CSRC strictly controls the use of water resources and continues to improve the efficiency of water circulation to prevent damage to the surrounding environment caused by excessive water intake. Linyuan Advanced in Greater China and the operating plants in the United States have implemented a water balance project and continue to adjust the water resource consumption on a rolling basis. They work with neighboring factories to sell steam to neighboring factories, and the external partners transport the condensate generated in their processes back to the plants for reuse. Other internal water-saving actions include the following: diverting cooling water discharged from the cooling water to the desulfurization absorption tower as a supplementary water source, to expand the scale of water cycle; and regularly examining and repairing leaks in the plant's pipelines to reduce the risk of water waste. In 2023, we continued to take water-saving measures and reviewed the room for improvement in practical operations to achieve the best water resource use efficiency.
Water resource management methods and implementation plan of CSRC
In 2023, CSRC's total water intake was 4,636,599m3, which came from third-parties’ water, groundwater, well water, and condensate, and the water was used for processes, packaging, and office administration in the Group as a whole. Water intake was 2,624,673m3 in Greater China, 849,484m3 in India, and 1,162,442 m3 in the United States.
In terms of water resources management, CSRC continues to examine the process water consumption in the plants and implements water conservation and recycling projects to make the most effective use of water resources. In 2023, the wastewater recycling rates of the group is 89%, and plants in Greater China were 56% for Linyuan Advanced, 90% for Maanshan, and 22% for Anshan; the said rates of the plants in India were 100% for CCET and 100% for CCIPL; the said rates of the plants in the United States were 100% for CCC Sunray and 100% for CCC Ponca.
Water risk identification and management
CSRC conducts regular assessments of the overall water risk ratings of the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas of the World Resources Institute (WRI). In Greater China, Taipei Headquarters and Linyuan Advanced are at low-tomedium risk, Maanshan at medium-to-high risk, Anshan at extremely high risk, Chongqing at low-to- medium risk; in India, CCIPL is at extremely high risk. As the main water source of CCIPL is groundwater, tube wells, there is no risk of water shortage. Although CCET is rated as high risk for the overall water risk, the plant is not facing issue of water shortage or flooding. In the United States, the overall water risk of the two plants is rated as low-to- medium risk.
The operating sites of CSRC are located in regions with high or extremely high water stress, accounting for 33.1% of the Group's total water intake and 1.8% of the total water consumption. This indicates that each operating site in regions with high or extremely high water stress values and makes the most of water resources and commits to reducing water withdrawal to alleviate local water supply pressure.
| Note | This is the result of an overall water risk assessment for each plant using the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas of the WRI. |
Water intake and consumption by production sites in water-stressed regions
Effluent by production sites in water-stressed regions
In 2023, the water intake in Greater China was 2,624,673 m3. Due to the decrease in the production of carbon black, the overall water consumption was significantly lower than that in 2022. All water intake in the Greater China region comes from tap water, not natural bodies of water. This helps to prevent the impact of water intake on the local water environment. In order to prevent Anshan from being affected by sudden droughts or water shortages, it has a reserve of 3,000 m3 of water, to prevent significant impacts on operations due to water shortages. Each plant actively conserves water and increases the wastewater recycling rate by implementing different solutions. In 2023, both Maanshan and Anshan were named the Water-Efficiency Enterprise by the local government for two consecutive years.
CCIPL's water intake in India comes from tube wells of groundwater; CCET's water intake comes from tap water. In 2023, the water intake of the plants in India was 849,484 m3. In the United States, CCC Sunray's water sources are rainwater, groundwater, and water circulated in the process and the steam production process. Rainwater is collected through the drainage system and ponds in the plant, and the water is treated and used in the process. CCC Ponca's water sources are tap water and well water. Both plants have set up their own zero-discharge facilities for sewage, without sewage discharge to avoid impact on the local water environment. In 2023, the water intake of the two plants was 1,162,442 m3.
Group-wide data of water resources over the past three years
| Note 1 | Water intake is for process, packaging, and office administration |
| Note 2 | . Water consumption = water intake - wastewater discharge |
| Note 3 | Wastewater discharge rate = wastewater discharge ÷ water intake |
| Note 4 | In addition to third-parties’ water and condensate, Linyuan Advanced uses rainwater but has not yet installed a flow meter, so the data is not available. |
| Note 5 | The data for Greater China includes that of Taipei Headquarters and Consolidated Resource, but the data of Taipei Headquarters has only been included since 2022, so there is no relevant data for 2021. |
| Note 6 | The first production line of CCET in India commenced operations at the end of 2022, so there is no relevant data for 2021 and 2022. |
Water consumption and Wastewater discharge for each region in the past three years
Group water resource management implementation plan
● Water balance project
Linyuan Advanced in Greater China has implementing a water balance project since 2020. By adding flow meters to the process equipment, it aims to effectively keep abreast of the water consumption in the plant and has set the ultimate goal of achieving zero wastewater discharge. Reducing water-related risks in the face of the threat of climate change We also supply steam to our nearby partners, who then return the condensate generated from their manufacturing processes to Linyuan Advanced in Greater China for reuse, in order to achieve the economic benefits of water recycling. In 2023, a total of 8,149 m3 of condensate was used (accounting for 0.62% of the total water intake of Linyuan Advanced in Greater China). It is estimated that our partners can provide nearly two tons of condensate per hour (maximum volume is 20 tons). CCET has set up a condensate recycling system, which is still in the testing stage.
