Waste & Effluent Management

Waste

GRI Standards

At KNPL, effective waste management is essential for maintaining environmental stewardship, ensuring compliance with regulations, and enhancing operational efficiency. We are committed to ensuring that disposal and recycling activities are conducted by authorized third parties, fully adhering to relevant regulations and sustainability standards. We also focus on effectively managing post consumer plastic waste (rigid and flexible) in compliance with PWM rules and EPR Guidelines. Our waste management strategy is meticulously crafted to achieve clearly defined objectives across all aspects of the Company's operations, integrating circular practices into our daily processes.

Thrust Areas: For Judicious Waste Management

• Segregated storage of waste in designated areas across all plants
• Methodical tracking of waste generation and disposal quantities
• Ensuring disposal of waste at authorised Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities (TSDFs) in compliance with statutory requirements
• Implementing hazardous waste co-processing across all plants
• Embracing the 4Rs principle - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Recover- for effective waste management

Waste Generated

In FY 2024-25, KNPL generated a total of 9,624 MT of waste. This included 924 MT of hazardous waste, 8 MT of e-waste, 0.6 MT of biomedical waste, 4,170 MT of contaminated container waste (barrels, tins, and drums), 973 MT of other hazardous waste, 8.7 MT of battery waste, and non-hazardous waste of 2,513 MT.

The specific hazardous waste generation (SHWG) for FY 24-25 for our manufacturing facilities was 2.64 kg/KL of FG, a decrease of 3% since the baseline FY 2018-19.

Hazardous waste generated due to our operations mainly includes distillation residue, Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) sludge, paint sludge, dirty resin, contaminated barrel/tins, filter cartridge, and contaminated cotton waste.

Method of Calculation:

1. Manufacturing Facilities - Specific Hazardous Waste Generation is ratio of hazardous waste generated in Plants to Production of Finished Goods during specified period.
2. Organisation-wide -Specific Hazardous Waste Generation is ratio of hazardous waste generated in Plants and R&D centre to Production of Finished Goods during specified period.

Waste Disposal

At KNPL, waste is separated and then sent to authorized Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities (TSDFs) for disposal, reuse, or recycling following applicable laws and regulations. By implementing the coprocessing of hazardous waste in cement kilns, our Company has successfully diverted the majority of our waste from landfills.

Additionally, we have successfully converted 24 MT of organic canteen and food waste into 15 MT of premium-grade manure through bio-composting techniques.

This internally generated manure supports our landscaping and horticultural requirements across facilities.

Waste Diverted From Disposal

Reusable cartridge in the filtration process

Cleaning solvents of all major resins are reused in the next batch of same resins

In paint section, system controls have been implemented to ensure reuse of paint filled in part filled cans in the next compatible batch of paint

In operations, cleaning solvent is reused after distillation process again for equipment cleaning

Paint Pigging wash water reuse

TiO2 recovery through de-dusting

Reusing drums and barrels

Take-back mechanism with suppliers supplying raw materials in plastic bags

Waste Directed to Disposal

Barrels/Tins are recycled through authorized vendors

Plastic waste, corrugated boxes and metal scrap generated within factory premises is recycled through authorized vendors

Raw materials procured in recyclable packaging material

E-waste sent through buy-back programme

Hazardous Waste Reduction

KNPL constantly focuses on effectively managing hazardous waste. We are committed to reducing the hazardous waste generated during our operations. We also put various measures in place to effectively manage the hazardous waste generated. During the distillation process for solvent recovery, residue is produced, which contributes to hazardous waste. KNPL has developed a process to utilise this residue for the preparation of low-grade paint. In FY 24-25, 20% of the distillation residue generated was converted into low-grade paint.

E-waste sent through buy-back programme

At KNPL, we have taken concerted efforts to reduce our plastic waste generation through our manufacturing facilities. Through rigorous due-diligence process and constant communication, we encourage suppliers to substitute plastic with alternate materials or implement a take back mechanism. During the reporting period, we ensured zero procurement and usage of packing material less than the thickness limit in microns set by the regulatory bodies.

Extended Producer Responsibility

In FY 2023-24, KNPL collected, recycled, co-processed and safely disposed of 12,068 MT of post-consumer plastic waste, including rigid and flexible plastic. This was in accordance with the Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules of 2016 and the National Guidelines on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) released in 2022

Keeping Our Waters Clean

Discharge At KNPL, we are committed to protecting the environment and people from possible harm caused by water discharge from our industrial sites. We strictly comply with Zero Liquid Discharge regulations at our major facilities, making sure that all wastewater is efficiently cleaned and recycled without being released into the environment. This ensures that runoff from our processes does not contaminate surrounding water sources.

After undergoing primary and secondary treatment, wastewater is further processed in advanced water recovery systems, including Agitated Thin Film Dryers (ATFD), Multiple Effluent Treatment Plant, Bawal UF-RO Plant, Sayakha Effect Evaporators (MEE), and Reverse Osmosis (RO) units. These technologies enable us to recover water efficiently and support our goal of responsible water stewardship.

We have dedicated treatment facilities for both domestic and industrial effluents, supported by an in-house laboratory to monitor effluent quality across all major manufacturing facilities. Moreover, KNPL’s ETP treated water is further treated in ZLD and recycled for utility makeup, while the STP-treated water is reused for gardening and toilet flushing