Electroplating - Statement of Environmental Responsibility pt.2
It is the responsibility and challenge for the owners and operators of electroplating processes is to continuously lessen the adverse impact of our processes on the earth. We have a lot of tools and opportunities to do that. We can:
Reduce the amount of resources that we consume: Control the amount of metal that we deposit; control the amount of fresh water that we consume; control the amount of energy that we consume; and control the amount of chemicals that we consume. We have tools and practices that we can employ toward this goal. Furthermore, we are only limited in our continuous progress toward eliminating waste by our own energy and creativity.
Reclaim those things which escape our process or which are a by-product of the electroplating process. Metals lost, chemicals contaminated, and water used. Each of these can be captured and controlled or recycled for re-use.
One of our success stories is our purchase of sodium hydroxide (NaOH). NaOH is used in our waste treatment process, and we have a great amount of latitude in the quality of the NaOH that we purchase. So we purchase "barge rinse". NaOH is delivered to our community via river barge. Once off-loaded, the barge is rinsed with water and the rinse is a waste that requires disposal. To us that "waste" is a usable product.
ProPlate's® Code of Environmental Conduct is to make a continuous and meaningful effort toward sustainability. A sustainable society is one where we take no more from the planet than we return. We acknowledge that ProPlate® will always be a net consumer of the earth's resources. However, we will continuously strive toward the least wasteful state of manufacturing.
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