Impact and dependencies assessment
Voestalpine has not holistically assessed its impacts or how it depends on nature, including biodiversity. It has an opportunity to start such an assessment across its value chains, focused on quantification of its impacts or dependencies.
Key areas and species
Voestalpine does not disclose key species or areas important for biodiversity affected by its operations or suppliers. It has an opportunity to increase its transparency.
Ecosystem conversion and restoration
No evidence was found regarding Voestalpine’s efforts to avoid ecosystem conversion, including deforestation, or promote restoration. The company has an opportunity to develop a strategy and publicly report on specific, time-bound targets.
Resource exploitation and circularity
While Voestalpine discloses its recycling rate relative to product output, no evidence the company discloses its materials used by weight or volume and recycled input materials has been found in the public domain. The company does not report quantitatively on its group-wide circularity performance. While the company mentions developing new approaches that minimise environmental effects on air, soil and water, it is unclear what exactly is the approach that could improve soil health. The company does not disclose a target to improve soil health in its production or sourcing practices.
Water
While Voestalpine discloses its water use, the amount increased in 2021 compared to the previous year. The company does not disclose a time-bound target to reduce water withdrawal across its own operations. While the company discloses the proportion of direct and indirect water scarcity footprint, no evidence the company discloses the proportion of withdrawals from water-stressed areas in its own operations has been found in the public domain. The company does not engage with suppliers to reduce water withdrawal.
Voestalpine does not report a decrease in water pollution. The company does not disclose its processes for managing and monitoring discharge water quality. The company does not regularly report on water pollution. The company does not disclose targets to reduce water pollution. The company does not disclose a commitment to respect the right to water. The company does not disclose its processes for implementing preventive and corrective action plans for identified specific risks to the right to water and sanitation in its own operations.
Solid and air pollution
While Voestalpine discloses measures to reutilize residual products and waste, it is unclear about the specific measures to reduce the production of hazardous waste. The company reports some activities to reduce plastic use and waste in its own operations. The company discloses reusing waste such as scrap and plastic in the production plants. No evidence that the company reduces plastic use and waste in its own operations was found. The company does not report on the amount of plastic waste generated and proportions directed from or to disposal.
Voestalpine reports regularly on SO2 emissions, NOx emissions, captured dust emissions, and VOC emissions as its air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants. The company does not report time-bound targets to reduce air pollutants across the most material parts of its value chain.
GHG emissions
While Voestalpine addresses the scope 1 emissions for two steel production sites will reduce by 30% by 2030, no evidence that the company has group-wide time-bound targets to reduce its scope 1 and 2 emissions has been found in the public domain. Moreover, no evidence that the company reduces its scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions compared to the previous year and reports progress against its target. The company must immediately set a reduction target aligned with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5-degree trajectory.
While Voestalpine discloses its scope 3 emissions, no evidence that the company reduces its scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions compared to the previous year. The company also does not set a time-bound reduction target on scope 3 emissions. The company must immediately set a reduction target aligned with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5-degree trajectory.
Invasive species
Voestalpine has not identified any activities that could lead to the introduction of invasive alien species in its own operations.