Globally the BAT Group’s environmental targets include an enhanced focus on water stewardship. In 2021, the BAT Group announced the ambitious goal of achieving Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) certification across 100% of its manufacturing sites by 2025. In 2022, the Reynolds Operations Center (ROC) in Tobaccoville, N.C. earned AWS certification, becoming the 17th BAT group facility globally to receive the certification. Reynolds’ Tobaccoville facility is among 17 global BAT Group facilities that are currently AWS certified, with several more BAT Group sites aiming to receive certification within the next year.
What does it mean to achieve AWS certification?
The AWS Standard is a globally applicable framework for sustainable water management to better understand water use and impacts, and for working collaboratively and transparently for sustainable watershed management. Earning this certification indicates the ROC facility has successfully implemented AWS’ best practices in terms of five critical outcomes: good water governance, sustainable water balance, good water quality status, protection of important water-related areas, and safe water, sanitation, and hygiene for all.
The certification demonstrates we have met all core criteria in the global benchmark for responsible water stewardship, making this facility one of only 250 organizations worldwide to earn the respected designation.
“Collectively, the actions any of us can take to be better stewards of natural resources, like water, will benefit the communities where we work and live as well as the local economy,” said Bernd Meyer, Executive Vice President of Operations at Reynolds. “Using water efficiently is the responsible thing to do. It’s good for the environment, good for society as a whole and good for our business. We are on track to meet our 2025 water stewardship goals across all of our U.S. manufacturing facilities.”
