance Control Policy and strives for thorough control of chemical
substances.
For example, we use the Control Sheet for Designated Chemical Substances
in all the offices throughout the company. With this Sheet, usage
and management methods are defined for each chemical substance, and
the transferred amount and released amount reported in accordance
with the PRTR Law can be calculated accurately. The Control Sheet
also enables that the content required to be reported under the PRTR
Law is abided, and is used for controlling the amount of consumption
and emissions of the substances. Group companies are being urged to
adopt this Sheet for chemical substance control.
In the total values reported in fiscal 2005 in compliance with the
PRTR Law, Kobe Steel handled 33 substances, released 255 metric tons,
and transferred 178 metric tons in total. As for group companies,
31 substances were handled, 702 metric tons were released, and 691
metric tons were transferred.
*PRTR Law: Pollutant Release and Transfer
Register Law (Law concerning Reporting, etc. of Releases to the Environment
of Specific Chemical Substances and Promoting Improvements in their
Management) |
| Examples of Reduction Efforts |
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To reduce the quantities
of chemical substances in use, it is most effective to develop products
that do not incorporate those substances or production processes that do
not require them.
The Moka Plant of the Aluminum and Copper Company, which manufactures aluminum
sheet for can stock, is working to reduce output of hazardous substances.
It removes 99.5% of the volatile organic solvent (VOC) released from ovens
used in the painting process through combustion in incinerators.
At the Takasago Works of the Machinery and Engineering Company, new cleaning
equipment installed in October 2005 completely eliminates the use of methyl
chloride, which was previously used as a liquid cleaning agent, and completes
the switch to paraffinic hydrocarbon.
At the Chiba Plant of Sun Aluminium Industries, Ltd., the use of formalin
in the color coating of aluminum was eliminated. Formalin is a solution
of formaldehyde and is used as a disinfectant and preservative. It was a
component of the paint that Sun Aluminium was using for its service coating
of colored aluminum. In its attempts to make its color-coated aluminum completely
free of formaldehyde, the Chiba Plant carried out tests on formaldehyde-free
coating and conducted strength tests of the aluminum sheet with regular
customers. It was successful in completely eliminating the use of formaldehyde.
Under the Air Pollution Control Law, formaldehyde is listed as a hazardous
agent of atmospheric pollution requiring priority measures, and companies
are making voluntary efforts to reduce emissions. |
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incinerators
Fully automatic 2-tank vacuum cleaning and drying equipment |
| PCB control |
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Kobe Steel properly stores transformers, capacitors,
and other components that contain PCB (polychlorinated biphenyl) in
special-purpose storage and submits such reports in compliance with
the Law Concerning Special Measure against PCB Waste.
The Kobe Steel Group registered at an early stage with Japan Environmental
Safety Corporation (JESCO), which undertakes PCB disposal. Proper
disposal will be undertaken in the future, based on formulated disposal
plans. |
| Measures to Maintain the Ozone Layer |
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The amount of ultraviolet light reaching the
ground is known to increase due to the depletion of the ozone layer.
In order to protect life from harmful ultraviolet light, we must reduce
the use of ozone-depleting substances. Kobe Steel stopped using cleaners
containing CFC (chlorofluorocarbon) completely by the end of fiscal
1994. |
| Measures against Dioxins |
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For waste incinerators, the amount of incinerated
waste is reduced by promoting the collection of source-separated refuse
and recycling. Also, thoroughgoing operation control is implemented,
such as the preliminary screening of waste, equipment management,
and combustion control. By these measures, dioxin generation is controlled.
