CORPORATE CITIZENSHIP

sAFEty, HEAltH And EnVIronMEnt (sHE)

Achievements

Competent management of environmental issues is crucial. The ISO 14001 environmental management standard is the most widely recognised, externally verifiable standard in use internationally. The majority of sites in the Chemserve group now have it entrenched as part of their business processes. AEL has also implemented the standard throughout its South African operations and at most of its international sites.

Treatment plant upgrades at AEL’s Modderfontein operations resulted in a significant reduction in lead levels in the effluent from plants manufacturing initiating systems. The Modderfontein site as a whole received its new permit from the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry, and is achieving compliance levels of more than 94 per cent.

AEL’s carbon credit project is progressing well. The first nitric acid plant is now registered and is generating credits. More details on this are given later in this corporate citizenship report.

In 2005, AECI reported that it had reduced significantly the potential risks to communities surrounding its Umbogintwini site by enclosing sulphur dioxide operations and installing a scrubbing system to manage fugitive gas emissions. In 2007, this risk reduction programme was extended to chlorine handling facilities at the two water treatment plants that Heartland Leasing operates at that site. These facilities have been enclosed, with leak detection and scrubbing systems in place.

Heartland Leasing received a Special Commendation at the Mail & Guardian’s annual Greening the Future Awards. This was in recognition of the successful remediation of the Duikersvlei Stream at AECI’s former fertilizer site at Milnerton, Western Cape. The site was sold in 2006 and the remediation project was detailed as a case study in AECI’s 2006 annual report to shareholders.