Environmental Management Systems
Cooper takes its commitment to the environment seriously. The Company has regularly received recognition for its environmental performance.
As part of doing the right thing, Cooper has implemented environmental management systems at all of its manufacturing plants. The systems provide the foundation for Cooper to manage its environmental performance as a good community citizen. At a number of Cooper’s plants, the systems have been certified to ISO 14001.
MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS CERTIFICATIONS
Cooper’s Findlay, Texarkana, Tupelo, Kunshan, and Rongcheng tire plants, as well as the Findlay Mold Operations facility have been certified to the ISO 14001:2004 Environmental Management Systems standard. The standard provides a structured approach to managing a company’s environmental performance through policy, planning, monitoring and measuring, checking and correcting, and reviewing.
Similarly, Cooper's Findlay, Texarkana, Tupelo, El Salto, Melksham, KruĊĦevac, Kunshan, and Rongcheng tire plants, as well as the Findlay Mold Operations facility and Technical Center in Shanghai, China, have been certified to the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management Systems standard.
In addition, energy management systems at Cooper’s Rongcheng, Texarkana, and Tupelo tire plants have recently been recognized.
COMPLIANCE RECORD/AUDIT PROGRAM
Cooper takes its commitment to the environment seriously. The company is proud of its environmental regulatory compliance record. Cooper recognizes the importance of complying with environmental regulatory requirements. This has been communicated to, and accepted by, all Cooper facilities. In addition, as part of its environmental management system, Cooper has established a regulatory compliance audit program. This involves conducting regular reviews of Cooper manufacturing facilities to monitor compliance to requirements and taking corrective action as necessary. In addition to these outside audits, our facilities conduct regular internal audits of their operations.
Cooper is not satisfied with mere compliance to regulatory requirements, however. The company adheres to internal standards that exceed regulatory requirements. These standards involve the use of formal environmental management systems, monitoring environmental performance, and continual improvement toward Cooper’s internal goals. As noted below, Cooper's efforts have resulted in the Tupelo and Texarkana plants receiving special recognition by their respective states.
Tupelo Plant Recognized as an Environmental Leader
The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) accepted Cooper's Tupelo plant into its enHance program in 2011. enHance is a voluntary stewardship program that began in 2009 as a means of recognizing committed environmental leaders who accomplish goals beyond their legal requirements.
"We are pleased that The Cooper Tire Company has joined the enHance program, and they should be commended for their commitment to doing good work and their leadership in achieving standards beyond their environmental permit requirements," said Trudy Fisher, MDEQ Executive Director.
Cooper is one of only 16 entities in the state of Mississippi to be recognized at the Leader level.
Texarkana, Ark., Plant Wins Diamond Award
Cooper’s Texarkana plant earned the 2009 Arkansas Environmental Federation (AEF) "Diamond Award for Excellence in Environmental Leadership." This is a coveted award that is presented annually to one Arkansas manufacturing/industrial entity that demonstrates exemplary initiative and innovative leadership in environmental affairs. The Texarkana Plant’s Diamond Award recognizes its reduced manufacturing scrap generation, reduced landfill usage, energy and water conservation, and internal recycling. The Diamond Award complements the AEF’s “Overall Award for Waste Minimization/Pollution Prevention” that the plant received in 1994. These awards reflect Cooper’s continuing focus on environmental protection.
WORLD BUSINESS COUNCIL ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Cooper is a member of the World Business Council on Sustainable Development and is participating in the Tire Industry Project to identify and address the potential health and environmental impacts of materials associated with tire making and use. Presently, the project is focusing on 1) the properties, fate and impacts of particles generated by the interaction between tires and pavements during tire use; and 2) the safe development and use of nanomaterials in tires. In addition, the project is working to encourage effective end-of-life tire, or scrap tire, management. The project work continues.