Environmental Sustainability｜Waste Management
Nuvoton actively reduce the environmental impact of our business operations by investing in innovative technologies and initiating layouts for renewable energy and net-zero emissions. We enhance resource use efficiency and implement waste management to respond to the continuously evolving international environmental regulations, extreme climate events, and other risks. By estimating financial impacts and planning management costs in advance, we formulate environmental strategies and build operational resilience for the company.
15818000
kWh
Cumulative electricity savings from 2010 to 2023
37
%
Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 decreased compared to 2020
880000
kWh
Infrastructure for annual renewable energy production of
Waste Management
Nuvoton adheres to the "Safety, Health, and Environmental Policy" commitment and the goal of "not damaging the environment." The waste management strategy focuses on "minimizing waste treatment and maximizing resource recycling" by reducing waste at the source, enhancing waste recycling and reuse, and reducing the environmental burden of production.
IC design R&D and wafer foundry production components are provided to customers for assembling and selling electronic products. Faulty electronic products, part replacements, or disposal are handled by the customers. For waste generated during the production of components, internal source classification and reduction management are implemented. Efforts include extending material usage, optimizing production operations, and recycling packaging materials. Continuous evaluation of waste recycling and reuse is conducted to reduce waste generation and increase resource recycling.
Nuvoton follows the "Waste Management Procedures" for waste classification, collection, storage management, waste declaration, and supervision and auditing of outsourced waste disposal. Internal management involves regular inspections to accurately grasp the output of each process, promote process improvements to reduce waste, and ensure regulatory compliance. External contractors are carefully selected from legally permitted waste disposal and recycling companies. Before outsourcing, the disposal and recycling methods of the contractor are verified for appropriateness through an investigation procedure. Regular audits of waste contractors are conducted to ensure the legality of outsourced waste disposal, fulfilling the responsibility for waste generation.
audits
In 2023, a total of 26 audits were conducted, with no cooperation termination due to regulatory violations or related issues, and there were no improper waste disposal incidents at Taiwan and Japan plants.
No import or export of waste is conducted, and the priority for waste disposal is reuse. Waste that cannot be reused is incinerated or landfilled. In 2023, the total waste output was 727 tons, divided into 320 tons (44%) of general industrial waste (including recyclable waste and office-generated domestic waste) and 407 tons (56%) of hazardous industrial waste. The amount reused (including recycled resources) was 480 tons (66%), the incinerated amount was approximately 179 tons (25%), and the landfilled amount was 68 tons (9%). The unit product waste output was 0.090 kg/layer-wafer mask, an increase from 2022 due to the replacement of wastewater plant facilities and increased sludge production. To continue maximizing resource recycling through outsourcing, in 2023, two more production machines were added for waste sulfuric acid recycling, and an evaluation of inorganic sludge (CaF2 resource recycling) reuse was conducted, starting reuse in 2024.
The annual audit of waste contractors is based on the harmfulness of the waste, the amount generated, and the results of the previous audit scores. The severity of environmental impact risk and the level of processing risk probability are evaluated, and the audit frequency for waste contractors is determined using a risk matrix of severity and probability, along with regulatory requirements. An annual waste contractor audit plan is scheduled every 1 to 3 years, inspecting the operations of removal contractors and processing/recycling plants, and conducting real-time GPS tracking after waste removal to ensure proper waste treatment and effective control of waste processing risks.
Nuvoton Taiwan's future plans will continue to promote waste management, maintaining the same three major goals in 2024 as in 2023:
Continuous Promotion of Waste Classification and Reduction
Hazardous Waste Reuse Rate > 95%
Increase Waste Recycling and Reuse
Waste Recycling and Reuse Rate >75%, Waste Landfill Rate <5%
Effective Management of Waste Treatment
100% Annual Inspection Rate by Entrusted Contractors
Reuse Treatment Solutions
| Location | Solution | 2023 Reduction Benefits |
|---|---|---|
| NTC | H2SO4 Recovery | Added 2 specialized sulfuric acid etching machines for recovery, increasing the reuse amount of waste sulfuric acid by approximately 17.1 tons/year. |
| CaF2 Sludge (Resource Circulation) Evaluation | Changed from landfill treatment to reuse, increasing the reuse amount of sludge by approximately 60 tons/year. | |
| Waste Sulfuric Acid: Recycled and diluted into industrial-grade dilute sulfuric acid for industrial use (not for drinking water treatment, medicine, or fertilizer additives) | 304 tons | |
| Waste Hydrofluoric Acid: Recovered and used as raw material for industrial-grade sodium fluosilicate, applied as a flux agent | 57 tons | |
| Waste Isopropanol: Recovered and distilled into industrial-grade isopropanol | 18 tons | |
| Waste Organic Solvents: Recovered and distilled into industrial-grade organic raw materials | 38 tons | |
| Waste Chemical Drums: Recovered, cleaned, and reused, or crushed and used as plastic or glass raw materials | 7.5 tons | |
| Recycled Photomasks: Cleaned and pattern-removed, producing regenerated photomasks or optical materials | 0.6 tons | |
| Recycled Mercury Lamps: Treated with mercury distillation equipment to vaporize and reuse mercury | 0.2 tons | |
| Recycled Mixed Hardware Including waste electronic components, scrap, and defective products: Recycled valuable and other metals after treatment | 22.5 tons | |
| Recycled Waste: wastepaper, glass, scrap iron and aluminum, polystyrene, aluminum foil packaging, PET bottles, and waste plastics: Recycled by recycling companies | 27 tons | |
| General Waste: Waste plastic, paper, and wood mixtures: Recycled through physical screening and treatment | 5.7 tons | |
| NTCJ | Organic Sludge: Chemical additives, the waste treatment company will coagulate, precipitate, inorganicize, and recycle the materials | 0.6 tons |
| Waste Oil: Thermal and material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material | 18.9 tons | |
| Waste Acid: Material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material, neutralization for cement materials | 33.6 tons | |
| Waste Alkali: Material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material | 10.6 tons | |
Waste Plastics: Thermal and material recovery
| 39.2 tons | |
| Metals: Material recovery, separated and recycled after crushing | 3.6 tons | |
| Glass, Concrete, and Ceramic Waste: Material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material | 0.3 tons | |
| Special Pipelines: Waste Oil, Waste Acid: Material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material | 88.6 tons | |
| Shavings: Material recovery, incineration residue used as road base material | 0.6 tons |
Impact and Response to Waste
Nuvoton also values the actual and potential impacts of activities and processes on people, the environment, and society. On the manufacturing side, Nuvoton internally implements source classification and reduction management, and continuously evaluates waste recycling and reuse to reduce waste generation and increase waste resource utilization. In terms of waste reuse and disposal, in addition to carefully selecting legally authorized vendors, Nuvoton verifies the appropriateness of the removal, treatment, and reuse methods used by vendors before commissioning them, passing inspection procedures, and regularly auditing waste disposal vendors to maintain oversight.
