Samsung Electronics' All Business Sites Certified for 'Carbon, Water, and Waste Reduction'... A Global First

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyewon] Samsung Electronics has become the first company in the global semiconductor industry to receive the UK Carbon Trust's 'Carbon, Water, and Waste Reduction' certification for all its business sites. The Carbon Trust is an eco-friendly certification body established by the UK government in 2001 as part of its climate change response and carbon reduction initiatives.

Samsung Electronics announced on the 3rd that it received the carbon, water, and waste reduction certification for a total of nine business sites: five domestic sites (Giheung, Hwaseong, Pyeongtaek, Onyang, Cheonan), Austin in the United States, and three sites in China (Xi'an, Suzhou, Tianjin), earning the 'Triple Standard' label.

The 'Triple Standard' is awarded to companies that reduce their business site's carbon emissions by 3.7%, water usage by 2.2%, and waste emissions by 2.1% over three years, and meet comprehensive evaluation criteria for management systems in each area. Especially as semiconductor products become finer and more highly integrated, manufacturing processes have become more complex, increasing water usage as well as carbon and waste emissions. Achieving reductions in water usage, carbon, and waste emissions across all semiconductor business sites is a remarkable accomplishment under these challenging circumstances.

Compared to the average amounts used and emitted in each production process during 2018-2019, Samsung Electronics reduced carbon, water, and waste by 9.6%, 7.8%, and 4.1%, respectively, last year, meeting the standards.

Samsung Electronics DS Division Environment Team employees. From the left, Carbon Manager Ki-eun Kim SP (Senior Professional), Waste Manager Jeong Eui-jin P (Professional), Water Manager Tae-wan Koo SP.

According to Samsung Electronics, the company switched to 100% renewable energy by purchasing Renewable Energy Certificates (REC) for its overseas semiconductor sites in the United States and China in 2019, while domestic sites have installed solar and geothermal power facilities to supply electricity to some offices. Additionally, Samsung has been continuously promoting carbon reduction activities such as optimizing greenhouse gas usage in semiconductor manufacturing processes and developing new catalysts for greenhouse gas reduction devices. Kim Gi-eun, Senior Professional in charge of carbon, explained, "Samsung Electronics' semiconductor division was the first in the semiconductor industry in 2007 to jointly build greenhouse gas decomposition facilities with partners, and has continued reduction activities by improving decomposition efficiency through changing catalyst components used in these facilities." Through these efforts, Samsung Electronics reduced approximately 1.3 million tons of carbon emissions last year based on production volume (a 9.6% reduction per unit), which is equivalent to the amount absorbed by planting pine trees over an area twice the size of Seoul.

Water usage was also reduced by adopting membrane (filter) technology. Samsung Electronics purifies ultrapure water and reuses the remaining water in rooftop wet cleaning facilities and cooling towers, increasing water reuse through wastewater purification using membrane technology. The water reuse volume across all semiconductor business sites in 2020 was about 70 million tons, approximately a 12% increase compared to 2018-2019. Additionally, by integrating some reclaimed water facilities to improve operational efficiency and optimizing manufacturing processes, water usage was reduced. This resulted in a reduction of 10.25 million tons of water based on 2020 production volume (a 7.8% reduction per unit), which is roughly equivalent to the amount of water used by about 2 million people in Hwaseong and Yongin cities for one month. Gu Tae-wan, Senior Professional in charge of water, stated, "Samsung Electronics conducted tests to gradually reduce the spraying time of existing water in cleaning processes to optimize water usage. We carried out and implemented about 180 tasks last year alone to reduce water usage, which led to the reduction."

Samsung Electronics significantly reduced wastewater sludge through material changes. Wastewater sludge is sediment produced during wastewater treatment and accounts for more than 60% of total waste generation. By switching materials used in processes and optimizing the amount supplied to specific equipment, wastewater sludge was reduced. Furthermore, packaging standards for products entering the production line were established to reduce the use of corrugated cardboard, the number of vinyl packaging instances, and the number of string bindings, thereby reducing disposable packaging waste. Jeong Eui-jin, Professional in charge of waste, said, "To reduce wastewater sludge, we changed materials used in process stages to minimize substances used for purification, resulting in a reduction of about 75,000 tons of wastewater sludge."

The recycling separation system for general office waste was also improved. The existing three-type separation bins were subdivided into six types, and to establish a proper separation culture, a 'Bihaengbunseok (Empty, Rinse, Separate, Do Not Mix)' campaign was conducted. Through these efforts, Samsung Electronics reduced 35,752 tons of waste based on 2020 production volume.

Jang Seong-dae, Executive Director of the Sustainability Management Office at Samsung Electronics' DS Division, stated, "We have been making multifaceted efforts for decades in carbon, water, and waste areas to efficiently respond to climate change and have managed these as business site management indicators. We will enhance the sustainability of the semiconductor business through ultra-fine process-based low-power semiconductors, eco-friendly water treatment for regional ecosystem restoration, and the development of greenhouse gas reduction facilities." Since 2009, Samsung Electronics has obtained environmental certifications such as carbon footprint and water footprint for a total of 41 semiconductor products from domestic and international organizations.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.