We create value for our customers and society by innovating science-based solutions that help save lives, extend lives and improve the overall quality of life.

At the same time we are committed to sustainable development in all its broad and diverse meanings. In part, this means striving to reduce our use of natural resources such as water and energy, striving to reduce our carbon footprint and to reduce the generation of waste.

In our operations, we engage and empower our employees and teams to work towards our Vision Zero – meaning zero workplace injuries, zero manufacturing process incidents, zero emissions beyond regulatory limits, and zero transportation incidents. In the workplace, we aim to protect our colleagues by identifying and eliminating potential hazards.

This commitment to sustainability is a core part of the ethical principles that drive us.

One of our long-term goals is to improve our sustainability performance and reduce our environmental footprint. To achieve these aspirations, we have set specific environmental targets based on the reported values for full year 2018, until 2030. The environmental values, baseline and targets will be reassessed in due course to reflect the divestment of the Specialty Ingredients segment.

Sustainability Reports Repository
2019 – 2030 targets for waste: minus 2% per annum measured against total revenue. 2019 – 2030 targets for energy and CO2: minus 3% per annum measured against total revenue. Ambition: 100% Renewable Electricity by 2025

The targets are based on million CHF sales because of our very diverse and ever-changing product portfolio, which span biologics, small molecules, cell and gene technologies, bioscience and capsules and health ingredients. This diversity can only be integrated with a value-related denominator.

Each Lonza manufacturing site maintains a waste-disposal concept tailored to its waste streams for an efficient, environmentally sound treatment and disposal of wastes. All sites are dedicated to our waste reduction principles.


Avoid

Reduce

Recycle

Treat

Dispose


At some locations, e.g. Visp (CH), we operate our own waste and wastewater treatment. We carefully select our partners for waste transportation and treatment based on performance and capabilities in Environment, Health and Safety (EHS).

We ensure that the treatment and disposal of all our waste materials is conducted according to international standards and conforms to the local regulations. The system and performance of waste management at our manufacturing sites is subject to regular audits.

We are committed to increase input materials efficiency in our production processes, including whenever possible reworking out-of-specification production. We strive to reduce effluents by controlling and reducing water inputs. Locally, effluents are managed according to their quantities and parameters as permitted by the local authorities.

Additionally, the energy from on-site incineration of residues and waste gases, which we perform in Visp (CH),and Nansha (CN), is used for heat energy generation in order to conserve resources.

The waste intensity varies over the years, mainly due to the fact that construction waste was not separated from production waste before the year 2018. Construction and excavation activities contributed to the peaks observed in most recent years. After having refined the waste reporting guidelines, the company will report numbers for production-related waste streams.


Air emissions

Lonza applies state-of-the-art technology for air emission control. The focus is on greenhouse gas emissions (CO2), and volatile organic compounds (VOC), as precursors to low atmospheric ozone. Other parameters monitored are nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide and particulate matter.


Water emissions

Parameters monitored for water pollution are total organic carbon (TOC) or chemical oxygen demand (COD), heavy metals, nitrogen and phosphorus. Depending on the site-specific processes and production, local requirements may also include other relevant parameters. Organic substances in effluent waters are measured as total organic carbon (TOC) in metric tons C, or chemical oxygen demand (COD) in metric tons O2. Heavy metals are presented as metric tons of the sum of Arsenic( As), Cadmium (Cd), Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), Lead (Pb), Mercury (Hg), Nickel (Ni) and Zinc (Zn). The main source of heavy metals is the usage of metal-containing catalysts. The eutrophying nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) containing compounds are measured in metric tons of N and metric tons of P, respectively.

Based on scientific evidence, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contribute to global warming, largely caused by the combustion of fossil fuels to provide energy. This affects the climate globally and we must address it as a material issue.

As part of the global industrial community, we are engaged in selecting and implementing energy-efficient solutions. The most important energy sources to us are natural gas, electricity and the thermal processing of our waste products (steam production, combined heat and power).

For more information, please check our latest CDP disclosures  and our TCFD report, included in our Sustainability Report.

Energy efficiency

Energy consumed for manufacturing processes is by far the largest contributor to our climate-relevant emissions. We therefore concentrate on energy-efficiency measures at all our manufacturing sites as part of our continuous improvement effort, and plan to increase the share of renewable electricity. The energy intensity (GJ/revenue) has steadily been decreasing.

Carbon emissions overview

CO2 equivalents (CO2-eq) are calculated from the consumption of the energy sources multiplied by published emission factors. Process-specific emission factors are applied where known. Chemical processes and reactions may also generate GHG-emissions, (e.g. fugitive CO2 or N2O), which are tracked and reported by our sites. CO2-eq include the greenhouse gases CO2, methane, nitrous oxide, and a number of halogenated hydrocarbon compounds. CO2-eq emissions from incineration processes include fossil fired boiler houses as well as waste incineration plants (using waste solids, liquids and gases as fuel). The carbon intensity (CO2-eq/revenue) has been steadily decreasing across the years.

Water usage is divided into two main categories: industrial process water and non-contact cooling water. All cooling water cycles are closed-loop systems, whereby the exchanged heat is dissipated by air and evaporation (cooling tower) or by river water as in Visp (CH). As of 2018, sites have been required to report on the water source, water use and water output indicators, to better understand and manage this critical resource.

Industrial water

Industrial water consumption, closely related to production volume, capacity use and product mix, amounted to 6.87 million cubic meters in 2020. The decrease in the water consumption per mio CHF reflects the water-saving initiatives and changes in the product portfolio .

Cooling water

All cooling water networks are separated from any industrial water networks to prevent accidental pollution of water. Total cooling water used by Lonza in 2020 amounts to 149.98 million cubic meters, with Visp accounting for 99%, and the majority returns to water bodies.