WATER

WHILE WATER REPRESENTS A RELATIVELY SMALL PORTION OF THE OVERALL ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT in our manufacturing facilities, we seek opportunities to reduce water consumption and improve water quality. Across Novolex manufacturing facilities, we understand that our two recycling facilities and injection molding operations are more water-intensive operations. We do not classify water as a Tier 1 Material Topic and, therefore, do not publicly report on total water withdrawal and consumption at all Novolex manufacturing sites. Still, we are working to better understand our water use and identify initiatives for water-intensive facilities. For example, we have invested in improving the wastewater quality at our North Vernon, Ind., recycling center and overhauled the water processing system used for injection molding in our Chelmsford, Mass., facility. Our environmental operations team continues to look for water stewardship opportunities and production efficiencies across Novolex facilities.

For more than 25 years, the plastics industry has promoted Operation Clean Sweep (OCS), a campaign dedicated to helping every resin handling operation achieve zero plastic resin loss.

All Novolex sites that use resin pellets follow Operation Clean Sweep principles to monitor, manage and eliminate plastic pellet loss into the environment. In recognition of our commitment to these activities, in 2022 Novolex joined the Plastics Industry Association’s program and advisory committee focused on implementation of Operation Clean Sweep Blue — an enhanced program that provides transparency and accountability via enhanced management, measurement, auditing and reporting.

Novolex will remain engaged in these efforts and seek to drive an even more consistent approach to resin handling across our facilities. While site auditing occurs regularly at Novolex, we want to be part of industry-wide efforts to standardize and scale enhanced training programs, regular audits and inspections through our participation in Operation Clean Sweep Blue.