CCC in the United States has installed flow meters in the existing water wells to monitor the water volume every day. The daily average consumption of well water in the plant for flushing and equipment maintenance is about 144,000 gallons. Due to evaporation, only 140,000 gallons are retained in the sedimentation tank. About 30,000 gallons of rainwater (from the surface of the buildings, such as the plant, parking space, gravel paved areas, and grass areas) is also collected in the sedimentation tank every day (estimated at annual rainfalls of 34 inches of runoff). If it is estimated at full load without planned downtime, the shortfall of about 77,545 gallons per day is in a balanced state.
CCC has a quench water system, with POTW running 24/7 at a flow rate of 400 gpm, except for Fridays). During normal operations, the risers are filled with water from the pond through the pond pump. POTW pump fill the tank to ensure a continuous supply of quench water. POTW pumps can also be used to fill risers directly
Rainwater and drainage from green plants are collected in rainwater reservoirs and pumped into the rainwater tank.
There are four emergency pumps in total. Units 1 and 2 are equipped with one active emergency pump and one standby emergency pump
Each plant has set up sewage treatment facilities in accordance with local regulations and standards to treat the pollutants in the process wastewater to meet the management standards of the industrial zone or purifies wastewater and reuses it as process water, in an effort to use resources in a circular economy model. Maanshan and Anshan have also formulated internal wastewater treatment regulations to regulate the operation of wastewater treatment equipment, abnormal accident handling procedures, and occupational safety requirements to ensure the efficient management of the sewage treatment plants and achieve the purpose of water purification. Plants in both the United States and India have effluent treatment plants (ETP) on-site, which not only save water but also avoid the discharge of wastewater, and have formulated a zero-discharge policy. In 2023, CSRC 's regional operations were not in violation of water quality-related laws and regulations.
Effluent treatment method and final discharge location
CSRC’s plants in the United States have formulated a strict policy of zero discharge of wastewater and pledged not to discharge any wastewater to external water bodies, including rivers, oceans, lakes, or public sewage systems, to prevent any potential environmental pollution caused by the manufacturing process.
Internal disposal and reuse:
All wastewater generated by the plants is fully treated by the ETP set up on-site to ensure that it meets or exceeds the regulatory and internal quality standards. The treated reclaimed water is reused in on-site operations, mainly for the following two operations:
- Carbon black manufacturing: Treated reclaimed water is returned to the carbon black manufacturing process to ensure water resource efficiency and minimize our operational footprint.
- Steam production: The treated reclaimed water is also used to generate steam, which is critical to all stages of our operations.
Wastewater recycling rate of CSRC’s plants over the past three years
| Note | Wastewater recycling rate = reclaimed water volume / (reclaimed water volume + water discharge) |
Due to the characteristics of the industry, the wastewater discharged by CSRC contains carbon black particles and a small amount of grease. Each regional plant has built-in sewage treatment systems or has commissioned nearby treatment plants, and discharges wastewater in accordance with the sewage discharge standards set by the local governments. In 2023, the quality of effluents from each plant met the effluent discharge standards.
In the Greater China region, the wastewater discharged by Linyuan Advanced is mainly process washing water, desulfurization tower wastewater, and purified water system wastewater. After treatment of coagulation, pressurized flotation, and sand filtration, wastewater is returned to the production process for reuse. However, the wastewater from the desulfurization tower and the purified water process cannot be recycled at present, so the pH value in the plant is adjusted to neutrality, and SS and COD are strictly controlled to ensure that the water quality is in compliance with regulations before it is discharged to the Linyuan Industrial Park’s sewage treatment plant for subsequent processing. Maanshan has formulated the Wastewater Treatment Plant Operating Procedures for internal management with reference to "IATF 16949-2016 Quality Management System for the Automotive Industry," "ISO 9001-2015 Quality Management System," and "GB/T 19022-2003 Measurement Management System - Requirements for Measurement Process and Measuring Equipment," to regulate the sewage treatment process and ensure that the discharge quality meets the standards. Anshan has also formulated "Wastewater Treatment Plant Operating Procedures" as per "Liaoning Provincial Comprehensive Wastewater Discharge Standards", to standardize the plant's sewage treatment process, abnormal accident handling procedures, and occupational safety requirements, to ensure that the sewage treatment plant can be effectively managed and can operate as expected. The sewage treatment procedures of both plants include grit chambers, air flotation equipment, and silica sand filters. In addition to being used for washing of floors in the plants, part of the qualified treated sewage is returned to the clean water tank for use in the production process, and the remaining sewage is discharged to the sewage treatment plant. All the wastewater inside Chongqing is recycled and reused, without wastewater discharged outside.
The plants in India have zero-discharge sewage treatment facilities in place. The treated water is not discharged outside the plants but recycled in zero liquid discharge (ZLD) plant and returned to the production process. The plants in the United States do not have sewage discharge equipment, and sewage is not discharged to other sewage treatment plants. All water is discharged to the evaporation pond for treatment and then recycled and reused. As for the ZLD equipment of CCET in India (as shown in the figure on the right), all wastewater is treated before use in the plant, and no liquid wastewater is discharged into surface water.
Effluent quality from plants in Greater China over the past three years
| Note 1 | If the analysis result of the sample is lower than the detection limit of the method, it will be indicated as ND (not detected). |
| Note 2 | The grease for Maanshan and Anshan is petroleum. |
| Note 3 | As Maanshan’s wastewater recycling rate reached 98%, it was removed from the list of key entities under supervision and management in 2023, so the limit was relaxed. In the past, the level 2 standard of the Comprehensive Sewage Discharge Standard (GB8978-1996) was adopted. Linyuan Advanced complies with the Standards for Quality of Sewage Discharged into Sewerage System by Linyuan Industrial Park User. |
| Note 4 | The plants in India and the United States do not directly discharge wastewater to any wastewater treatment plant, so there is no relevant testing data. |