Sustainability Report 2012 Lek d.d.

27 Environment 2.2.6 Abandoning the use of hazardous volatile organic compounds By replacing hazardous VOCs with less hazardous substan- ces, Lek has significantly improved the tablet film-coating process. The new measures are aimed at reducing the le- vel of environment pollution with hazardous waste through elimination of halogenated air emissions to the air. At the Prevalje site, the studies for replacing the ethanol phase by the water phase in the film-coating process were continued after methylene chloride had been fully replaced with ethanol in 2011. Although the project of replacing the ethanol-based coating of omeprazole with water-based coating at the Lju- bljana site has already been completed, regulatory approval is still pending due to the long duration of the procedure. Responsibility towards the environment and employees Multi-dimensional improvements at the Prevalje site By implementing a specific project, the Prevalje site re- duced water consumption by as much as 30%. Upgrad- ing of the parking area reduced the risk of soil conta- mination. The investment in a central weighing room was also beneficial in terms of HSE, since the modern weighing booths meet the latest HSE standards. In the weighing room, an upgraded ventilation system is installed, and separate weighing booths are provided. Abatement of emissions Iceland and Thailand joined the group of countries replacing methylene chloride with ethanol Action to replace methylene chloride with ethanol at the Prevalje site started in 2004. Despite our wish to obta- in approval for the replacement as soon as possible, the approval process was slower than anticipated, mostly due to regulatory restrictions. Approvals for individual markets were granted over a period of six years. For Iceland and Thailand, the last two markets, we received approvals at the beginning of 2012. The last batch of film-coated tablets using methylene chloride was manufactured in July 2011.