Waste

There is a programme of selective waste collection, including recyclable waste (waste paper, plastics, wood, glass, used batteries, and used electric and electronic equipment), operated on the premises of the Grupa Azoty Group. In all contracts with external providers of waste collection services and other services involving waste we incorporate a clause requiring the providers to reuse or dispose of the waste collected from the company in accordance with environmental protection laws and the Waste Act. The Grupa Azoty Group also works with packaging recovery organisations and the Polish Chamber of Commerce to meet the appropriate targets applicable to recovery and recycling of packaging waste, including composite and hazardous materials. 

The Grupa Azoty Group companies are required to obtain an appropriate level of packaging recovery and recycling. 

Grupa Azoty S.A.

• The largest waste type generated in 2021 was ash collected using a hydraulic conveyor system. The ash is utilised by Grupa Azoty Jednostka Ratownictwa Chemicznego. The second largest type of waste was fly ash from coal, which was provided to external customers for commercial use.
• The Company manages its waste in compliance with EU directives and the Waste Act. The Group seeks to minimise waste generation by including waste reduction criteria in the design or procurement of new technologies. The majority of raw materials and auxiliary materials used in production are supplied by rail cars or road tankers, which reduces the amount of packaging waste. Unit packaging in which production raw materials are supplied is collected and sent for recycling. The Company participates in the packaging collection and recycling scheme under an agreement with the Province Marshal. It has established a partnership with the Packaging Recovery Organisation, which fulfils the obligation to recover and recycle product packaging placed on the domestic market.

Grupa Azoty Puławy

• The company holds all legally required environmental certificates, permits and decisions and has undergone all environmental reviews required for its operations. 
• Ash and slag mixtures from wet bottom ash removal are the main type of waste generated by the company. They are transferred for use or disposal to a licensed third-party operator. 
• Products are sold in bulk or packaged in various types of bags. The company keeps records of packaging in line with relevant procedures in place and fulfils its obligations under packaging and packaging waste management regulations through an agreement signed with a packaging recovery organisation and a self-regulatory business organisation. 
• Grupa Azoty Puławy consistently implements solutions to reduce generated waste volumes. Some examples of waste reduction initiatives are listed below: 
  • reclassification of fly ash waste from coal combustion as a by-product,
  • reduction of the volumes of ash and slag mixtures stored by the company by transferring them for use by third-party operators,
  • dewatering of sludge, which can then be transferred to third parties for further use,
  • work to develop technologies for sludge processing into fertilizer products.

Grupa Azoty Police

• The main type of waste recovered by the company is sludge from the on-site wastewater treatment plant. All sludge (330,370.0 Mg) was treated in a recovery process. The by-products generated by Grupa Azoty Police are iron sulfate, fly ash and slag, and hydrolytic acid. The main type of waste transferred to licensed third-party operators is waste iron sulfate (103,198.120 Mg). 
• Grupa Azoty Police’s products are sold in bulk and transported by specialist road, rail and sea carriers. Some of the products are packed in bags. The company keeps records of packaging and has signed relevant agreements with a packaging recovery organisation and a self-regulatory business organisation, which help it fulfil its obligations under packaging and packaging waste management regulations. Under an agreement signed by Grupa Azoty S.A. with RIGK GmbH and agreements concluded with other Grupa Azoty Group companies, the company is required to account for packaging placed on the German market.

Grupa Azoty Kędzierzyn

• At Grupa Azoty Kędzierzyn, the main waste type is waste generated at the fuel combustion unit: slag, fly ash, ash and slag mixtures, waste from flue gas desulfurisation and waste from industrial wastewater treatment. Most of the waste is stored separately in designated waste storage areas.
• When selecting raw material suppliers, the company draws on its process experience gained from process unit operation, which helps to maintain technological regimes and set strict quality criteria for the substances/materials used, in order to minimise generated waste, for example by extending the useful life of catalysts. The company also seeks to reduce generated waste volumes by:
  • reduction of the amounts of landfilled waste by transferring it for commercial use (ash and slag waste is extracted from the landfill site and transferred to third parties),
  • use of process by-products to recover useful components,
  • purchases of raw materials in reusable packaging. 
• Packaging volumes are reduced through regular collaboration with a packaging recovery organisation, which collects waste packaging from the market on behalf of the company and ensures the required level of packaging recovery and recycling.

  
  

Pozostałe spółki Grupy

• At Grupa Azoty Siarkopol, waste management is regulated and conducted in accordance with applicable laws: a waste generation permit and the Mining Waste Management Programme in connection with the operation of the Osiek Sulfur Mine and an integrated permit for the Dobrów Chemical Plant. Grupa Azoty Siarkopol fulfils the obligation to meet the targets applicable to recovery and recycling of packaging by cooperating with Branżowa Organizacja Odzysku Opakowań (an industry packaging recovery organisation).
• Grupa Azoty Fosfory prepared an environmental impact report relating to the processing of hazardous and non-hazardous waste in a fertilizer production unit and conversion of existing infrastructure into waste storage facilities on the company’s premises. The report will enable the company to obtain an environmental permit and enhance waste recovery at Grupa Azoty Fosfory units. Approximately 9,700 tonnes of ash were recovered at the fertilizer production unit, which reduced the amount of landfilled waste.

Waste generated by type [Mg]¹

¹ A restatement was made relative to data presented in the non-financial report of the Grupa Azoty Group for the 12 months ended December 31st 2021.

Hazardous diverted from disposal, by recovery method and waste handling location [Mg]

Non-hazardous waste diverted from disposal, by recovery method and waste handling location [Mg]

² Grupa Azoty Puławy receives relevant waste management information (whether a recovery (R) or disposal (D) process) from third parties. Therefore, this value refers to the total volume of all waste directed to recovery, including recycling.

Hazardous and non-hazardous waste directed to disposal, by disposal method and waste handling location [Mg]

Percentage of reclaimed products and their packaging materials (by type of material) [%] ³

³ The index is calculated as the ratio of the quantity of reclaimed products and their packaging materials and the volume of packaging placed on the market, by type of material. Data obtained from third-party organisations.