As part of the Bayer Eco-Check we also scrutinize production processes and look at alternative methods of synthesis. Not only do we consider commercial viability, we focus in particular on use of resources and environmental compatibility. The best example of a success story is the new Therban® plant in Leverkusen.

The new environmentally friendly facility for manufacturing Therban®.

A symbolic moment: On October 17, 2000, with the push of a button, Jürgen Trittin, the Federal German Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety, together with Bayer CEO Dr. Manfred Schneider and Dr. Attila Molnar, Board Member with responsibility for environmental protection and safety, brought into service a new Leverkusen production plant costing € 60 million for Therban®, a high-performance synthetic rubber. The ceremony was visible proof that, when the environment is at stake, business and politics are finally singing the same song. Federal Environment Minister Trittin said "With this project, Bayer AG is making a significant contribution to environmental protection and is advancing Germany's technological progress." The German Environment Ministry subsidized the building of the plant to the tune of around € 0.7 million, using funds from the "Investment Program for the Reduction of Environmental Pollution." During the ceremony in Leverkusen, the Minister stated that the aim of this program is to use full-scale demonstration projects to show how a plant can incorporate state-of-the-art technology, and to illustrate the way in which advanced processes for the avoidance and reduction of environmental pollution can be realized and environmentally friendly products produced and used. Mr. Trittin also shares our view that ecological modernization offers the greatest chance to protect the natural basis of life while also creating new jobs.
 

Therban®

BMU German Federal Environment Ministry

Jürgen Trittin, German Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety "The Therban® facility is not just any modern chemical production plant, but instead one which gives environmental protection high priority and which is devoted to in-process environmental protection."

Therban® is used to produce cables and seals among other articles.

When designing this innovative plant, we paid particular attention to the ecological aspects, such as reducing the required input of raw materials and energy and lowering emissions and waste. These were but a few of the targets that could be met thanks to this innovative production process. Compared with conventional production, it has been possible to reduce annual steam consumption by 20,000 metric tons, nitrogen emissions by 300,000 cubic meters, and waste gases containing solvent fumes by 5,000 cubic meters. In addition, used solvents are recycled and fed back into the production process - resulting in savings of numerous tons per year. More importantly, by means of some innovative chemistry and honed process technology, the new production process requires far less catalyst than conventional processes. The catalyst is based on a scarce metal which is about four times more expensive than gold. As in the case of the solvents, it is recycled for re-use. Experts have calculated that this efficiency improvement alone reduces the ore requirement by 300,000 metric tons per annum.

In other areas too, new benchmarks have been set - in plant and occupational safety for example. The reactor that is at the center of Therban® production weighs 140 metric tons, has steel walls that are 20 centimeters thick and can withstand pressure up to 145 bar, which is similar to that at a depth of 1,500 meters under the sea. A high safety margin has been "built in."

After appropriate modifications, some of the elements of this process can be applied to other chemical production processes. In this way, we are fulfilling our particular responsibility within the chemical industry and have also pointed the way for the future.

Ecological evaluations are a must
Before the Therban® plant was built, a team of experts consisting of engineers, environmental protection experts, toxicologists, planners and plant managers assessed the project from an ecological point of view. Since 1988, all projects within Bayer AG that require investment in excess of € 10 million have undergone such an assessment. And since 1997, environmental assessments have been compulsory throughout the Bayer Group as a whole.

In assessing the production process as well as the product to be produced, the specialist team defines and highlights the specific aspects within the project that are of relevance to the environment. It thereby carries out a detailed analysis and evaluation of areas such as consumption of resources, emissions, health and safety, recycling and disposal, and consumer protection issues. All problems that arise are approached on a case-to-case basis, the solutions being arrived at by consensus. If a potential threat to the environment is recognized, the plans for the project are amended, the process changed or the project halted altogether. Each year, an average of 20 projects that raise issues with regard to the environment are examined worldwide. In 2000, the range of projects that were approved included plant extensions for plastics production and the construction of a new production facility for crop protection agents.