Kumho Tire recognizes the impact of resource use and environmental pollution in its business operations and aims to reduce pollution and minimize resource use according to its environmental policy. To achieve this, we manage waste according to legal standards through a waste management process, and in response to international plastic regulations, we have established the ‘ZERO Tire Packaging’ plan, aiming to transition to unwrapped products for domestic and international shipments. Additionally, to address water resource risks, we have established a water resource management system and regularly monitor water quality. We also regularly measure and manage air pollutants such as dust, NOx (nitrogen oxides), SOx (sulfur oxides), and odors according to stricter internal standards than legal limits.

To reduce the environmental impact of business activities, Kumho Tire has set and is managing long-term goals related to natural capital, such as increasing waste recycling, improving water use efficiency, and reducing pollutant emissions. We have set a goal to reduce water pollutants by approximately 10% by 2030 compared to 2023 emissions, and to reduce air pollutants such as NOx and dust by approximately 10% of intensity by 2030 compared to 2023 levels.

*Water ton/Production ton

Domestic Waste Tire Collection

Kumho Tire is fulfilling its responsibilities for the collection and recycling of domestic waste tires to meet the recycling obligations announced in the Extended Producer Responsibility(ERP) system. As a member of the Korea Tire Manufacturers Association, we outsource the collection, processing, and cost settlement of waste tires, and manage recycling targets by recording the weight of waste tires collected by designated collection companies and transported to recycling companies. Collected tires are recycled by thermal utilization companies such as cement manufacturers and solid fuel manufacturers or by material recycling companies for products like rubber ropes.

Extended Producer Responsibility (ERP) System

This system imposes recycling obligations on obligated producers for products and packaging distributed domestically. If these obligations are not fulfilled, a recycling fee is charged. This expands the producer’s responsibility beyond production and sales stages to include consumption, disposal, and recycling stages. As an obligated producer, Kumho Tire participates in fulfilling the obligations for product collection and recycling.

*Obligated Producers: Those who manufacture or import and distribute products or packaging domestically

Water Resource Risk Analysis

Kumho Tire identified water resource risks for business sites in Korea, China, Vietnam, and the United States using the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas provided by the World Resources Institute (WRI). We plan to conduct and annually disclose risk assessments on various factors, including water quantity and quality risks due to floods and droughts, the water stress index indicating the ratio of water demand to available resources, and drought risks. 

The overall water risk analysis revealed that the water resource risks are generally higher for our plants in China and Vietnam compared to those in Korea and the United States. In Changchun, the water stress index is high, while Tianjin shows high risk in physical water quantity due to river and coastal flood risks. In Korea, overall water resource risk is relatively low; however, the flood risk is high due to the location of plants near rivers and coastlines. The risk impact is expected to increase due to droughts and heatwaves in the Jeonnam region. Accordingly, we will periodically measure the water resource risk status, report it to the management, and establish detailed response plans.

Waste Management

Kumho Tire operates a waste management process to safely manage waste generated during the production process, from generation and storage to treatment and final disposal of consigned waste. When discharging waste externally, we input it into the Ministry of Environment’s Waste Management System, ‘Allbaro System,’ to enable electronic management. Each site stores and disposes of waste according to legal standards based on the type of waste generated. The Gwangju plant immediately responds to issues requiring action through daily on-site inspections, while the Gokseong and Pyeongtaek plants manage designated and general waste storage areas separately at the outskirts of the sites.

Resource Efficiency Improvement Activities

Waste Recycling

Kumho Tire establishes waste recycling rate improvement targets through the Environmental Management Committee and manages and monitors monthly performance. Additionally, we are promoting activities to reduce the generation of defects and scrap* to fundamentally minimize the amount of waste generated. Recyclable resources such as rubber scrap generated during the production process and tire testing are recycled through rubber processing companies.

* Scrap: Materials that are discarded and not used in tire manufacturing due to processing negligence, equipment malfunctions, or raw material defects during the manufacturing process.

Transition to Package-free

Globally, regulations and international agreements regarding plastics are actively being discussed. In response, we are implementing the ‘ZERO Tire Packaging’ plan for completely unpackaged tires. In 2022, all products shipped to domestic, American, and European markets were transitioned to unpackaged. Starting in 2024, most of the tires shipped to Saudi Arabia are also being transitioned to unpackaged. Through this, we aim to reduce the amount of packaging waste generated during distribution and mitigate the environmental impact caused by plastic waste.

Water Resource Management

Kumho Tire manages water usage, including waterworks and sewage, industrial water, and recycles wastewater for process water to reduce wastewater discharge. The Gokseong plant has adopted advanced treatment methods, such as reverse osmosis, to recycle wastewater for boiler water. The Gwangju plant recycles wastewater treated in sedimentation tanks as washing water for air pollution control facilities within the plant.

Water Pollutant Management

The Gokseong plant treats wastewater and sewage using physicochemical and biochemical methods before discharging it into the Seomjin River. Additionally, some boiler-generated water is strictly treated by specialized companies. The Pyeongtaek plant also operates wastewater prevention facilities to comply with legal standards and works to prevent water pollution.

Air Pollutant Management

Kumho Tire operates a Tele-Metering System (TMS) at the Gwangju plant to minimize the environmental impact on the surrounding community. Both the Pyeongtaek and Gwangju plants have installed and operate odor control facilities. The Gwangju plant has improved the performance of its existing odor deodorant spraying facilities to minimize odor complaints from the local community. The Pyeongtaek plant conducts annual monitoring of its vulcanization prevention facilities. Particularly, since Pyeongtaek is designated as an odor management area, the plant has been adding deodorants since 2017 and has set its own measurement cycles for self-monitoring air quality. The concentration of air pollutants such as dust, NOx (nitrogen oxides), and SOx (sulfur oxides) is managed to be below 40% of the legal limit.