In the production process, Kobe Steel controls the operation of sintering
furnaces in compliance with the voluntary guidelines of the iron and
steel industry and implements meticulous equipment control and operation
control for wastewater from aluminum alloy facilities, electric furnaces
for steelmaking, and wet exhaust gas scrubbers. Due to these measures,
dioxins generated unintentionally in these manufacturing processes
are well below the compliance level. |
| Yearly transfer and emission of chemicals specified
in PRTR Law (2005) |
| Unit: kg (dioxins: mg-TEQ) |
Government
ordinance
No. |
Substance |
Kobe
Steel |
Kobe
Steel Group |
| Release |
Transfer |
Number of
plants |
Release |
Transfer |
Number of
plants |
| 1 |
Water soluble
zinc compounds |
4,200
|
0 |
2
|
550
|
22,000 |
2 |
| 16 |
2-aminoethanol |
0 |
0 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
| 30 |
Bisphenol-A
eepoxy resin (liquid) |
- |
- |
- |
0 |
4,400 |
2 |
| 40 |
Ethyl benzene |
6,400 |
270 |
3 |
34,000 |
8,100 |
5 |
| 43 |
Ethylene glycol |
- |
- |
- |
64,000 |
200 |
2 |
| 44 |
Ethylene glycol
ethyl ether |
320 |
42 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
| 59 |
p-octyl phenol |
- |
- |
- |
0 |
1 |
1 |
| 63 |
Xylene |
74,000 |
2,700 |
8 |
330,000 |
16,000 |
11 |
| 64 |
Silver and its
compounds |
- |
- |
- |
0 |
100 |
2 |
| 66 |
Glutaraldehyde |
0 |
0 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
| 68 |
Chromium and
trivalent chromium compounds |
17 |
37,000 |
6 |
360 |
23,000 |
7 |
| 69 |
Hexavalent chromium
compounds |
0 |
320 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| 99 |
Vanadium pentaoxide |
13 |
2,500 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
| 100 |
Cobalt and its
compounds |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
| 101 |
Ethylene glycol
monoethyl ether acetate |
190 |
55 |
1 |
2,700 |
0 |
1 |
| 108 |
Inorganic cyanide
compounds |
- |
- |
- |
0 |
2,200 |
2 |
| 132 |
1,1-dichloro-1-fluoroethane |
14,000 |
0 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
| 145 |
Methylene chloride |
58,000 |
650 |
2 |
9,800 |
2,600 |
2 |
| 177 |
Styrene |
- |
- |
- |
260 |
140 |
2 |
| 179 |
Dioxins |
2,500 |
420 |
6 |
320 |
400 |
2 |
| 198 |
Hexametylene
tetramine |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
45 |
2 |
| 200 |
Tetrachkoroethylene |
- |
- |
- |
21,000 |
6,400 |
2 |
| 202 |
Tetrahydromethyl
phthalic anhydride |
- |
- |
- |
0 |
5,300 |
1 |
| 207 |
Water soluble
salts of copper |
770 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
7 |
1 |
| 211 |
Trichloroethylene |
7,500 |
0 |
1 |
26,000 |
0 |
3 |
| 224 |
1,3,5-trimethyl
benzene |
3,000 |
3,000 |
3 |
19,000 |
14,000 |
3 |
| 227 |
Toluene |
53,000 |
330 |
6 |
160,000 |
8,900 |
8 |
| 230 |
Lead and its
compounds |
10 |
190 |
2 |
16 |
11,000 |
5 |
| 231 |
Nickel |
1 |
1,800 |
5 |
0 |
350 |
5 |
| 232 |
Nickel compounds |
11 |
4,200 |
3 |
150 |
6,900 |
2 |
| 253 |
Hydrazine |
1,400 |
0 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
| 266 |
Phenol |
0 |
1,900 |
1 |
12,000 |
80 |
2 |
| 283 |
Hydrogen fluoride
and water-soluble salts |
22,000 |
38,000 |
4 |
12,000 |
480,000 |
6 |
| 299 |
Benzene |
2 |
0 |
1 |
8,200 |
0 |
1 |
| 304 |
Boron and its
compounds |
1,600 |
420 |
3 |
3 |
220 |
3 |
| 307 |
Polyoxyethylene
alkyl ether |
4,700 |
13 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
| 308 |
Poly(oxyethylene)
octyl phenyl ether |
0 |
0 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
| 309 |
Nonylphenyl
ether |
400 |
0 |
2 |
- |
- |
- |
| 311 |
Manganese and
its compounds |
2,300 |
66,000 |
8 |
2,700 |
69,000 |
6 |
| 345 |
Mercaptoacetic
acid |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
| 346 |
Molybdenum and
its compounds |
1,300 |
20,000 |
4 |
480 |
5,600 |
5 |
| 353 |
Trisphosphate(dimethylphenyl) |
0 |
0 |
1 |
- |
- |
- |
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Example
of Reduction at an Overseas Group Company |
Kobelco Metal Powder of America, Inc. manufactures
and sells steel powder. One of its products is graphite segregation-free
steel powder. Toulene is used to liquefy or solidify the binder used
to prevent segregation of the graphite in the powder. The toluene
used in the manufacturing process is recovered with a vacuum pump
to prevent its release into the atmosphere. |
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Vacuum pump
Tanks of recovered toluene |
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