Tag: sustainability

Guizhou’s Fruitful Eco-Construction: from ‘Experimental Zone’ to ‘Pilot Zone’

by jezzabellemente, posted in Uncategorized

GUIYANG, China, June 30, 2025 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/–

Citizens visit Denggaoyunshan Park in Guiyang City.

Guizhou, located in the southwest of China, is using an ecological pen to paint a gorgeous green picture along her mountains and rivers. From an ‘Experimental Zone’ to a ‘Pilot Zone’, Guizhou has embarked on a new path of green development characterized with prosperous economy, wealthy people and ecological beauty.

SignificantImprovement inEco–environment

Guizhou persists in winning the ‘Five Major Battles’ of pollution prevention and control and coordinates the integrated eco-restoration of mountains, rivers, lakes, farmland, forests, grasslands and deserts. By 2024, the ambient air quality in 9 key cities and 88 counties in Guizhou has met Grade II, and the overall surface water quality has been remarkable. The excellent water quality rate of 222 monitoring sections of major rivers is 99.1%, and that of 23 exit sections reaches 100%. The water quality compliance rate of centralized drinking water sources at or above the county level remains 100%.

The Wushui River (Wuyang River) in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture has been successfully selected as one of the Outstanding Cases of Beautiful Rivers and Lakes in China. Since 2019, the water quality in Qiandongnan Prefecture has been among the top 10 in China for six consecutive years. Mr. Wu Hougui, a member of the Loong Boat Team in Ximen Community, Zhenyuan County, said, ‘The Loong Boat Competition tradition can not be inherited for thousands of years without lucid waters and lush mountains.’

FlourishingGreenIndustries

Guizhou is accelerating the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, integrating green and low-carbon concept throughout the entire process of high-quality development. Guizhou has successfully established 85 national level green factories and 22 green industrial parks. The green economy accounts for about 48%.

The first commercial hydrogen locomotive in China has started trial operation on Guizhou Meijin Railway Special Line in Zhongshan District, Liupanshui City, opening up a new path for clean coal transportation. The construction of ‘Electric Guizhou’ has achieved fruitful results. Since the beginning of 2025, a total of 3,054 electric heavy-duty trucks have been promoted and applied in the energy sector, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by about 332,000 tons.

The forestry has also achieved a huge leap forward. In 2014, the total output value of Guizhou’s forestry was only 60.1 billion yuan, and it exceeded 465.4 billion yuan in 2024. Over the past decade, the forest coverage rate has increased from 49% to 63.3%, with a forest area of 166 million mu.

Innovative Eco–protectionSystem

In 2024, Guizhou took the lead in establishing a unified and standardized mechanism for issuing forestry carbon tickets at the provincial level in China, granting the first batch of 10 provincial forestry carbon tickets and achieving a total of 11 million yuan in transactions. In addition, a total of 120 water rights transactions have been completed, with a transaction volume of 86.0287 million cubic meters, amounting to 31.5387 million yuan.

Public Participation inEco–construction

Guizhou’s tradition of ‘Tree Planting for New Year Celebrations’ has continued for 11 years, with 605 million more seedlings newly planted here. Since the 14 th  Five-Year-Plan, Guizhou has shifted its greening focus from ‘coverage expansion’ to ‘quality improvement’. Through projects such as degraded forest restoration and forest nurturing, the forest has been both ‘greened’ and ‘increased in value’.

Meanwhile, with both ‘civil defense and technical defense’, Guizhou has successfully protected the ecological foundation. For instance, there are 87 remote video surveillance points established in Guiyang to prevent forest fire. There are 400 infrared cameras installed to track the rare species in Mount Fanjing and more than 40,000 forest chiefs ready to guard forest resources. Collaborative mechanisms such as ‘forest chief+procurator’ and ‘forest chief+sheriff’ have formed a comprehensive matrix for ecological protection.

EfficientResource Utilizationand Green Transformation

Guizhou has implemented the strategy of ‘Refined Development of Rich Minerals’ to promote efficient utilization of resources. In the field of phosphorus chemical industry, Qiannan Prefecture has laid out modern chemical and new energy battery material industries, realizing the transformation of phosphorus from ‘fertilizer’ to ‘material’. The total output value of phosphorus based modern chemical and new energy battery materials has exceeded 50 billion yuan. Furthermore, in the field of aluminum industry, Shuicheng Economic Development Zone has achieved 100% in-situ conversion of aluminum liquid, and the number of aluminum related enterprises has increased from 1 in 2016 to 54.

