With conservation of resources and reduction of our impacts on the environment in mind, we make efforts to reduce our generation of waste and promote recycling to reduce the final disposal volume of waste generated from production activities at our business sites. We also work to properly manage and dispose of waste in compliance with laws and regulations, and reliably fulfill our recycling obligations under the Containers and Packaging Recycling Law.

Kureha is working to reduce the volume of waste sent to final disposal (landfill) by curbing the volume of and by actively recycling waste discharged by our production activities. In fiscal 2023, we set the following waste reduction targets to be achieved by fiscal 2030.

At the Iwaki Factory, coal ash emitted from the on-site coal-fired power plant accounts for the majority of waste. We are working to enhance the recycling rate by outsourcing this waste to recycling contractors for use as a cement material.
We are also making efforts to curb the generation of waste at our production sites through means including improvements to production efficiency. Furthermore, we are striving to reduce the volume of waste sent to final disposal (landfill) by examining waste disposal methods and promoting recycling. In fiscal 2021, our volume of industrial waste generated and volume sent to final disposal (landfill) increased, due in part to the one-time disposal of surplus construction soil. However, the volume sent to final disposal (landfill) decreased in fiscal 2022 through efforts to boost our recycling rate. Our Plastics Processing Factory, too, actively tackles the reduction of production losses, the development of products that reuse production losses, and the recycling of resources.
These activities contributed to a zero waste emission rate of 9.0% in fiscal 2022. Looking ahead, we will continue efforts toward further reduction of the volume of waste generated and sent to final disposal (landfill) through stable plant operation, curbing of waste generation through the development of high-efficiency processes, and the introduction of new recycling technologies.
The promotion of resource recycling and the reduction of volume of waste sent to final disposal (landfill) are material issues for our Company. We will reduce wastes and engage in recycling to achieve our fiscal 2025 target of a 1.5% zero waste emission rate and will contribute to the reduction of impacts on the environment.

Kureha complies with waste-related laws and regulations and works to properly manage waste. We have adopted the use of electronic manifests for use in waste management at all of our business sites.
Our Iwaki Factory employs an ISO 14001-based management system to properly manage waste storage areas and to check storage conditions. We share information on wastes with managers in charge of all waste-emitting departments through environmental committee report materials and other means to raise awareness among managers. We also conduct on-site checks of waste disposal contractors in line with our annual plans. In fiscal 2022, we conducted an on-site check of one contractor in the city. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we conducted documentation-based checks of the status of management at 15 contractors outside the city, confirming the absence of problems with any of them.
Our Plastics Processing Factory conducts monitoring of storage conditions and proper management at waste storage areas based on its own triple-system internal regulations (a management system that integrates quality, occupational safety and health, and the environment). The factory outsources the transport, intermediate treatment, and final disposal of wastes to many contractors, and systematically conducts on-site checks to confirm the status of proper treatment by the contractors. The factory also visits new contractors to confirm that discharged wastes undergo proper treatment while pointing out areas for improvement. The factory also conducts regular checks of the storage status of recycling contractors. In fiscal 2022, the factory conducted audits of 10 contractors and three new contractors, confirming the absence of problems with any of them.
We will continue such efforts directed at the proper management of waste.

As a company, we must reduce our impact on the natural environment as much as possible for the development of a sustainable society. As a Group that manufactures and sells plastic products and materials, we have a responsibility to work for environmentally friendly production activities as we continue to provide technology-based products and services that target various environmental issues, such as global warming, water problems, marine plastic pollution, and resource recycling. The Kureha Group will continue to protect our rich natural environment by promoting environmentally-conscious initiatives at every stage of the supply chain, including R&D, manufacturing, sales, collection, and disposal.
Here, we would like to introduce our Group's resource recycling initiatives that address issues including marine plastic pollution.

As a plastics manufacturer, the Kureha Group has the following basic awareness of environmental issues:
Plastics have a wide variety of uses and, when their unique characteristics are effectively utilized, they contribute to such things as increasing energy efficiency and reducing food loss.
However, since their recycling rate is still quite low and because they are improperly disposed of, they end up as marine plastic waste, becoming a huge factor in environmental pollution.
We at the Kureha Group believe it is necessary to participate in the global effort toward:
1. Development of a plastic recycling system, and
2. Prevention of pollution by marine plastic waste.

In order to fulfill our corporate social responsibility, the Kureha Group is taking the following measures against these issues:

We will continue to make sincere efforts, together with industry Groups, to fulfill our corporate responsibility to preserve the natural environment according to the policies and plans of the international community and the Japanese government.

As a business that generates industrial wastes including those from products made with plastic, we will actively work to reduce and recycle wastes while disclosing related information, doing so under the Plastic Resource Circulation Act* that came into force in April 2022.

Kureha steadily carries out the recycling obligations it bears under the Containers and Packaging Recycling Law.
Since fiscal 2002, we have outsourced recycling, mainly of paper and plastic containers and packaging, under contract to the Japan Containers and Packaging Recycling Association, a designated corporation and a public interest incorporated foundation.