Internal Water Management

Internal Water Management ^{GRI 303-1, 303-2 (2018)}

Under the operations of the Drought Preparedness Working Group (Water Management Taskforce), GC has performed a review and analysis of operational processes that affect water quality, continuously monitored water usage estimates, and transparently disclosed water management performance and the likelihood of water impacts in consistent with the guidelines of international standards, e.g., CEO Water Mandate, ISO 14001, and national standards, namely Eco Factory Standard which encompasses water management guidelines, such as preparing inventories on water usage quantity, wastewater quantity and water balance, identifying activities that require the use of water and the amount of wastewater generated in each production process and other supporting activities of the organization. This also includes the formulation of an action plan and the implementation of measures to optimize water and wastewater management efficiency to achieve goals in an effort to maximize water use efficiency in production processes, recirculate water for utilization, and create cooperation along the supply chain. In doing so, emphasis is placed on efficient water use, adoption of innovation in water management, and water stewardship throughout the production chain, e.g., recycling wastewater from the treatment system, increasing water circulation cycles in the cooling system, etc.

GC has also conducted direct and indirect water use assessment throughout the Water Footprint of Product (WF) according to ISO 14046 and analyzed hotspots to maximize the benefit of water use, cut down water consumption in production processes, reduce freshwater withdrawal from natural water sources, and lower impact on water use from GC’s business operations.

Moreover, GC must define proactive measures, drive sustainable water management through the application of high technology to support the acquisition of additional water supply in an effort to ensure water adequacy for our existing productions, which is in line with water management actions in response to climate change, as well as to effectively accommodate future projects at reasonable costs.

GC establishes action plan to reduce water consumption in long-term and short-term including, 1) evaluate processes to identify opportunities for reducing water use without affecting product quality, 2) Introduce new technologies and strategies to optimize water consumption, and 3) regularly review and reassess water conservation effort to identify areas for improvement. GC has enhanced water efficiency in the production process, utilized renewable water, supported investment in water-related technology, streamlined production process, and sought alternative water supply, such as Sea Water Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) and Wastewater Reverse Osmosis (WWRO), etc.