Bayer wins BDI Environmental Prize
Complexing agent helps to reduce impact on inshore waters
Berlin, June 11, 2002 - On June 11, 2002, the Federation of German Industry (BDI) awarded Bayer AG its Environmental Prize. The jury rewarded Bayer for its development of Baypure® CX 100, an environmentally friendly alternative to conventional complexing agents. These are used in many everyday products such as washing and dishwashing agents, window and floor cleaners as well as shampoos and body lotions. They even play an important role in the manufacture of textiles and newspapers and when cleaning the car. Because of its good biodegradability, Baypure® CX 100 helps to lessen the burden on inshore waters and is in this superior to conventional products of this kind. It is the seventh time that the BDI has awarded an Environmental Prize to companies which have made particularly important contributions to environmental protection.
Addresses given by German Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and Spain's Prime Minister José Maria Aznar preceded the awards ceremony.
Dr. Martin Wienkenhöver, General Manager of Bayer AG's Basic and Fine Chemicals Business Group, received the important environmental prize on behalf of the company. "The award is a great honor for all our employees," stressed Wienkenhöver. "It should provide an impetus for the development of even more environmentally compatible products at Bayer."
In the development of the Baypure® product group the Bayer scientists were inspired by a natural model which led them to produce a chemical replica of biological processes in mussels. Metal ions that decompose chemical formulations are rendered harmless. Such decomposition processes become visible, for example, when creams become rancid or paper and cotton lose their customary whiteness. Baypure® increases the cleaning power of washing agents and detergents because it softens the water and can even help to dissolve stubborn furring in wastewater pipes. What impressed the BDI jury the most, however, was the product's own environmental compatibility: No matter whether it is used for cleaning, washing or in the shower, the product nearly always ends up in the wastewater, where it biodegrades particularly quickly due to its special structure. Bearing in mind that 40 percent of households in the European Union are not yet connected up to wastewater treatment plants, the additional significance of Baypure® CX 100 comes into focus.
That was one reason why the American authorities, known to be strict in these matters, already acknowledged Baypure® one year ago: In June 2001 the EPA presented Bayer with the Presidential Green Chemistry Award for its product. This sought-after prize was introduced in 1995 by the then President of the United States Bill Clinton to encourage environmental protection in industry. European honors have also been won: For example, the Danish "green washing powders" GRØN Linie Color Maskin Vask and Ultra Maskin Vask, which are based on Baypure® among other products, were the first detergents across Europe to be allowed to use the "EU Environmental Flower" ecolabel. The European Commission has been awarding this honor on particularly environmentally compatible products for everyday use since 1992.
Baypure® CX 100 is environmentally compatible not only during and after use: Emphasis is also placed on ensuring that its manufacture in Leverkusen is environment-friendly. Substance flows are kept in a closed cycle within the production unit and excess raw materials and process water are returned to the system. This means that Baypure® CX 100's entire life cycle from manufacture to use to biodegradation in the wastewater treatment plant is designed with environmental considerations in mind.
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