Protecting life on earth
Our world is facing challenges when it comes to biodiversity. At DSM, we see biodiversity as a source of inspiration and innovation, and that is one of the reasons why we’re taking actions to help meet these challenges head-on.
Concrete action
Biodiversity is the backbone of all life on earth. But animal and plant species are becoming extinct at an alarming rate, and natural environments are being destroyed every day. This poses a threat to humankind and our way of life, now and in the future. We’re taking action to meet this threat. Since there are at present no standard metrics available to accurately determine biodiversity and water footprints as part of a Life Cycle Assessment, our activities with regard to biodiversity and water in 2010 focused on further awareness building and policy development.
With regard to biodiversity we aspire to help prevent further degradation of natural habitats and to contribute to the preservation of biodiversity wherever our activities impact it. We see attention for biodiversity as an important part of sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. We are of the opinion that companies have an important role to play in the conservation of nature. We realize that this is a learning process, which starts with building awareness. Follow-up actions include an assessment of the biodiversity impact of our operations as soon as this is methodologically feasible.
Analyzing our impact on biodiversity is complicated. All of the parameters such as water, energy and raw materials are interconnected. For example, reducing water consumption may involve increased energy use or the use of different raw materials. However, we have kept a focus on minimizing our eco-impact through efficiency improvements and product stewardship.
We now address potential impacts through legal and voluntary initiatives such as REACH, Global Product Strategy, Emissions Trading, Climate Policy, Water Policy, and Sustainable Sourcing. DSM’s biodiversity policy both complements and supports these programs.
Areas of high biodiversity
Eleven DSM sites are located in or adjacent to areas of high biodiversity, some of which are protected areas. We are pleased to state that we have never received any indication that our operations have had an adverse impact in these areas.
