Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) last year saved almost 2 million tonnes of water as part of its efforts to fulfill its commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, the company’s financial disclosure report said.
To reach its zero emissions goal, TSMC has been taking action to broaden its green influence and drive industry toward low-carbon sustainability, chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) said in the company’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures report released last week.
TSMC saved 1.927 million tonnes of water last year by adopting measures such as reducing water consumption by facility systems, increasing wastewater recycling by facilities and decreasing water discharge from the systems, the report said.
Photo: CNA
Last year, it also invested NT$1.6 billion (US$57.69 million) in water conservation and recycling equipment, and spent an additional NT$1.2 billion on equipment operation and maintenance, it said.
By 2030, TSMC aims to reduce the amount of water it uses by 30 percent from 2010, the report said, adding that its water consumption last year fell 8.9 percent from 2010.
After Taiwan experienced a major water shortage from the end of last year to May, TSMC compiled statistics for drought risk assessments in the report, which showed that from 1986 to 2005 the longest Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County had gone without rain was 40 days, while for Taichung it was 52 days and for Tainan 62 days.
The number of days Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County, Taichung and Tainan would go without rain in 2035 is forecast to rise 4.15 percent, 2.42 percent and 2.28 percent respectively from 2016, the company said.
From 2081 to 2100, the longest stretch without precipitation in Hsinchu City and Hsinchu County could increase 14.44 percent from the 1985-to-2005 period, and it could grow 11.33 percent for Taichung and 10.73 percent for Tainan, it said.
If a drought occurs every 10 years, it could cause an average reduction of 0.7 to 1.1 percent in TSMC’s annual operating revenue, the company said.
As water shortages in Taiwan are likely to worsen, TSMC said it has also established a comprehensive water monitoring mechanism to regularly check the status of water supplies in the country.
The company is improving its water conservation measures, increasing the recycling rate of process wastewater and establishing comprehensive monitoring mechanisms for water supply, the report said.
It is also expanding the use of reclaimed water, and preparing water trucks to minimize the effect of water shortages on operations and eliminate production interruptions, it said.
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