SK hynix has become the 14th company in the world and the first in South Korea to obtain international Zero Waste to Landfill certification, the company said Tuesday. The honor is granted to businesses that send almost no waste to landfills despite running manufacturing facilities.

The semiconductor supplier has diverted 90 percent of the waste from its main corporate campus in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province, away from landfills and toward alternative disposal methods such as reuse or recycling. For its facility in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, the figure is 94 percent.

The US safety certification institute UL International gave SK hynix silver-grade certification for its efforts. US retailer Walmart holds gold-level certification for reaching a 98 percent diversion rate. Apple, Starbucks and BASF have all earned platinum for diverting 100 percent of their waste away from landfills. 


“Amid increasing interest in waste management worldwide, SK hynix has been recognized for the first time for its efforts to reduce waste,” a company official said.

Minimizing the impact of industrial waste on the environment is one of the goals the company aims to achieve by 2022, SK hynix said.

“The company will continue making efforts to turn waste into new resources and get a higher grade,” said Kim Hyung-soo, a vice president at SK hynix.

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)