On June 1, 2023, in Zavidovo, which is located near Moscow, the results of “The Best ESG Projects of Russia” programme were summarized and companies keeping to the principles of responsible environmental, social, and high-quality corporate management for sustainable business development were awarded.
The programme organizing committee received more than 400 applications from candidates wishing to be recognized as the best projects. Only those who complied with the ESG principles and received a high expert assessment were awarded. In total, awards were received in 23 categories.
In the “Combating Climate Change. Low Carbon Economy” category a project of Ural Plant of Deicing Materials was among the best for Bionord environment-friendly product line. The prize winners in this category also included Polyus Management Company that presented a climatic strategy development project and Mosinzhproekt AO that presented a project to quantify the amount of greenhouse gas emissions and compensate for the carbon footprint in the Mosinzhproekt GC.
“The choice of the category where Bionord project was listed was not made by chance. Using the environment-friendly line of our deicing materials in winter maintenance of the road infrastructure had a good effect on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions which was revealed during the calculation of the cost-effectiveness of modern deicing materials,” Evgeniy Nemirovsky, Adviser to the General Director for Development of UZPM, commented. “When we compared our deicing material to conventional salt and sand mixture in the maintenance of a 40 km lane it was found out that using our material we needed 1 truck, 2 hours of operation, and 24 litres of fuel, whereas using conventional salt and sand mixture required 6-8 trucks, at least 12 hours of operation, and 135 liters of fuel. Among other anthropogenic factors the combustion of automobile fuel is one of the main sources of nitrogen oxides due to the oxidation of air nitrogen and nitrogen-containing fuel components. Nitrogen oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) are greenhouse gases contributing to acid rains. Moreover, according to the World Meteorological Organization, the greenhouse activity of nitrogen oxide is 298 times higher than that of carbon dioxide. In addition, nitrogen oxides can affect the ozone layer as a whole. The use of advanced deicing materials in road maintenance can ensure up to 6 times less nitrogen oxide emissions!
In addition to this, thanks to the absence of any traces left after the use of Bionord, there is no need for additional cleanup and removal of residues which are normally required after the use of salt and sand mixture. Therefore, there will be no additional harmful emissions caused by the operation of transport vehicles and road maintenance machinery. As there is no dust, the roadway, building windows and façades can be cleaned less frequently: and again less machinery is required. Moreover, deicing materials’ spearing effect on the road infrastructure elements contacting the deicing material ensures less frequent road repairs, saves footwear, and extends the life of transport vehicles. That means that using Bionord significantly reduces, either directly or indirectly, greenhouse gases emissions.”
The Programme's Expert Board that evaluated the projects included representatives of business, government and public structures, including the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, Business Russia, Higher School of Economics, Agency for Strategic Initiatives, and OPORA RUSSIA.
In 2023 winners included PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, Women in Mining Russia, PJSC MegaFon, SBER, Pyaterochka Retail Chain, QIWI Group, Avito, SiberianWellness, Krasnaya Polyana Resort, Pyatnitsa! entertainment TV channel, Gazprom Neft, RSHB Asset Management LLC, Zarubezhneft JSC, AK BARS INSURANCE LLC, Rosvodokanal GC, and VKontakte.