Environmental Management
Our Environmental Vision for 2050 (net zero)
Our Group relies upon the earth’s natural resources and energy in order to do business. However, doing business will generate garbage and air and water emissions. For this reason, we believe it is important for our Group to adhere to environmental laws and regulations, conduct business in an environmentally friendly manner, and engage in initiatives that reduce the environmental impact on the entire society through our products and services. In fiscal 2018 our Group established a plan with mediumto long-term targets ending in fiscal 2030, and has been promoting activities based on this. However, in light of the environmental challenges that will only grow more severe from this year on, we felt it was necessary to promote activities from an even longer-term perspective. Therefore, we formulated our Environmental Vision for 2050 (CO2 reduction) ending in 2050. |
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Since then, due to the government’s “2050 Carbon Neutral Declaration” and subsequent presentation of its target of reducing GHG by 46% (compared to fiscal 2013) by 2030, we performed a revision based on the new standards and set 2050 as our target for taking on the challenge of carbon neutrality, and 2030 for a 46% reduction in CO2 emissions (compared to fiscal 2013).

Climate Change Project efforts: agreement to TCFD expressed
CDP (headquartered in London) is an international NGO
established in 2000 in partnership with institutional investors
from around the world. It carries out projects in which it
sends out questionnaires to major companies and municipal
governments around the world on issues such as climate
change, water security, and forests, and that seek climate
change strategies and specific declarations related to
emissions of greenhouse gases.
With the CDP’s 2020 survey, survey activities were conducted
on behalf of 515 institutional investors with net invested assets
totaling 106 trillion U.S. dollars. More than 9,600 companies,
accounting for over 50% of global market capitalization,
disclose environmental data on their initiatives for climate
change programs via the CDP.
Responding to a CDP request for responses to its Climate
Change and Water Security 2021 questionnaires, our Company
received scores of A- and B-, respectively, in December 2020.
Having received requests for responses in fiscal 2021
regarding climate change and water security as well, we have
responded.
We also expressed our agreement in February 2021 to TCFD.
Moving forward, our Group will conduct proactive information
disclosure regarding risks and opportunities associated with
climate change as we hold ourselves accountable to all of our
stakeholders.
We will move forward with environmental information
disclosure as we contribute to the response to climate change
through environmental impact reduction, resource and energy
conservation, chemicals management and development of
products that contribute to the environment.
Environmental Management Structure
Our Group aims to contribute to the sustainable development
of society through our environmental conservation efforts
as a whole group based on our Policy on Responsible Care
Activities. |
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Activities of the Carbon Neutrality promotion Committee
In order to further strengthen and promote future efforts
toward carbon neutrality (CN), the Environmental Impact
Reduction Committee was reorganized as the Carbon
Neutrality Promotion Committee in July 2021. Together
with this change, the Energy Conservation Subcommittee,
a subordinate organization, was reorganized as the CN
Technology Deliberation Subcommittee.
The Environmental Impact Reduction Committee has
recapped each year’s progress toward medium- to longterm
environmental targets at the end of the fiscal year
and then determined the targets for the following fiscal
year. It has carried out its activities with the approval of
the Sustainability Promotion Committee, which serves as
its parent body. Moving forward, as the Carbon Neutrality
Promotion Committee, it will take action toward achieving
carbon neutrality together with the subordinate Life
Cycle Subcommittee and CN Technology Deliberation
Subcommittee.
The Life Cycle Subcommittee aims to establish production systems with minimal environmental impacts through scientific, quantitative, and objective assessments of environmental impacts, from the R&D phase onward, under the Policy on Responsible Care Activities. The subcommittee is moving forward with its activities under its set target of ensuring that 25% of its researchers are capable of performing life cycle assessments (LCA) at all research and development departments and instituting energy conservation on their own by fiscal 2022 by continuing to foster said researchers and developers. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, all LCA-related education was conducted in online formats during fiscal 2020. |
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In fiscal 2021, the Life Cycle Subcommittee will work to
enhance educational opportunities, horizontally deploy
LCA evaluations on baseline products, and expand items
on which LCA evaluations have been carried out for SDGcontributing
products. Moving forward, they will make
preparations to enable the speedy supply of LCA-related
information on all products.