Guizhou is also actively developing the cultural tourism industry and digital economy. The Zhenyuan Loong Boat Race Cultural Festival has unleashed the consumption potential of cultural tourism. During the Loong Boat Festival this year, Zhenyuan County received 253,900 tourists, realizing a total tourism revenue of 234 million yuan. Additionally, Guizhou’s digital economy growth rate has been among the top in the country for 9 consecutive years. There are 48 national key data centers under construction and in operation, making Guizhou one of the regions with the most intelligent computing resources and the strongest capabilities in China.

Source: Guizhou Environmental Protection Industry Association

Caption: Citizens visit Denggaoyunshan Park in Guiyang City.

–BERNAMA

Kao Releases the Kao Integrated Report 2025

by jezzabellemente, posted in Uncategorized

The cover visual represents our “moonshot.” It embodies our commitment to achieving the ambitious goal of a sustainable society for future generations.

TOKYO, June 13 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) — Kao Corporation (TOKYO:4452) has published the Kao Integrated Report 2025 on its website, offering shareholders, investors, and all stakeholders with a comprehensive overview of the company’s initiatives and strategic direction.
Kao Integrated Report 2025

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250609991718/en/

To achieve its Mid-term Plan “K27,” Kao aims to become a unique presence indispensable to someone in the world and is advancing its Global Sharp Top strategy. In FY2024, Kao exceeded its targets by strengthening Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) management and strategically investing to build stronger, more robust businesses.

This report offers an in-depth look at Kao’s progress under K27, highlighting how Kao’s dedicated employees—through the Global Sharp Top strategy and agile scrum team approach—are actively creating new value and driving meaningful impact. It also outlines Kao’s ongoing efforts to take on bold challenges by leveraging its unique scientific expertise to address global social issues and help realize a Kirei world where all life lives in harmony.

Kao hopes this report deepens stakeholders’ understanding and fosters meaningful dialogue and collaboration. The company is committed to actively incorporating feedback and insights from diverse partners as it continues to enhance its positive contributions to society and corporate value.

Related Information
Kao Sustainability Report 2025

About the Kirei Lifestyle Plan
Over the past 130 years, Kao has worked to improve people’s lives and help them realize more sustainable lifestyles—a Kirei Lifestyle. The Japanese word “kirei” describes something that is clean, well-ordered, and beautiful all at once. For Kao, this concept of “kirei” not only describes appearance but also attitude—a desire to create beauty for oneself, for other people, and for the natural world around us. Aiming to realize a more sustainable way of living, in April 2019, the Kao Group established its ESG strategy known as the Kirei Lifestyle Plan. By 2030, Kao aims to empower at least 1 billion people, to enjoy more beautiful lives. Kao also strives to have 100% of its products leave a full lifecycle environmental footprint that science says our natural world can safely absorb.
Please visit the Kao sustainability website for more information.

About Kao
Kao, a Japan-based manufacturer of personal care and household products, cosmetics, and specialty chemicals creates high-value-added products and services that provide care and enrichment for the life of all people and the planet. Through its brands such as Attack laundry detergent, Bioré and Jergens skin care products, Laurier sanitary products, Curél, SENSAI, and MOLTON BROWN cosmetics, and Oribe hair care products, Kao is part of the everyday lives of people across Asia, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Combined with its chemical business, which contributes to a wide range of industries, Kao generates about 1,630 billion yen in annual sales. Kao employs about 32,600 people worldwide and has more than 130 years of history in innovation. As an enterprise that provides products people use on a daily basis, the Kao Group takes responsibility to actively reduce the environmental footprint of its products throughout the product lifecycle. This is laid out in Kao’s ESG strategy, the Kirei Lifestyle Plan, which launched in 2019.
Please visit the Kao Group website for additional information.

