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From its humble beginnings in 1950, Sasol has grown to become a major contributor towards the South African economy. Today, the industry produces more than 150 000 barrels of fuels and petrochemicals per day, and meets more than 40% of South Africa's liquid fuel requirements. In total, more than 200 fuel and chemical products are manufactured at Sasolburg and Secunda, and these products are exported to over 70 countries worldwide. This huge success is largely due to Sasol's ability to diversify its product base. The industry has also helped to provide about 170 000 jobs in South Africa, and contributes around R40 billion to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
However, despite these obvious benefits, there are always environmental costs associated with industry. Apart from the vast quantities of resources that are needed in order for the industry to operate, the production process itself produces waste products and pollutants.
Any industry will always use up huge amounts of resources in order to function effectively, and the chemical industry is no exception. In order for an industry to operate, some of the major resources that are needed are energy to drive many of the processes, water , either as a coolant or as part of a process and land for mining or operations.
Refer to the data table below which shows Sasol's water use between 2002 and 2005 ( Sasol Sustainable Development Report 2005 ), and answer the questions that follow.
Water use ( ) | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 |
River water | 113 722 | 124 179 | 131 309 | 124 301 |
Potable water | 15 126 | 10 552 | 10 176 | 10 753 |
Total | 157 617 | 178 439 | 173 319 | 163 203 |
Large amounts of gases and pollutants are released during production, and when the fuels themselves are used. Refer to the table below, which shows greenhouse gas and atmospheric pollution data for Sasol between 2002 and 2005, and then answer the questions that follow. ( Source: Sasol Sustainable Development Report 2005 )
Greenhouse gases and air pollutants (kilotonnes) | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 |
Carbon dioxide ( ) | 57 476 | 62 873 | 66 838 | 60 925 |
Hydrogen sulfide ( ) | 118 | 105 | 102 | 89 |
Nitrogen oxides ( ) | 168 | 173 | 178 | 166 |
Sulfur dioxide ( ) | 283 | 239 | 261 | 222 |
Sasol is very aware of its responsibility towards creating cleaner fuels. From 1st January 2006, the South African government enforced a law to prevent lead from being added to petrol. Sasol has complied with this. One branch of Sasol, Sasol Technology also has a bio-diesel research and development programme focused on developing more environmentally friendly forms of diesel. One way to do this is to use renewable resources such as soybeans to make diesel. Sasol is busy investigating this new technology.
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