Clean Water For Africa

The quality of life has been improved for people in Africa with the help of LANXESS AG. Last year, the specialty chemicals company entered into a partnership through to 2010 with the African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF), a reputed African relief organization.

Rainier van Roessel, Labor Director and member of the Board of Management of LANXESS AG, says, “LANXESS is convinced that the world’s water problems will become even more acute than they are now. For this reason, the company wants to do its bit in helping to solve the problems, both through its social commitment and through its innovative products.”With financial assistance from the specialty chemicals group, AMREF is installing a water supply system able to adequately meet the needs of nearly 9,700 children at 25 schools, and equipping the schools with sanitary facilities. Furthermore, AMREF will teach African children about personal hygiene, such as the right way to wash their hands. This is an extremely important measure for preventing disease.

“Through this partnership, we are helping to avoid diseases caused by polluted water and poor hygiene,” says van Roessel. “We take our social responsibility seriously even in difficult economic times, concentrating on areas we know, in which our company also has business activities.”

Project week at German schools on the subject of water

But LANXESS not only wants to become active in Tanzania, it also wants to make young people in Germany aware of the difficult situation in Africa and the worldwide water problems. To this end, LANXESS is partnering with Horkesgath High School in Krefeld, Rhein High School in Cologne, Freiherr-vom-Stein High School in Leverkusen and Heinrich- Heine High School in Bitterfeld-Wolfen. The first joint step is a project week on the subject of water, which LANXESS will organize at the schools this year in close cooperation with teachers. Students will learn more about the subject of water as it relates to the natural sciences, social sciences and geography, and an AMREF employee will report on the relief organization’s work in Tanzania. Additional activities will follow in this and in the coming year.

“We want to help sensitize young people in Germany to the fact that water is a resource we need to use responsibly,” says van Roessel.

Experts at the World Water Forum warn of wastage

Only last Monday, at the beginning of the 5th World Water Forum currently taking place in Istanbul, politicians and scientists warned of a global water crisis due to wastage, and stressed the importance of this vital but limited resource. According to Germany’s Foreign Office, around one billion people have no access to clean drinking water. Apart from that, 2.6 billion people, including one billion children, have no form of basic sanitation. Polluted water thus remains one of the main causes of disease infection around the globe. At the world’s largest meeting of experts on this subject, the delegates are discussing access to clean water, water rights and global water problems. The forum ends on Sunday, March 22, the day the United Nations General Assembly has designated as “World Water Day”.

LANXESS on the German Foreign Office’s Internet portal
The company’s commitment to AMREF is also profiled on the Internet portal of the German Foreign Office and the Bertelsmann Foundation, CSR WorldWide – German Companies For Global Commitment (CSR WeltWeit – Deutsche Unternehmen global engagiert). The portal aims to publicize the social commitment of German companies abroad.

Highly modern water treatment with LANXESS

Products from LANXESS are used around the world to treat drinking water. Ion exchange resins and arsenic absorbers marketed under the names Lewatit® and Bayoxide® play an important role here as they remove contaminants from water and other liquids.

Arsenic is one of the most dangerous contaminants in drinking water. Very high concentrations of arsenic occur in groundwater in many regions of the United States, South America and Asia. High arsenic concentrations are also encountered frequently in Europe, for example in the United Kingdom. Bayoxide® E33 from LANXESS was engineered on the basis of iron oxide specifically to remove arsenic from drinking and wastewater.

Another process for treating water involves the use of ion exchange resins, such as Lewatit®. They remove pollutants such as nickel, nitrate and certain hydrocarbons from drinking water. One example of industrial application is the treatment of water for power generation processes. In the microchip and pharmaceutical industries, ultra-pure water is indispensable. It is an important application for Lewatit®.◊