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250609991718/en/

Contacts

Media inquiries should be directed to:
Public Relations
Kao Corporation
corporate_pr@kao.com

Source: Kao Corporation

Black & Veatch Participates in Industry Dialogues, Identifies Viable Pathways to Deliver Asia’s Energy Transition at Energy Asia 2025

by jezzabellemente, posted in Uncategorized

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, June 10 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) —Black & Veatch, a global leader in human critical infrastructure solutions, will share ways to adapt international best practices to accelerate Southeast Asia’s energy transition at the Energy Asia 2025 conference, taking place June 16-18 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center here.

“As geopolitical tensions rise and extreme heat waves become more prolonged, Malaysia and its Southeast Asian neighbors need energy transition solutions that will meet their economic and environmental targets.

“Black & Veatch is committed to drawing on its extensive sustainable infrastructure experience to help the region meet its growing energy demands with low and no-carbon energy sources,” said Jerin Raj, managing director, Asia Pacific, Black & Veatch.

Deep collaborations with industry leaders from energy and other sectors, and knowledge transfer are part of that commitment. At the conference in Malaysia, Anand Pattani, vice president and managing director, International Energy Majors, Black & Veatch, will discuss how traditional refiners can adapt to remain competitive in a low-carbon world and the pathways most viable for the refining sector. Pattani will propose global strategies that can be adapted to overcome technical, regulatory, and financial barriers.

Aligning with Malaysia’s priorities to reduce carbon footprints, optimize resource efficiency, and promote sustainable development, Black & Veatch has supported power projects in Malaysia since the 1990s, from strategic decision-making to financial and resource commitments, implementation and execution.

About Black & Veatch

Black & Veatch is a 100-percent employee-owned global engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company with more than 100-years of innovation in sustainable infrastructure. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the lives of people around the world by addressing the resilience and reliability of our most important infrastructure and energy assets. Follow us on www.bv.com and on LinkedIn, Facebook, X (Twitter) and Instagram.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250609432289/en/

Contacts 

Media Contact Information:
EMILY CHIA | +65 6335 6623 | Media@bv.com

Source: Black & Veatch

CARBONAI AND GREENPLINTH AFRICA TO PARTNER ON MAJOR CLEAN COOKSTOVE PROGRAM IN NIGERIA

by jezzabellemente, posted in Uncategorized

Calgary-based GHG software developer will support the digital quantification and verification of carbon credits resulting from the distribution of millions of clean cookstoves in Nigeria and Africa over the next five years.

CALGARY, Alberta & LAGOS, Nigeria, Jan 31 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) — CarbonAi Inc. and Greenplinth Africa Limited are pleased to announce that they have entered into an agreement under which CarbonAi will provide its software tools to support the digital measurement, reporting and verification (DMRV) of greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions from a major clean cookstove program to be developed by Greenplinth Africa in Nigeria.

The program will distribute millions of clean cookstoves to households across Nigeria and Africa over the next five years, drastically reducing deforestation, GHG emissions, respiratory illness, gender inequality and other issues associated with traditional open-fire cooking.

Clean cookstoves are a critical project type for achieving sustainable development benefits in economically disadvantaged regions. They are often financed by the sale of carbon credits resulting from the displacement of open-fire cooking by highly efficient, cleaner-burning stoves. Carbon-financed cookstove projects have been subject to intense scrutiny related to the accuracy and reliability of conventional quantification methods, putting the continued financing of such projects—and the many benefits they generate—at grave risk.

CarbonAi has developed Spark, a patent-pending suite of tools for the end-to-end quantification, verification, issuance and management of high-integrity GHG reduction outcomes from cookstove projects. This includes a proprietary stove use meter to monitor and precisely measure cookstove usage. Spark was developed to bridge the gap between existing carbon market infrastructure and the emerging digital carbon market ecosystem to provide irrefutable proof of claimed GHG reductions, helping project developers to deliver high-integrity, high-value carbon credits.

“This Article 6.4 clean cookstoves project is a transformative initiative, and a significant step forward in combatting the adverse health and environmental impacts associated with traditional cooking methods, such as indoor air pollution and deforestation. It will also be a foreign exchange earner for the Nigerian economy,” said Dr. Olawale Akinwumi, President and CEO of Greenplinth Africa. “The provision of free clean cookstoves is set to transform the lives of millions of Nigerians, particularly women and children, who are disproportionately affected by the harmful effects of traditional cooking practices.”

