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Topics on this page:
Eco-efficiency competence center inaugurated in Latin America
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scoris survey confirms BASF's good sustainability performance
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Info event for journalists 'Good Practice Live!'
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Combined heat and power plant officially goes on stream
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Ionic liquids provide benefits
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Skin Health Camp in Pakistan
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EUR 3.8 million for Asian tsunami victims
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China / USA: exchange of knowledge between industry and universities
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Green chemistry award for new primer
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Newsletter |
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August 2005 |
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Our newsletter "Sustainability and BASF" reports on related projects, workshops and other news and will appear two to three times a year.
If you would like to receive this free newsletter by mail, simply register here.
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Eco-efficiency competence center inaugurated in Latin America
The Espaço ECO Foundation, South America's first eco-efficiency competence center, located in São Bernardo do Campo (Brazil), was officially opened on June 22, 2005. In collaboration with BASF, GTZ (German governmental agency for international cooperation) and local partners, the foundation will offer companies throughout South America expertise and technology in the areas of eco-efficiency, environmental education and reforestation. Eco-efficiency analyses will enable the foundation's clients to significantly improve their strategic decision-making processes. The tool allows them to consider both economic and environmental factors when developing / optimizing products or processes and to choose the most eco-efficient solution from a variety of options.
The foundation includes a biosphere reserve measuring some 290,000 square meters which is located in the Mata Atlântica rainforest that is officially accredited under the UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere program. As well as providing training and advice with regard to eco-efficiency analyses, Espaço ECO offers technical courses in environmental education. In order to accelerate the forest's natural regeneration process, Espaço ECO will operate its own reforestation unit.
http://corporate.basf.com/en/sustainability/oekoeffizienz/global/espaco.htm
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scoris survey confirms BASF's good sustainability performance
BASF was ranked fifth in the second scoris sustainability rating, published in June. This is a significant improvement of its 2003 results. The study rates the corporate activities of Germany's DAX 30 companies in socially relevant fields. In the categories Business Ethics, Community, Employees and Contractors, BASF was ranked among the top five. The survey targets investors and provides an important benchmark for companies committed to improving their performance in sustainability management.
http://corporate.basf.com/en/sustainability/oekonomie/basf_aktie.htm
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Info event for journalists 'Good Practice Live!'
BASF hosted a 'Good Practice Live!' event at its Ludwigshafen site on May 10 to show journalists how it incorporates sustainability into its everyday operations. The event was organized jointly with econsense - the Forum for Sustainable Development of German Business. The event included a visit to BASF’s biotechnology laboratory to demonstrate the great potential biotechnology offers for the sustained improvement of products and production processes. Another topic was the contribution made by chemistry to thermal insulation in housing through its insulating material Neopor®. As an example of BASF's social responsibility, the visitors were shown 'H2O and Co', BASF's children's lab, where youngsters are given hands-on exposure to the world of chemistry.
http://www.econsense.de/deu/dokumentationen.htm
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Combined heat and power plant officially goes on stream
BASF inaugurated its new combined heat and power (CHP) plant at its Ludwigshafen site on June 30. Representatives of the state and federal government, Siemens Power Generation and BASF's Board of Executive Directors were present at the launch. The high-efficiency combined heat and power plant with a fuel efficiency of 90 percent operates according to the principle of cogeneration - the combined production of electricity and steam - and will supply the site with 440 megawatts of electricity and 650 metric tons of steam per hour. No other power plant technology achieves a higher electricity yield. The plant will lift the share of BASF's total energy requirements generated on-site from 15 percent to 65 percent. Including the capacity of the RWE Power CHP plant, the new plant will increase the share of electricity generated at the Ludwigshafen site to more than 90 percent. Compared with coal-fired power plants, the CHP plant will also reduce emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide by almost 40 percent - saving around 500,000 metric tons of CO2 per year. This means that the high-capacity, ultra-efficient power plant will make an important contribution to ensuring the competitiveness of the Ludwigshafen site in the long term. The plant was built by Siemens Power Generation. BASF operates 21 CHP plants at its Verbund sites. Another plant will go on stream in Antwerp this year.
http://corporate.basf.com/en/presse/mitteilungen/pm.htm?pmid=1901
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Ionic liquids provide benefits
BASF's BasilTM (Biphasic Acid Scavenging Utilizing Ionic Liquids) process for scavenging acids in the chemical synthesis of phosphorus compounds offers significant advantages over the conventional system. This is the result of an eco-efficiency analysis performed by BASF to compare various processes. Compared to amines, which have traditionally been used in this type of reaction, the BASF process based on 1-methylimidazole is less cost-intensive and at the same time better for the environment. The new process for synthesizing phosphorus compounds, which are used as chemical building blocks to produce photoinitiators in UV-curable coatings, reliably avoids a number of problems encountered to date. Stability and product yield improve, and the process is less laborintensive. The Basil process is the first large-scale industrial process worldwide that uses ionic liquids. The Basil developers received the "Innovation Award" of the "European Chemical News" trade journal and the BASF Innovation Award in October 2004.
http://corporate.basf.com/en/presse/mitteilungen/pm.htm?pmid=1891
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Skin Health Camp in Pakistan
A new "Skin Health Camp" project in Korangi, Pakistan, was held in February 2005. The project, supported by BASF Pakistan in collaboration with the Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA) and the Welfare Association for Dermatological Patients, provided 560 tannery workers and their families with a free medical examination and medicines. Many local tanneries use chemicals to treat leather that, when not used properly, can lead to skin irritations. The Skin Health Camp is the first project of its kind in this region aimed at improving the health of tannery workers. It has been extremely well received by customers and the public and is helping to implement BASF’s strategic guideline "Ensure Sustainability Development".
http://corporate.basf.com/en/sustainability/service/regionen/asien/050428.htm
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EUR 3.8 million for Asian tsunami victims
BASF employees have donated more than EUR 1.4 million worldwide to help the victims of the tsunami catastrophe in Asia. This amount has been matched by BASF. Including BASF's relief efforts in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the total donation amounts to more than EUR 3.8 million. The money has been made available for short, medium and long term aid projects in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. Some projects are already underway: one involves repairing the damaged boats of fishermen who lost their livelihoods in the disaster in order to give them a new means of earning their living and hence prospects for the future. Other projects supported by BASF include the construction of a vocational school in Indonesia and a housing estate in Thailand comprising 200 homes.
http://www.corporate.basf.com/en/presse/mitteilungen/pm.htm?pmid=1704
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China / USA: exchange of knowledge between industry and universities
BASF took part in a workshop on sustainable chemistry hosted by the National Science Foundation (NSF) between May 27 and 31, 2005 in Beijing. Scientists from Chinese universities and state institutions exchanged the results of their research with American experts from industry and academia. BASF Corporation presented its eco-efficiency analysis tool to promote sustainable technologies. The results of the workshop were incorporated in to the NSF's assistance program that supports technology transfer in sustainable chemistry between industry and universities in China and the United States.
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Green chemistry award for new primer
BASF has been awarded the prestigious Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). BASF Coatings received the award for its eco-efficient UV-curable primer used for automotive repair and refinishing. An eco-efficiency analysis confirmed the product's excellent environmental pedigree. The new primer cures 10 times faster than conventional thermally cured products, a feature made possible by UV light. This does not rely on heat and hence eliminates the need for bake ovens, reducing energy consumption in a body shop by approximately 80 percent.
http://corporate.basf.com/en/sustainability/oekoeffizienz/meinungen.htm
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Contact:
Dr. Brigitte Dittrich-Krämer
BASF SE
Sustainability Center
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