03. Water used Saving water is our second nature

2022 was a complex year from a water perspective. The European Commission estimates that drought has caused several billion euros of damage to all industries. The Group has also been affected by water scarcity, particularly in relation to the reduced availability of hydroelectricity supplied directly by Geogreen, but this has been offset by a policy of careful market research into green energy.

While the Group's products contain little or no water, the production processes are heavily dependent on it for plant cooling. It is therefore strategic for RadiciGroup to protect water, not to waste it and to reuse it as many times as possible (up to 60.5 times) before releasing it into the environment, under controlled conditions and in compliance with the regulations in force in the various countries.

This fact confirmed to the Group the need to protect water more and more, also as a consequence of climate change phenomena.

Three-quarters of the Group's sites have developed and maintain an ISO 14001 Environmental Management System, which focuses on preventing environmental risks, including those related to water management.

99.82% water not diverted for human consumption

GRI 303-3 Water withdrawal by source*

* For production sites where the quantity of discharged water is not measured, this quantity is generally assumed to be equal to withdrawn water. The same applies to cases when only discharged water is measured. In this case, withdrawn water is generally considered equal to discharged water. The Group uses “fresh water” for its activities, i.e. with < 1,000 mg/l of total dissolved solids.

03. Water released At the source of recycling

In 2022, the practice of recycling cooling water saved up to 71%, which is in line with the previous year. As in every year, Radici Chimica Deutschland GmbH adopted a specific water management policy: for the operation of its plants, it draws the resource from a water loop, managed by the industrial park to which it belongs. The same consortium also deals with the recycling of output water.

Formally, the recycling activity takes place outside the company gates, so the contribution of Radici Chimica Deutschland GmbH to the savings ratio indicator is zero. Excluding the German company from the scope, the percentage of water saved in 2020 rises to 146%.

3.7 mln of m3 saved compared to 2020, equivalent to the average water needs of approximately 18,500 households 71% water saved compared to theoretical requirement in 2022

Water is used from 1 to 60.5 times in the Group plants