The Energy Conservation Subcommittee worked to
establish, across all business sites in Japan, a mechanism
for continuously soliciting and trying out ideas for saving
energy through such means as voluntary implementation
initiatives in business sites. In fiscal 2020, the subcommittee successfully reduced energy consumption by as much as
1,535 kL (59,487 GJ) in crude oil equivalent, or 2,962t-CO2,
compared with fiscal 2019, primarily by reducing city gas and
electricity consumption. Furthermore, the subcommittee
established and successfully achieved targets by carrying
out unique activities to conserve electricity in the summer
and winter months. Outside of Japan, the subcommittee
worked to ensure a similar level of activities as in Japan and
continued to promote the roll out of activity methods and
best practices.
In fiscal 2021, in line with the objectives of the CN Promotion
Committee, the CN Technology Review Subcommittee will
formulate and work toward the latest 2030 targets, and will
continue efforts aimed at achieving energy consumption
reduction plans at the workplace level. In particular, the
subcommittee will focus on creating a system across
business sites in Japan for sharing practices for reducing
energy consumption and technical information related to
energy conservation in order to improve the level of energysaving
technology throughout our Company; and having
the mother plants in Japan provide technical support to
their affiliated sites through a tie-up with the Company-wide
Energy Conservation Secretariat.
Material Flows and Investments in Environmental Protection
The figure below shows inputs, including raw materials and energy, and outputs that are products and emissions released into the environment.
The Group is working to minimize its impact on the environment by means of waste reduction and resource savings through promoting more efficient use of raw materials, energy, and water. We have also been advancing CO2 emissions reduction through our carbon neutral efforts.
Quantities of raw materials inputs and product sales declined further across many categories in fiscal 2020 as economic activity continued to stagnate due to the spread of COVID-19 infections ongoing from the previous year. A recovery trend was observed during the second fiscal half, however, resulting in expectations of an increase in economic activity during fiscal 2021. Through the above-mentioned activities at our Group, we are contributing to the response to aspects of climate change such as warming by working to effect reductions in outputs that effect the environment, with respect to increases in input.

- *1 The ratio of renewable raw materials to total raw materials used is about 2.7% at the current point in time, but we will make efforts from the development stage onward in order to increase the ratio of renewable raw materials use.
- *2, 3, 4and 6 See the glossary on page 108. SOx, NOx, and soot and dust are calculated using the Company’s own formula based on exhaust gas readings and fuel usage amount, among other variables. Since methods of calculating emissions of soot and dust differ among countries, this figure is compiled solely for business sites in Japan at present. COD is calculated based on the measured concentration and drainage volume. Data on overseas COD covers sites that measure COD within drainage. Data for overseas sites are stated separately because the types of oxidant (potassium dichromate is mainly used overseas) used for measurement differ from those used in Japan.
- *5 Drainage volume is determined by calculating drainage into sewages based on the breakdown of total usage. Drainage into public water areas is calculated using readings from flow meters installed at business sites; while water usage volume is used for business sites without flow meters.
- *7 The volume of hazardous waste found in our total waste volume came to 5,714 t (based on the definitions used by each country). The volume of hazardous waste is not subject to assurance.
- The volume of products shipped and value of products sold are not subject to assurance.
Investments for Environmental Protection
Our Group has compiled data annually on the amounts
of investments in environmental protection of all Group
companies in Japan since fiscal 2000. In fiscal 2020, a total of
240 million yen of this type of investment were made. |
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Medium- to Long-term Environmental Targets
In fiscal 2018, we established a medium- to long-term
environmental plan ending in fiscal 2030, and are engaging
in activities based on it, in which our CO2 emissions met the
greenhouse gas emission reduction target in the Japanese
government's INDC from COP21.
However, due to the government’s 2050 Carbon Neutral
Declaration and presentation of its 2030 target, we performed
a new revision according to the 2030 target, and reset our
2030 target policy to include a 46% reduction in CO2 emissions
(compared to fiscal 2013). We are currently deliberating the
formulation of a new medium- to long-term plan that takes
this policy into consideration. (The graph below and the data detailed on page 104 show
the existing medium- to long-term plan.)
