CSR Activity Report (CSR Guideline Activity Reports) - Safety, Accident Prevention, and Environmental Preservation

Environmental Risk Management

Number of environmental accidents

■Reporting scope
Toray Group
■Target in fiscal 2022
0

Result in fiscal 2022

7

Compliance with Environmental Laws and Accidents in Fiscal 2022

In fiscal 2022, seven environmental accidents occurred within Toray Group, some of which were minor.
These were all accidents in which exhaust gas or wastewater emissions exceeded administrative and agreed standards for air or water quality. After promptly contacting the local governments, the plants involved confirmed, through analytical investigations and reviews of the surroundings based on internal rules, that the impact on the environment was extremely minor.
The causes of these accidents included failing to properly treat exhaust gas generated during non-routine work and failure to fully stop detected leaking of wastewater exceeding water quality standards from a plant during the manufacturing process. To prevent recurrences, the Group will take thorough measures such as ensuring the proper treatment of non-routine exhaust gas, and strengthening the management of wastewater within factories.
The Group received two complaints from residents near its facilities concerning noise, which were seriously examined and addressed by implementing improvements.

Environmental Accidents in Fiscal 2022 (Toray Group)

Administrative disposition due to violations of laws or ordinances1
  1. 1 Serious environmental accidents resulting in improvement orders
0
Accidents (environmental accidents, etc.)2
  1. 2 Environmental accidents for which improvement guidance and recommendations are issued
3
Slight but temporary exceeding of standard values3
  1. 3 Environmental accidents for which improvement guidance and recommendations are not issued by local government
4
Complaints/requests (noise, odor, etc.) 2

Environmental Assessment

Toray Industries conducts product safety reviews before launching new products on the market. As part of these reviews, a prescribed checklist is used for environmental assessment. The Environment & Safety Department confirms and evaluates the measures taken for each stage of the new product’s life cycle, from raw material procurement, manufacturing, packaging and distribution, to product use, recycling, and disposal.

<Evaluation Checklist Items (excerpt)>

  • Does the product comply with the Toray Green Procurement Guidelines? (e.g. Is it free from prohibited substances?)
  • To help protect biodiversity, do the operational emissions exceed the standard values for regulated substances?
  • Is recycling used within the processes and are waste heat and unused energy utilized effectively?
  • Have the amounts of exhaust gas and noise generated during product use been reduced?
  • Have measures been taken to reduce the environmental impact, such as by preventing the generation of harmful gases during incineration and by avoiding the leaching of hazardous substances during landfilling?

Preventing Soil and Groundwater Pollution

Toray Group constructs protective embankments around its facilities and storage tanks for hazardous chemicals, and takes precautions to ensure that none of these dangerous substances leak or discharge into the surrounding area or contaminate the soil onsite. In fiscal 2022, remediation using wells to clean up groundwater pollution continued at Toray Monofilament Co., Ltd., and remediation to address soil pollution continued at Toray Industries' Nagoya Plant. Toray Group will continue these ongoing remediation efforts and voluntary surveys to monitor soil and groundwater pollution.

Click here for the main initiatives for CSR Guideline 3, “Safety, Accident Prevention, and Environmental Preservation” in CSR Roadmap 2022.