Resource Efficiency
The global water supply continues to shrink at high rates, creating imminent risk for populations around the world. By 2030, it is projected that a 40% gap will grow between the demand for water and the availability of water (Source: World Economic Forum).
With the health of human beings and the viability of the manufacturing industry heavily relying on the availability of water, this gap presents a startling threat. The absence of water, or usable water, can place our communities and economies in danger and threaten global biodiversity—the presence of a wide array of living organisms and ecosystems around the world.
We have always been committed to responsible water use and to meeting our Company’s water demand without impacting the availability or quality of the resource to others. Based on the scale and urgency of the problem and the fact that water is a key input for our beverage can manufacturing process (forming, washing, rinsing and cooling), as well as for the manufacture of aluminum and the production of our customers’ products, we recognize our role in helping further protect this invaluable resource. With this in mind, we are also elevating our focus on biodiversity and our efforts around water conservation as part of that issue.
Our 2030 Goals
Learn how each of these goals aligns with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
As we look toward 2030, we are advancing our commitment in this area and have developed a comprehensive water stewardship strategy. With our Twentyby30 program, we aim to accomplish the following:
Reduce water usage in our operations by 20% by the end of 2025.
Maintain a 100% track record of meeting local wastewater standards.
Ensure all employees have continued access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene.
By 2030, be replenishing 100% of water consumed from high scarcity watersheds back to those watersheds.
Taking Action
back to topLike other companies, we are susceptible to increasing global water supply risks due to localized and recurring drought, unplanned weather-related issues, competition for the resource in water-constrained locations, climate change and regulatory restrictions. Our water stewardship strategy decreases the potential for business disruption while helping protect scarce resources at the watershed level by taking the following actions:
Water usage reduction
- Measure, monitor and report water consumption company-wide.
- Identify and eliminate losses and leaks.
- Install flowmeters to measure, report and reduce water consumption.
- Identify, benchmark and replicate water use efficiency best practices.
- Identify and incentivize water re-use opportunities.
- Pilot and replicate new and hybrid technologies toward Minimal to Zero Liquid Discharge.
Wastewater compliance
- Monitor and record wastewater quantity, quality, compliance and location of discharge.
- Adopt company-wide standard operating procedures defining wastewater discharge quality and standard monitoring requirements.
Water access, sanitation and hygiene
- Ensure all employees have continued access to safe drinking water.
- Ensure all employees have continued access to sufficient and clean personal hygiene facilities, supplies and education.
Water replenishment
- Validate number of plants in high water scarcity locations.
- Identify watershed level projects to implement in high water scarcity locations.
- Implement projects in collaboration with local partners.
- Measure and report project implementation progress.
Our Sustainability Stories: Progress in Practice
back to topOur employees and operations around the world are already doing their part when it comes to climate action. Here are just a few examples of how they are making a difference:
Acayucan, Mexico
Planting native plants and new trees is a key focus of this plant’s annual program to protect and restore the land near the facility. The new growth will aid reforestation important to preserving local ecosystems. In addition, the team’s action to install equipment to recover process water, runoff water and rainwater will reduce water consumption by 30%—a critical step to maintain the area’s biodiversity.
Conroe, Texas
Prioritizing resource preservation at its facility, this team reduced annual water consumption by more than 5 million gallons. These efforts will help to protect a precious supply critical to local communities and ecosystems, promoting greater environmental stewardship.
Dahej, India
Identifying several opportunities for process improvements enabled this team to reduce its reliance on resources. Steps to harvest rainwater and ensure zero water discharge saved significant amounts of water, while efforts to reuse wood pallets and utilize recyclable metal pallets when possible helped to minimize sourcing for new wood. Together, these initiatives help to protect local foliage and water sources essential to surrounding ecosystems.
Water Management
Policies and Positions
back to topUN Sustainability Development Goals
back to topIn 2015, the United Nations General Assembly annonunced 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to address global changes and set a blueprint for action to achieve the goals by 2030.
Our sustainable priorities are aligned with the SDGs so that our actions can contribute to a greater collective impact. Learn more about our alignment with each goal.
Additional Resources
back to topHave questions about our approach to climate action? Contact us at sustainability@crowncork.com.
