Dow’s Partnership with China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection
Dow’s sustainability leadership in China resulted in a special project that brings together United Nations for Environmental Program (UNEP), China’s Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) and Dow in a joint effort to promote safer production, chemical safety and emergency preparedness in the chemical industry value-chain in China. The partnership between the three organizations supports the development of safer production of chemicals and safety management systems in pilot industries. The project also helped the MEP and relevant organizations improve local awareness and preparedness for industrial environmental emergencies through training materials, training systems and case studies.
As part of the two-year project, workshops, demonstrations and training sessions are taking place throughout China, including an emergency drill at Dow’s Zhangjiagang facility. Specifically, a pilot program and workshop at the Zhangjiagang facility served as a crucial component of the entire operation. At the workshop, the multi-sector cooperation surrounding the project provided China with corporate and international practices to support sustainable development. Most notably, the 40 companies that participated benefited from information on how to improve chemical safety, which can lead to fewer accidents, employee injuries and environmental emergencies, as well as safer production and improved preparedness of the local community and industry.
Dow’s participation in the two-year project follows a three-year national pilot project between Dow and MEP called the “Cleaner Production Program (CPP).
This kind of innovative thinking is just one example of how the Human Element at Dow is contributing to safer communities.