Water

Water is the source of life, which nurtures diverse ecosystems while circulating and interacting with the atmosphere, soil, oceans, and rivers on the earth, and is also an important resource indispensable for people’s lives and economic activities. Water shortages, water pollution, and the rising risk of flooding, which are caused by global population growth, economic development, and climate change, have become social issues, raising concerns about their serious impact on ecosystems and people’s lives.

 

For the SHIONOGI Group, water is an essential resource for business continuity, and we have identified water risks, such as water stress^*1 and flooding, as one of the environmental material issues. We not only assess the impact of water risks on our business and work to reduce them, but also promote appropriate management of the impact of our business activities on the environment.

*1 Condition of strained water supply and demand

To protect water resources, the SHIONOGI Group strives to control water withdrawal at each operating site by working to raise employee awareness of water conservation, thoroughly managing the withdrawal of tap water, industrial water, and groundwater, and reviewing manufacturing equipment operation and cleaning plans. Most of our water resources are obtained through government water supply facilities, and we do not take water directly from rivers or the sea. We also do not obtain water from areas where the level of water stress is found to be high in risk assessments.

 

We release most of our wastewater into sewers or rivers, not into the sea. Regarding the quality of wastewater at each operating site engaged in manufacturing and research, we thoroughly manage chemical substances in wastewater and constantly monitor wastewater for any abnormalities at in-house treatment facilities in line with our voluntary criteria, which are stricter than those imposed by related laws and regulations.

 

The quantity of actual water consumption at the operating sites corresponds to about 10% of the quantity of water taken in, with a large part of the water used for our activities eventually returned to the aquatic environment. We will continue to strive to reduce water withdrawal at each operating site, with our medium-term target aiming to keep water consumption at or less than 1,340 thousand m³ (the FY2018 consumption level) in FY2024.

Pharmaceuticals released into the environment are drawing an increasing amount of attention worldwide, as attested to by the report^*2 published by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) regarding pharmaceuticals in the environment (PiE). To responsibly handle pharmaceuticals during release from its plants as well as during manufacturing processes, when starting new product manufacturing processes, the SHIONOGI Group confirms that drug concentration in wastewater is designed to be at a level that does not have any impact on the natural environment. Moreover, as the responsibility of a company that handles antimicrobials, we inactivate antimicrobials in wastewater at each manufacturing building and confirm that their content is at a level that does not affect the natural environment before discharging the wastewater outside via in-house treatment facilities. Thus, we are striving to control the emergence of new antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

See the section “AMR” for more information on the environmental release management of antimicrobials.

*2 OECD Pharmaceutical Residues in Freshwater(External website)

Quality water is essential for the manufacturing of pharmaceutical products. Water depletion or flooding in the catchment areas where we operate can seriously impact our business continuity. Therefore, to understand water risks, such as water stress and increased probability of flooding, and formulate preventive measures, we have assessed water risks facing each operating site involved in manufacturing and research in the SHIONOGI Group, using the internationally recognized WRI Aqueduct^*3 and WWF Water Risk Filter.^*4

In-house deliberations based on the risk assessment results and past experience and knowledge have led us to conclude that the SHIONOGI Group is exposed to relatively low water risks for the moment compared to other environmental risks. Meanwhile, since the risk level of future floods has been on the rise, we are considering consulting with experts in the future to prepare for future flood risks by understanding the flood risks specific to the catchment area of each operating site and identifying water issues.

We have also incorporated risk assessment based on the WRI Aqueduct into the selection of our suppliers to clarify and minimize their latent risks.

*3 Water risk assessment tool developed and published by the World Resources Institute (WRI)

Aqueduct | World Resources Institute (wri.org) (External website)

*4 Water risk assessment tool developed and published by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)

WWF Water Risk Filter (External website)

In the Water Security Report 2022 published by CDP, an international non-profit organization that works on environmental information disclosure, we received the highest rating of A. Representative Director, President and CEO Isao Teshirogi delivered a speech on the SHIONOGI Group’s initiatives for environmental protection as a representative of the company that achieved a double A rating in “Water Security 2022” and “Climate Change 2022.”

In the speech, he expressed the SHIONOGI Group’s intention to promote business transformation to create new healthcare solutions and deliver them globally, and at the same time to grow as a company needed by society while realizing a sustainable society through efforts to preserve the global environment.

Speech Video (Message from the executives of A List Companies) (External website)