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Conserving Resources – Protecting the Climate
The less energy we consume the better – a principle to which Bayer subscribes for both economic and environmental reasons. Because reducing energy consumption cuts both costs and CO2 emissions.
Through the Bayer Climate Program the company is developing new approaches to protecting the climate and dealing with climate change. These include a new control instrument for energy-efficient and climate-friendly production: the Bayer Climate Check.
This comprehensive tool enables the company to systematically evaluate its production plants throughout the world as well as its capital investment and technology projects in terms of their climate relevance.
And this does not stop at the factory gate. The tool also analyzes what effect the raw materials used by Bayer have on the climate, whether the chosen form of energy really is the best and how CO2-intensive the logistics are.
In order to quantify these effects, Bayer has introduced the Climate Footprint as a new key performance indicator (KPI). The Climate Footprint indicates how much greenhouse gas – expressed in CO2 equivalents – is generated during the manufacture of a given amount of product. The Bayer Climate Check system has been certified by TÜV and will also be offered to other companies.
In order to systematically document the effect of its production processes on the climate, Bayer intends to analyze the energy efficiency of 100 production facilities throughout the world. This first step will take account of around 85 percent of all the company's greenhouse gas emissions. The potential for savings identified in this way will then lead to concrete improvement measures.
The foundation stone for another project in the Climate Program was recently laid in India. It is the first "EcoCommercial Building" and is to be constructed near the capital New Delhi. This is a concept for zero-emission industrial and office buildings that is suitable for all the Earth’s climate zones. Various tried-and-tested Bayer materials will be used – particularly for insulation.
Initial tests are also taking place in India with a raw material that holds promise for the future development of fuels. It is extracted from the oil of the Jatropha – an inedible, oil-bearing shrub that grows predominantly in marginal conditions. Bayer is cooperating with partners in the search for possible applications for the oil from the jatropha nut.
Between now and 2010 Bayer will be investing one billion euros in this and other climate protection projects.
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