Eco-Friendly Practices Make Winners of 10 EU Firms

BUDAPEST, Hungary, October 9, 2002 (ENS) - This year's winners of the European Business Award for the Environment were rewarded for sustainable development efforts ranging from a new boiling system for brewing beer to an environmentally sound traffic light. In all, 10 European based companies were given the award as commendation by the European Union (EU) for their efforts to integrate sustainable development into their business practices.

"The winners have developed processes, products or management approaches that have the potential to deliver them well deserved economic success, whilst at the same time reducing the impact they have on the environment," said EU Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom at Friday's awards ceremony. "They have had to find the right balance between the two, and have succeeded."

Environment Commissioner Margot Wallstrom (right) presents the European Business Awards (Photo courtesy Gea-SOL)

The Management Award for Sustainable Development recognizes a company that has the environmental, economic and social aspects of sustainability clearly integrated into the overall mission and all the policies of the organization. This year's winners were UK based B&Q, Spanish company Coato, and ST-Microelectronics Ltd. of Malta.

B&Q, a do-it-yourself retailer, won for its efforts to take on the challenges of social responsibility through an internal management program "QUEST," which stands for QUality, Ethics and SafeTy.

Coato paprika (Photo courtesy Coato)

The Malta based division of semiconductor giant ST-Microelectronics won for its "Environmental Decalogue," which consists of 10 quantified, timed and measurable targets to help the company move towards environmental neutrality. The company has said it aims to completely neutralize its carbon dioxide emissions by 2010. Carbon dioxide is the most abundant greenhouse gas linked with global climate change.

Receiving the award on behalf of ST's Malta operation, vice president Gene Gretchen said the company strives to be at the "forefront of ecological commitment," for "ethical and social reasons," and also for "financial return and the ability to attract the most responsible and quality people."

Winners of the Product Award for Sustainable Development are commended for the development of a new product or related service that makes an outstanding contribution to sustainable development. Achmea Schadeservice BV of the Netherlands won for its green car insurance policy, which is built upon the concept that holders have their cars repaired with used original parts.

The solar roof tiles on the right won a Product Award for Sustainable Development (Photo courtesy Gea-SOL)

The third winner of the Product Award, TTS A/S of Denmark, has developed a new traffic light that conserves energy by using light emitting diodes instead of traditional bulbs.

The Process Award for Sustainable Development is given to companies that have developed and applied a new production technology that makes an outstanding contribution to sustainable development. British Petroleum (BP) won for a new process that simplifies the removal of sulfur from gasoline. Fluidized catalytic cracking naphtha is the dominant source of sulfur in gasoline. The process developed by BP is capable of removing over 99.5 percent of sulfur compounds in the naphtha.

Austria's Integral Umwelt und Anlagentechnik was recognized for its new catalyst regeneration process, which can aid the removal of nitrogen oxides in flue gases of power plants, waste and hazardous waste incinerators.

Steinecker beer brewing facility utilizes the Merlin process (Photo courtesy Steinecker Maschinenfabrik GmbH)

Winners of the International Cooperation Award for Sustainable Development have participated in an international partnership involving at least two organizations from different sectors - private, public, non-governmental, or academic. In addition, one of the participants must be an EU country with the other either a developing country or a country with an economy in transition, including EU accession countries.

The cooperation award went to Germany's Fraunhofe Institute for Wood Research/WKI, which has developed a technology for producing fiber boards from residues of palm oil production. The institute is showcasing this technology in Malaysia, which produces 40 million tons of biomass waste from oil palm cultivation annually. This waste is currently either burned or stored in conditions that do not meet European standards. The new technology, by providing a new source of board wood, could also help convince countries to preserve existing tropical forests.