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Although Dofasco had already been
long active in researching and installing
equipment to temper the environmental
impact of steelmaking on Hamilton’s
air and water, in 1970 company
president F.H. Sherman launched a
fervent and very public stance on
environmental management .
“
The quality of our air and water is
now a subject of vital concern to most
people,” he wrote in a booklet simply
called Pollution: Some questions and
answers. “At Dofasco, our concern has
been translated into meaningful action.
Our company was one of the first to
publicly commit itself to full cooperation
with government authorities in the
fight against pollution. To bring pollution
under control in a plant that makes more
than two million tons of steel per year,
is no easy task. The cost is high, the
technology is not always available, the
problems to surmount are numerous,
but our battle against pollution must and
will be won.”
The goal was for blue skies dotted
with only steam, crystal clear water
and a healthy ecosystem. To get there,
the company’s first Environment
Department was formed and its first
Environment Policy crafted. In addition,
a $28 million dollar environmental
program was launched to abate air
and water impact through enhanced
pollution control systems.
Early accomplishments on the
environmental file included the pollution
control equipment installed with
the basic oxygen process in 1954,
electrostatic precipitators to collect dust
at each of the company’s blast furnaces
and as early as 1955 settling basins
to remove solids from water being
discharged back into Hamilton Bay.
The work has continued at a steady
pace with major environmental projects
continually being launched to take
advantage of new standards, research
and technologies.
Fast forward, nearly 50 years to 1993,
add two million tons of production,
and the company was one of the first
industrial companies in Canada to
publish a stand alone environmental
report, eventually integrating the
environment and annual reports in
2000.
In addition, improvement in
environmental performance coupled
with a commitment to corporate
responsibility gained the company the
top spot on the Dow Jones Sustainability
World Index for basic resource
companies for many years beginning
in 1993, the first steel producer in the
world to make the list.
ArcelorMittal Dofasco’s Environmental
Management System has been certified
to international ISO standard 14001
since 2001. Worldwide, ArcelorMittal
remains on the Dow Jones Sustainability
Index, while 98% of its steel production
and finishing facilities are certified to
ISO 14001 with air, water, energy and
residues monitored at all of the
company’s production sites.
Blue sky thinking