EPA, EQUATE, GPCA conclude annual Waste Free Environment program

Increasing awareness and actively contributing to protecting and preserving the environment, Kuwait’s Environment Public Authority (EPA), EQUATE Petrochemical Company, a global producer of petrochemicals, and Gulf Petrochemical & Chemicals Association (GPCA) concluded the annual Waste Free Environment (WFE) program, lifting over 120 kilograms of waste from Kuwait’s beaches. EQUATE’s participation in the global WFE event is part of its sustainability strategy to reduce waste, as well as protect the environment.

The program was held for the fifth consecutive year in partnership with Kuwait Municipality, the Touristic Enterprises Company, K’s Path, Omniya, the Kuwait Dive Team and a number of schools with the participation of over 230 individuals. EQUATE’s President and CEO Mohammad Husain said, “Sustainability and the protection of the environment are today crucial challenges that we need to address. Solutions can only be effective when industry leaders, authorities and societies come together to raise awareness and take action.”

“Our strategy at EQUATE has been focused on making a change in the way we treat our environment, and we have started from within our organization, ensuring we act responsibly and helping bring regulations and standards that support our efforts. Since launching WFE in Kuwait, we are extremely delighted with the increasing number of participating organizations and individuals with us every year.”

“I extend my deepest gratitude to the efforts of EPA and Kuwait Municipality in leading change in our home country. I also extend utmost appreciation to the GPCA, the Touristic Enterprises Company, K’s Path, Omniya, Kuwait Dive Team, participating schools, members of the media and our employees for being ambassadors of this great cause.”

GPCA Secretary-General, Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadounsaid, “WFE is today supported by 17 companies partnering with local authorities and thousands of volunteers across 14 nations. Our industry is the second largest manufacturing industry in this region and the products the chemical industry produces here in the Arabian Gulf, plastics in particular, contribute significantly to our quality of life, resource preservation and innovation.

These products should be responsibly disposed of, either via recycling or energy recovery. GPCA’s educational campaign WFE provides an excellent opportunity to work alongside the community to show that littering is not acceptable and help spread knowledge about eco-efficient waste management in general.”

The EQUATE Group is a global producer of petrochemicals that creates a better world. The Group combines EQUATE Petrochemical Company (EQUATE), its subsidiaries and The Kuwait Olefins Company (TKOC). The EQUATE Group is the world’s second largest producer of Ethylene Glycol (EG) with industrial complexes in Kuwait, North America and Europe that produce Ethylene, EG, Polyethylene (PE) and Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET). The products are marketed throughout Asia, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

As a leading global enterprise, the EQUATE Group strongly pursues sustainability principles and best practices wherever it operates through partnerships with various stakeholders including employees and customers as well as societies as a whole in fields that includes human development, environment, education, health and public awareness. The EQUATE Group’s shareholders include Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Boubyan Petrochemical Company (BPC) and Qurain Petrochemical Industries Company (QPIC). The Group provides reliable services and solutions that enables global customers and stakeholders to grow and attain the success they seek by being “Partners in Success.”

With EQUATE as one of its founding members, the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) represents the downstream hydrocarbon industry in the Arabian Gulf. Established in 2006, the association voices the common interests of more than 240 member companies from the chemical and allied industries, accounting for over 95 percent of chemical output in the Gulf region. The industry makes up the second largest manufacturing sector in the region, producing up to US$108billion worth of products a year.

Waste Free Environment (WFE) is a global event and an important environmental campaign launched by the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) in 2013. WFE promotes recycling and encourages a more responsible attitude toward litter disposal and the need for the community to respond to environmental issues. Each clean-up has a strong educational component and stresses how we can give waste, in particular plastics, a useful second life.