Jotun joins DM in greening initiative

As part of its commitment to the community and the environment, as well as its strong support for the promotion of more sustainable green spaces in the emirate, Jotun Paints and Jotun Powder Coatings jointly planted 120 conocarpus trees and 20 date palm trees along 558-meters of the front fence of Jebel Ali Hazardous Waste Treatment Plant in the presence of Eng. Hassan Makki, Director of Waste Management Department and Eng. Naji Al Radhi, Head of Waste Treatment Section of Dubai Municipality.

Trine Finnevolden, General Manager, Jotun Paints and Ram Ramnath, General Sales Manager, Jotun Powder Coatings were also present on the occasion.

"This initiative by Jotun, which goes inline with the directions of the Director General of Dubai Municipality towards a green environment, addresses the importance of the public sector's participation in social and environmental activities,"

said Hassan Makki.

"The environmental protection is an integrated responsibility that requires the participation of everyone. For this reason, Dubai Municipality is always working on participating the society and the public sector in its campaigns. For example, when the 'Clean up the Word' campaign was initiated few years ago, there were only 200 volunteers. This number was increasing every year and it reached 20,000 participants in 2008. This could not have been accomplished without the direct support and sponsorship of the private sector," he said.

Naji Al Radhi applauded Jotun's efforts towards ensuring a green zone around the Jebel Ali Hazardous Waste Treatment Plant and effectively promoting environmental awareness in the UAE.

"The trees planted here will play an important role in absorbing excess green house gasses and in keeping the air clean and filtered, especially in Jebel Ali area where a substantial number of plants and manufacturing hubs are located. This company's commitment to sustaining and balancing the eco-system provides a model for other organisations to follow amidst the booming call for environmental awareness," he said.

Trine Finnevolden said that an accompanying irrigation system for the new trees has also been set up to help in the growth of the saplings.

She underlined the importance of planting trees that are native to the region, not only for beautification purposes, but also more importantly for their contribution towards reducing harmful greenhouse gases.

"Jotun's active involvement in this important environmental initiative follows its adoption of a massive waste recycling program, which has resulted in the reprocessing of 926,492 litres of waste water and 47, 721 litres of waste solvents in 2007. In addition, the company also invests heavily towards the development of paint products that help in the conservation of energy," said Finnevolden.

Ram Ramnath said the company's commitment to societal development also involved a recent donation of used computers to the Dubai Municipality's PC Refurbishment Centre, where these computers are updated with latest programmes and sent to charity.

"We have also undertaken significant strides in engaging our staff in relevant environmental issues with the launch of the annual 'World Environment Day' celebrations, where employees along with their families are gathered for a whole day affair involving fun, environmentally-focused activities and competitions," he said.

"The continuing support of the Dubai Municipality has also further strengthened our efforts, and we are looking forward to partnering with them in more activities in the future," Ramnath said.