“We are excited to support Greenplinth Africa as they leverage Nigeria’s tremendous natural and human resources to deliver large-scale climate impact projects across Nigeria,” stated CarbonAi’s Chief Carbon Officer, Yvan Champagne. “Scaling clean cooking is absolutely critical in any GHG mitigation pathway but it will only happen if project investors and carbon credit buyers have confidence in the integrity of underlying reductions. We look forward to helping Greenplinth Africa generate the highest quality emission reductions possible, thereby ensuring that the program will reach its full potential.”

About Greenplinth Africa

Greenplinth Africa, a Pan-African Green Solutions Corporation, is a Superlative Africa Green Platform and Sustainable Development Goals Projects implementation for the Africa Continent, with offices in Nigeria and the United States of America.

To learn more, visit: www.greenplinthafrica.com

About CarbonAi

CarbonAi develops world-leading software tools that increase the integrity and auditability of GHG data and projects. The company’s tools for first-mile auditable data collection (Field), DMRV and quantification (Proof), integrity of clean cookstove data (Spark) and portfolio management (View) are used by industry leaders across the world to deliver high-integrity GHG outcomes.

To learn more, visit: http://www.carbonai.ca/spark

View source version on businesswire.com: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250130285901/en/

Contact

Media Contact

Greenplinth Africa

Dr. Olawale Akinwumi
President and CEO
Tel: +234 (0) 803 316 4567
poa@greenplinthafrica.com

CarbonAi

Stephen Entwisle
Director, Cookstoves DMRV
Tel: +1 403-560-1944
stephene@carbonai.ca

Source : CarbonAi Inc.

OIL AND GAS EXPLORATION VITAL FOR DECARBONISATION DESPITE INVESTMENT DECLINE

by jezzabellemente, posted in Uncategorized

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 22 (Bernama) — Investment in oil and gas exploration has plummeted two-thirds in the last decade, but according to Wood Mackenzie’s latest Horizons report, the sector remains crucial for decarbonisation and providing advantaged barrels in the energy transition.

The report, titled “No country for old fields: Why high-impact oil and gas exploration is still needed” reveals that there are sufficient existing resources to meet global demand, with approximately three trillion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) in inventory, offering more than 45 years of oil and over 60 years of gas supply.

The report further explained that lowering scope 1 and 2 emissions, or those created in the extraction and refining process, is better served by finding new fields than by cleaning up old ones as new fields are cleaner, due to modern decarbonisation technologies and higher facilities throughput.

New fields, leveraging modern decarbonisation technology, emit less carbon than older fields. For example, new fields starting production in the coming years will average 17 kilogrammes of carbon dioxide equivalent per barrel of oil equivalent (kgCO2e/boe), significantly lower than the 28 kgCO2e/boe from mature fields.

Wood Mackenzie Senior Vice President, Energy Research, Andrew Latham commented that exploration through the current decade is on track to provide 12 per cent of global oil and gas supply.

“If we assume that these new fields displace existing supply options with emissions intensity typical of older fields, then global scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2030 would be cut by around six per cent, or 100 Mtpa CO2e,” he said in a statemet.

Exploration also presents economic advantages, with new field discoveries providing high returns. Wood Mackenzie highlights that full-cycle returns from exploration have been consistently in double digits every year since 2015, averaging 15 per cent, with new discoveries creating over US$160 billion in value. (US$1=RM4.46)

Meanwhile, frontier and deepwater exploration, offers significant resource potential, with deepwater projects yielding much higher recovery per well and lower emissions intensity. The report noted that deepwater will offer most new opportunities for exploration as most of the world’s deepwater basins, in waters from 400 metres (m) to over 3,000m, are barely drilled.

Despite a perception problem that exploration harms the climate, the report underscores its role in decarbonising oil and gas supply, showing that there are still abundant untapped resources to be found, especially in deepwater basins.

Wood Mackenzie is the global insight business for renewables, energy and natural resources, with a team of over 2,000 experts operate across 30 global locations, inspiring customers’ decisions through real-time analytics, consultancy, events and thought leadership.

— BERNAMA