Limiting local environmental impacts – The situation today

Since the early 1970s, opinion polls have regularly shown the environment to be a topic of increasing global concern. Since the early 1990s, people's interest has grown stronger while at the same time, thanks to the media, the impact of human activity on the environment is ever more visible: air and water pollution, the ecological consequences of intensive farming practices, heat waves, storms, flooding, forest fires, oil spills.

The primary substances that are responsible for the local impact on air quality are sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide (CO), volatile organic compounds (VOC) and fine particles and dust.

Among raw materials, solvents, primarily used for active ingredient production, represent the resources with the greatest potential impact on the environment.

Fuel oils used in boilers at sanofi-aventis sites for heating and steam production may be a source of SOx and NOx. The use of heavy fuel oil and coal could be a source of fine dust emissions.