Make an Impact Launch message from Alcoa Managing Director Wayne Osborn…
The Alcoa - Greening Australia Make an Impact initiative is a first for Australian industry.
It aims to empower our national workforce of more than 7,500 staff to reduce their individual greenhouse footprint.
An action we hope will result in a significant reduction in household greenhouse emissions – the source of one fifth of Australia’s greenhouse gases.
Alcoa views global warming as an issue of vital importance and has taken a voluntary leadership position on addressing climate change.
We have reduced global greenhouse gas emissions by 25% compared to 1990 levels and are now seeking to maintain this reduction as we grow.
In WA Alcoa has partnered with Alinta to develop energy efficient cogeneration power plants at our refineries. Cogeneration is the most thermally efficient and greenhouse friendly non-renewable energy source and the emissions that will be saved by the new plants is equivalent to taking 450,000 vehicles off our roads.
Equally exciting is the carbon capture technology developed by our research and development group at Kwinana, expected to reduce CO2 output by 300,000 tonnes each year when implemented across our three refineries. The technology also has potential for industry application globally.
At our Victorian operations we have reduced direct emissions within our smelting operations by 57 per cent compared with 1990 levels. Our Point Henry and Anglesea operations are targeting a 70% reduction in domestic water use by 2010.
The product we make also plays a key role.
The use of aluminium in transport leads to lighter vehicles, with better fuel efficiency and less greenhouse emissions. Aluminium can be endlessly recycled and recycling saves 95% of the energy needed to make new metal.
Alcoa is the largest recycler of aluminium in the country, with the Alcoa ARP Yennora facility in Western Sydney recycling around 70,000 tonnes of scrap aluminium each year, including half a billion cans.
Our focus on sustainability is central to the way we do business.
But we also believe strongly in sharing our knowledge and experience with others for the broader benefit of the community.
And in the same way, we recognise the partnerships we build can create capacity that reaches far beyond our gates.
Our partnership with Greening Australia is one such example.
In the twenty four years that we have worked together, the Alcoa - Greening Australia partnership has evolved to reflect the changing needs of the community and the environment. What hasn’t changed is our commitment - which has resulted in the planting of over 10 million trees and the rehabilitation of thousands of hectares of degraded land.
We are also members of the Greenhouse Challenge Plus and are delighted that the Australian Greenhouse Office has lent its support and endorsement to the Make an Impact initiative.
While we can be proud of our achievements so far, we must remain focused on continuous improvement.
Our existing achievements have been made possible through energy efficiency, productivity improvements, technological innovation and successful partnerships.
But foremost, they have been made possible by the commitment, dedication and skill of our people.
We have a workforce of more than 7,500 Australians who are already committed to environmental sustainability.
And this commitment has the potential to build capacity.
By giving our people the tools and the knowledge to manage their environmental impact outside of the workplace, we are empowering them to become part of the solution to global climate change.
We believe that by working together, and building capacity in our local communities, we can achieve real outcomes on climate change.
Because individually we can make a difference.
But together we can make an impact.
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How is Alcoa addressing climate change as a business?
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Make an Impact is a joint initiative between Alcoa and Greening Australia.
To find out more about this successful 24 year partnership click here.
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