4. Safety and stakeholders

• The good results achieved by the chemical industry are no coincidence. Working conditions have been significantly improved, and exposure to the substances handled has been reduced. The dramatic consequences of exposure to asbestos over twenty years ago are proof, if proof were needed, that these actions are justified.

Today, air quality is much more affected by traffic-related pollution than by industrial activity. River water quality, which is constantly improving, has benefited from the significant progress made by industry in terms of discharges. Reducing these discharges, whether accidental (process malfunctions) or chronic (daily discharges), has often required costly investment to develop clean technologies, improve plant reliability or treat effluent before discharge into the natural environment.

The...