There is no universally agreed definition of sustainability, but the concept of sustainable development really grew wings at the World’s first Earth Summit in Rio in 1992. The Brundtland Report for the World Commission on Environment and Development (1992) description “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” is generally the basis for revised definitions.
But what does that mean in real terms? Here at Lubron, we try to integrate our sustainability policy into everything we do, whether it is our internal processes or designing and manufacturing our water treatment products. We source components responsibly, and we consider our carbon footprint.
Mark Hadaway, Lubron UK’s Sales Manager explains, “Our industry, by its very nature, is about making the most of the world’s natural resources, i.e. water. Many available underground water sources such as boreholes or deep wells, if treated appropriately, can be utilised for potable or industrial water processes. Often only simple filtration, mineral reduction or conditioning is all that is needed, but sometimes a quite sophisticated treatment process, such as total mineral elimination may be the only option, depending on the raw water chemistry. This has a direct impact on the local and global environment as it enables the use of water that would not be viable if left untreated, without the addition of chemicals. Through processes such as filtrationand reverse osmosis we can also enable our customers to use grey water as well as reduce their overall energy consumption.”
The use of pure water also prolongs the life of machinery, and one example of this is the Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat Company’s installation of one of our reverse osmosis plants to lengthen the life of the boilers in its thoroughbred locomotives.
Mark Hadaway concludes: “Lubron UK is committed to addressing sustainability. We have joined the Supply Chain School and in 2015 we were proud winners of a Green Essex Award. Harnessing intelligent water technology without impacting on the environment remains top of Lubron’s agenda. Constantly changing legislation needs to be considered- a low carbon economy delivers its own cost benefits. Our innovation will continue to be at the forefront of greener, more efficient solutions for saving water and energy, in both customer operations and our own. “