LEGAL COMPLIANCE AND POLLUTION PREVENTION

ENVIRONMENTAL Legal Compliance and Pollution Prevention

Summary for 2023

Twenty-nine environmental laws and regulations are currently applicable to the KOKUYO Group within Japan. In June every year, we evaluate the status of our compliance with these laws and regulations. In 2023, we discovered that some furniture products were erroneously represented in relation to labeling under the Act on Promoting Green Procurement because the ratio of recycled plastic used did not satisfy the compliance standards. We’ll improve the accuracy of catalog listings to ensure that such an incident never reoccurs. There were no other serious violations of laws and regulations.

Response to Water Risks

Water is an indispensable resource to all people, companies and organizations active on the planet. On the other hand, water-related risks are rising as the world’s population increases.
The KOKUYO Group considers water to be a valuable resource. Accordingly, we strive to use it efficiently. At the same time, we properly grasp and respond to water-related risks.

Awareness of Water Risks

The KOKUYO Group has defined 47 countries as water stress areas. These are areas where the water stress has been rated as “extremely high” or “high” according to the Aqueduct water risk-related evaluation tool provided by the World Resources Institute (WRI). We have production bases in India and Thailand in water stress areas. The base in India produces stationery and painting supplies while the base in Thailand produces files and tape. We are appropriately managing and gathering information on the amount of water used in those areas.
Water risks, such as the impact on business from a shortage in water, have not yet materialized in relation to our business at the present time. Nevertheless, we will continue to grasp local information in that area to analyze water risks. Together with that, we will appropriately manage business so that our business activities do not have an adverse effect on the environment.

Compliance with Water-related Laws, Regulations and Standards

The KOKUYO Group complies with the laws, regulations and standards in our business areas. There were no items identified as being legal violations or unjust in relation to water in FY2023.

Initiatives to Save Water

Over 50% of the KOKUYO Group’s water usage is within Japan. In addition, much of that water is used in the steel product painting process in the manufacturing process. We are striving to save water by re-using cleaning water to effectively use water resources in our Shibayama Plant (Chiba), our main manufacturing plant for office furniture. The cleaning water is evaporated by using exhaust heat from a deodorizing furnace on a circular basis. Basically, no water is discharged. We reduce the volume of the sludge generated during the treatment process and then dispose of it appropriately.

Promoting the Management of Chemical Substances Included in Products

We recognize that every supplier has a moral responsibility not only to avoid the use of prohibited substances but also to handle hazardous substances (substances that could harm the environment or health) safely and to communicate the hazard information. We also recognize that there has been a clear global shift in the regulation of chemical substances. Specifically, countries around the world are moving from the traditional hazard-based approach, which focuses on the inherent properties of a chemical substance that make it potentially hazardous, to a more scientific risk-based approach, which focuses instead on the circumstances in which these potential hazards may cause harm. We, too, have shifted toward risk-based assessments over the past several years. In 2014, we listed up the hazards in the chemical substances we use. Referring to this list, we started examining the risks of the substances in 2015 on a priority basis. In 2017, we released our findings on the hazards and exposure risks in a report titled Guidelines for Managing Chemical Substances Included in Product (Stationery Edition). In 2023, we held seminars on Japan’s Act on Control of Household Products Containing Harmful Substances and overseas chemical substances regulations. We will continue to improve the capabilities of our employees to meet the demands of our customers such as for compliance with chemical substance regulations and safety information disclosures.

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  Enforcing appropriate management and handling of chemical substances
  (KOKUYO Head Office)

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  Publicizing the harms and dangers of chemical substances on noticeboard panels
  (KOKUYO Shibayama Plant)

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  Scanning for heavy metals using X-ray fluorescence