In addition to the government policy noted above,
deliberation of targets will include consideration of:
- Response to sustainable development needs shared by
the international community with 2030 as the target year
established in the SDGs.
- Response to the Act on the Rational Use of Energy and the Act on Promotion of Global Warning Countermeasures.
In addition, we continue to undertake efforts with the Japan
Business Federation (Keidanren), and through the Japan
Chemical Industry Association.
We will also revise other targets upon reconsidering their
appropriateness, and by restricting the volume of material
loss that occurs, we will improve the efficiency of resource
use, advance the effective use of raw materials, and
promote the reduction of chemical substance emissions as
we pursue planned efforts to reduce environmental impact.
Environmental Performance
Disclosure of Scope 3 Data
In 2015, our Group began calculating and disclosing Scope 3
emissions in the supply chain of business sites belonging to
Group companies in Japan because of the growing importance of
understanding CO2 emissions covering the entire supply chain. In
fiscal 2018, we enlarged the scope to cover overseas business
sites. The scope of said disclosures cover a total of eight
categories including Category 1 “Purchased goods and services.”
In addition, we confirmed that three categories including Category
8 “Upstream leased assets” are not applicable. |
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Conservation of Water Resources
When it comes to the water used at our Group's locations,
in Japan a large share of the water used comes from
groundwater, while overseas a large share of this comes from
waterworks. The water used in our plants in Japan accounts
for 84% of the water used by the entire Group. |
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Assessment of Water-Related Risk in Fiscal 2020
Since fiscal 2015, we have been continuously surveying the regional watershed risk of all major plants in the Group (11 sites in Japan and 24 sites overseas). In fiscal 2020, our Group revised risk levels based on the results of a study using the WRI Aqueduct tool in addition to independent studies performed on each business site. We compiled the results into a table that contains the risks facing each of the regions in which the Group operates. Although there were no major changes in the assessment for this fiscal year, our ranking worsened after last year’s update due to the increasing prominence of water resource risk in the China region accompanying economic growth there. In light of these results, we will undertake more highly effective water resource conservation moving forward.

Initiatives for resource recycling
Marine plastics
When it comes to the problem of marine plastics, we are moving ahead with activities to contribute to reducing plastic marine waste via a number of initiatives based on the Japanese government’s Plastic Resource Recycling Strategy. These initiatives include managing the raw materials used and the plastic products we manufacture, promoting the recycling of said products, and developing new products.
We are currently taking part in the Japan Initiative for Marine Environment (JaIME), which was established by major companies and industry organizations in the chemical industry, as well as the Clean Ocean Material Alliance (CLOMA), which was established by a broad range of business operators related to supply chains for plastic products, including those in the chemical industry and distribution/retail industries, with the goal of forming cross-industry partnerships. Through this, we are working to address a variety of challenges by aiming to curb plastic waste across our supply chain as a whole and promoting recycling via 3R activities for plastic products.
Recycling
Our Group promotes recycling as a means to make effective use of resources. This recycling includes the recovery and recycling of phenol from waste liquid produced by phenolic resin reactions during the product production process, fine grinding of offcuts from phenolic laminated sheets and decorative melamine resin laminate for use as a filler in phenolic resin molding compounds reuse of molded article by-products (sprues and runners) as raw material for molding materials, as well as reuse of excess sludge from activated sludge effluent treatment equipment as compost (organic fertilizer).
Renewable raw materials
Our Company has been using inedible plant-derived raw materials (Cashew nut shell oil, rosin [pine resin], wood flour, etc.) as renewable raw materials, primarily of phenolic resins and molding compounds. They account for about 2.7% of all raw materials used. In order to further increase the rate at which we use renewable raw materials in the future, we will undertake the development of phenolic resins using plant-derived lignin, as well as the use of bioplastics.
Integrated Report 2021
Topics More
- 2022/05/27 Sustainability Participation in the 30by30 Alliance for Biodiversity
- 2021/10/29 Sustainability CO2 emission reduction targets achieved ahead of schedule at all domestic sites
- 2021/07/15 Sustainability Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. Receives Gold Medal in EcoVadis Sustainability Assessment
- 2021/02/17 Sustainability Sumitomo Bakelite Co., Ltd. to support the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)