GUEST COMMENT CHET THOMPSON PRESIDENT & CEO, AMERICAN FUEL & PETROCHEMICAL MANUFACTURERS (AFPM)
R
Petrochemical efiners and petrochemical manufacturers fulfil manufacturers an indispensable role in today’s world. Our are making major industries make modern life possible through contributions to address the issue of mismanaged affordable fuel and petrochemical products plastic waste. Several of our members have recently that enable everything from daily transportation announced major breakthroughs in advanced recycling. to advanced technologies, to critical health and These breakthroughs will allow us to turn plastic waste medical products such as N95 masks and syringes for into virgin quality feedstocks, yielding products of the life-saving vaccines. Our products make life better, same quality, strength, durability, and purity as those safer, and more productive for people everywhere. manufactured from virgin feedstocks. These advanced For nearly two years, we have navigated a recycling innovations vastly pandemic that has brought increase the possibilities hardship and loss, and of what we can do with driven millions of people plastic waste and will help into poverty. We also face Our industries are make the world a greener the prospect of a global place. population that will grow prepared not only to At AFPM, we are by 2 billion over the coming working with policymakers decades. Our industries help the world recover and other stakeholders are prepared not only to economically, but also to advance public help the world recover policies that enable our economically, but also to supply the fuel and members to safely and to supply the fuel and petrochemical needs of sustainably provide the petrochemical needs of a fuels and petrochemicals growing population. We a growing population. that the world’s growing must do this sustainably, populations and now and for generations economies need to thrive. to come, while addressing We are advocating for critical issues such as a nationwide high-octane fuel standard that would climate change, the management of plastic waste, and result in emissions reductions equivalent to taking rising standards of living. hundreds of thousands of cars off the road each year. In the last 10 years, refiners have invested more We are pursuing policies to address plastic waste in the than US$100 billion to improve efficiency and environment and spur progress in advanced recycling. produce lower carbon fuels. These investments have We also support our members’ extensive work and reduced our emissions and carbon intensity by 12% in investments to operate more sustainably; increase the past decade. And despite its historic expansion, production of low carbon fuels; and drive technological the petrochemical sector has experienced similar innovation in carbon capture, utilisation and storage, results. among other emissions-reducing technologies. Today, refiners are bringing more low carbon fuels Throughout our 150-year history, the refining and to market, making record investments in the scale of petrochemical industries have continually evolved to renewable fuels like renewable diesel and sustainable meet the world’s changing needs and offer solutions aviation fuel. They are also driving progress in to our most pressing challenges. The vital role that our emission reductions through technologies such as products play in a healthy and thriving society cannot carbon capture and storage and increasing renewable be ignored. power generation at their facilities.
HYDROCARBON
ENGINEERING
5
September 2021
