Sony on Track to Eliminate Waste by 2050

Sony Corporation has exceeded its waste minimization targets across all of its global business sites, achieving a 54% reduction rate in 2010 set against a 40% objective.

The electronics giant is now embarking on a number of pioneering initiatives to take its ambitions further. Out in Korea, Sony has launched a zero electronic waste campaign in collaboration with the Korean Government and various recycling companies, signing a memorandum of understanding with a national council of green consumers.

To underline this scheme, the manufacturer has drawn up a series of educational programs for students and their mentors, enrolling pupils from 100 schools to collect electronics waste for recycling, and to communicate the benefits of responsible e-waste recovery to their peers.

Across Europe Sony is also making great strides on the waste front. Recycling levels have increased from 73% in 2000 to 99% in 2009, meaning that 99% of the waste generated by Sony Europe’s manufacturing facilities is now either reused or recycled.

The company prides itself on its sustainability goals and sets progressively more challenging targets every few years in line with its Road to Zero ambitions to achieve a carbon footprint of zero by 2050. According to Sony’s head of European environmental affairs Dr Thomas Fischer, it’s a challenging task and interim targets are required to keep track of progress.

He said: “We have set targets for 2015 that cover both operations and products, and impact on greenhouse gas emissions, waste generation, use of recycled materials, water consumption, carbon dioxide emissions from our logistics and transport, and so on.”

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Source: edieWaste