SDG #14: Life below water

Our natural resources are very vulnerable. Over the last few decades, summers in Western-Europe have increasingly become drier and hotter. The water supply has barely been sufficient and right now it isn’t certain that there will be enough energy for everyone to make it through winter. More than ever before, we depend on the Earth’s natural resources.

Time to take responsibility

Manufacturing one of the most polluting industries on the planet. In its ‘Green Deal’, the European Union expects the industry to make strenuous efforts to improve this by 2030. As a sustainable company, we don’t want to wait that long. We want to act responsibly now. For instance, we are making efforts to stop using polluting ‘grey electricity’ and instead use more of the energy we generate ourselves. We have 3,883 solar panels on our roofs and these account for 1,012 kilowatt peak (kWp) per year. To give you an idea, this is sufficient to power around 285 families for a whole year.

Water, a precious commodity

Water has become a precious commodity. As an industrial company we frequently use it in our production processes and hence we have installed large, underground wells that can collect up to 3.5 million litres of rainwater per year. However, we want to be more than ‘users’. We want to give something in return for what nature offers us. For instance, WAAK produces private-label cleaning handles and grips which are entirely made from ‘ocean plastics’. The Danish company Plastix A/S collects plastic from fishing and trawling nets and ropes and converts them into ‘green plastics’. We use these to manufacture our plastic products and in this way we try to contribute to keeping the oceans clean.

Separating water and paint

Another example of our environmentally-friendly practices is our paint separation system. Instead of pouring paint, water and residues into the sewers (which is prohibited by law but still often happens) or having them destroyed by processing companies, we opt to separate the paint from the water. The separating system filters water from paint enabling the water to go into the sewer, leaving just paint residue behind. Handling our paint residues this way is not only good for the environment, it also saves money. Investing in this paint separation system is a definite win-win for us.

Together making a difference

Admittedly, we cannot deny that the impact is still rather limited, but we want to lead by example with our employees, suppliers and customers. Our message is that if we all work together and if we all make small changes, we will eventually see a big difference in the world.