LEADING WITH SAFETY & SUSTAINABILITY
BY CHRIS JAHN
Safety and sustainability have been priority issues for the chemical and petrochemical industry for decades. As our industry continues to grow and innovate, it is critical that we continue to advance our safety and environmental performance, keeping our employees, contractors and communities safe.
Our industry’s continued growth is vital to tackling a variety of significant global challenges, from climate change to clean air and water and more. American Chemistry Council (ACC)members and our supply chain partners are researching, developing and deploying new technologies and innovations, and we are also advancing our safety and sustainability progress, developing new partnerships and expanding our outreach to the community.
Driving Progress and Performance: Responsible Care
For more than 35 years, Responsible Care has served as the backbone of our industry’scommitment to operate with safety, health, security, and environmental protection top of mind.From its ambitious launch by the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada in the early 1980’s to its adoption in United States in 1988, Responsible Care has led our industry’s progress in safety and sustainability.
Responsible Care isn’t just a commitment – it means putting in the important work every day to protect the health and safety of people and planet. It means taking action to help ensure the business of chemistry is safe both inside the facility and throughout the supply chain. And our performance demonstrates this: Responsible Care companies are four times safer than the U.S. manufacturing sector, and three times safer than the business of chemistry overall.
We recognize that safe chemicals management doesn’t end when a chemical product leaves the manufacturing facility. Through the Responsible Care Partner Program, ACC extends the Responsible Care® ethic and management practices across the chemical supply chain.
The Importance of Collaboration and Engagement
Building a culture of safety isn’t a singular event – it takes collaboration and engagement with employees, contractors, policymakers, peers and institutions like the Health and Safety Council (HASC). That’s why ACC is proud to continue to support HASC’s important work to educate, train and equip our workforce and advance industrial safety.
It’s important that we expand our engagement with external audiences as well — and each of us has an important role in that engagement. When you’re meeting with community stakeholders, first responders, or even with family and friends in your own backyard, you can help share the important message that our industry is working to keep employees and communities safe, protecting human health and the environment, and advancing sustainability, both in our own operations and in our customers, and our customer’s customers.
Unfortunately, our industry faces a massive increase in regulations, handicapping our ability to create products that support national priorities and contribute to broader sustainability goals. With these challenges, educating and engaging our communities and stakeholders on the value of our industry, the role we play in advancing environmental health and addressing sustainability challenges, and our record of safety, are vital to our continued success.
I look forward to continuing to work with our industry partners, like HASC, and each of you, to continue to drive safety and sustainability, building a better future for our nation and our world.
