Water is essential for human activity, circulating around the planet while changing to and from solid, liquid and gaseous states. 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered with water, and of that amount, 97.5% is salt water. The remaining 2.5% is fresh water which supports human activity, including business activities. However, about three-quarters of that remaining fresh water exists in a frozen state such as within glaciers. Therefore, the amount of freshwater that is actually available for human use accounts for not even 1% of the Earth’s total amount of water. Under the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the world is striving to secure access to safe drinking water for all people, and through business activities and other economic initiatives, each country is also working to achieve more prosperous livelihoods, including access to water. Since economic scale and water consumption are closely correlated, companies must use water, one of the Earth’s precious natural resources, in an efficient and appropriate manner while also aiming to solve challenges related to water issues through their businesses.
MC has clarified its intention to promote the “sustainable use of natural resources including water” in its Environmental Charter, which was first established in 1996 and later revised in 2017. The MC Group, which engages in a wide range of businesses worldwide, has identified "Conserving and Effectively Utilizing Natural Capital" as part of its Materiality. It recognizes water as an essential element for its business activities and places critical importance on the sustainable use of water in all of its operations. In particular, MC identifies relevant risks and opportunities in a timely manner and, with the goal of achieving the sustainable use of water, establishes appropriate water consumption, recycling, reuse, and treatment throughout its operations and makes efforts to improve use efficiency and reduce consumption. Furthermore, MC will contribute to the resolution of global water issues through its business by establishing water infrastructure businesses and developing comprehensive water operations.