With the conservation of resources and the reduction of our impact on the environment in mind, we make efforts to reduce our generation of waste and promote recycling to reduce the volume of waste generated from production activities at our business sites that is disposed of in a landfill. We also work to manage and dispose of waste in compliance with laws and regulations.

The waste emission rate for fiscal 2023 was 5.6%.

Kureha strives to reduce the generation of waste from each production facility by improving production efficiency and reducing production losses. The amount of coal ash discharged from the coal-fired power plants at the facilities accounts for the majority of waste, which is contracted to a recycling company for recycling as a raw material for cement and other materials. For other wastes, efforts are being made to further reduce the volume sent to a landfill for disposal by developing products that use production losses and promoting recycling by considering disposal methods.
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.

Kureha complies with waste-related laws and regulations and works to properly manage waste.
The ISO 14001 environmental management system is used to educate and raise awareness among employees, as well as to systematically confirm that waste storage sites are properly managed and waste is properly stored. Regular on-site checks are also carried out on contract recycling and waste contractors to monitor the status of management and treatment.

The Kureha Group is committed to providing useful products and services based on technology, while at the same time striving for environmentally friendly production activities. We are working on initiatives to tackle the problem of marine plastic pollution and other plastic resource recycling.

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:

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.

In accordance with the Plastic Resource Circulation Act*, which came into force in April 2022, we, as a business that generates industrial waste from plastic products, actively work to reduce waste generation and recycle waste, and disclose relevant information. In addition, to raise awareness within the company, internal training on the Plastic Resource Recycling Act is provided on an ongoing basis.