GEISMAR, La., Oct. 29, 2002 -- An organization of scientists dedicated to conducting impartial environmental research has presented BASF's Geismar site with its first annual Environmental Excellence Partnership Award.
The award was recently presented to BASF at the annual conference of the Environmental Research Consortium of Louisiana (ERCLA). The conference was held at the Center of Ecology and Environmental Technology Center on the University of Louisiana-Lafayette campus. Eric Hillman, an environmental engineer with BASF, accepted the award on behalf of the company and the 1,800 workers at the Geismar site.
ERCLA President Harold Suire said BASF has been a leading force in the organization and a sponsor of the annual state conference since it was founded in 1992.
"BASF's strong commitment is making it possible for our organization to conduct important unbiased, scientific research into a range of environmental issues in Louisiana," Suire said. "The company's partnership with ERCLA and our annual conference plays a major role in helping us achieve our mission."
ERCLA works with scientists, professors and graduate students to accomplish its mission of identifying and researching environmental issues, communicating with the public and policy-makers regarding such issues and bringing together leading state scientists to share their research. The organization sponsors an annual "Environmental State of the State" conference at which scientific papers are presented and discussed.
"BASF is a technology and science-based company and we fully appreciate the need to address important environmental issues through objective research such as that sponsored by ERCLA," said Otis Hall, Vice President and General Manager of the BASF Geismar site.
"We are truly honored to be recognized by this organization, which performs such valuable work for the people of Louisiana."
With some 1,800 workers, the BASF Geismar site is one of the area's largest employers. The BASF Geismar site manufactures a wide range of products that are used in hundreds of consumer products.
BASF: Helping Make Products Better(TM)
BASF is a chemical company, offering its customers a range of high-performance products, including chemicals, plastics, coatings systems, dispersions, agricultural products and fine chemicals as well as crude oil and natural gas.
BASF is a provider of sustainable development, including environmental protection, safety and health, and social responsibility. BASF had 2001 sales of $29 billion and employs more than 90,000 people worldwide. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in New York (BF), Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA), Paris (BA) and Zurich (BAS).
BASF Corporation is the North American affiliate of BASF AG, Ludwigshafen, Germany. In North America, 2001 sales were $6.9 billion and the company employs approximately 14,000 people. For more information, visit www.basf.com/usa.
