Throughout Europe, June 2008:

NYK celebrate World Environment Day

Each year on 5 June the United Nations commemorates World Environment Day to raise worldwide awareness of the environment and stimulate political action. More details...

The NYK European Environmental Management Team decided to raise awareness of this event in 2008 by embarking on a series of environmental activity days.

A total of 6 different Clean-Up activity days have taken place.

NYK Antwerp Environment Day Activities involved a clean up of the Galgeschoor nature reserve river shore in the village Lillo, on Saturday 31st of May, located in the harbour of Antwerp. Both NYK Line (Benelux) and NYK Bulkship (Atlantic) organised the day, with the involvement of the non-profit wildlife fund of Flanders Natuurpunt vzw, the Port Authorities of Antwerp, PriceWaterhouseCoopers and Waterways and Seachannels (Waterwegen en Zeekanaal). Over 3.5 tonnes of litter was collected from Galgeschoor nature reserve, which is a salt marsh stretching over 2 kms and is a natural nesting habitat for many birds.

In Czech Republic, 2 different clean up days were organised. A river clean up in Jazlovice village, near Ricany on 24th May , and one in Borky, Kolin on 14th June. These clean up days were carried out in cooperation with local environmental departments and have resulted in ongoing improvements to the local areas.

In London, a team from the NYK Group Europe head office cleaned up a section of the Thames river by Tower Bridge on Monday 9th June. They managed to clean up over 1 tonne of rubbish from the foreshore which is surprisingly under no-one's direct responsibility to keep clean. This event was done in collaboration with Thames21, who are a charitable organisation dedicated to improving Thames waterways.

NYK Line Rotterdam office organised a successful clean up day on the beach at Oostvoorne, on the 5th June. This location was chosen as it is just south of the deep sea terminal and is therefore polluted by the shipping industry.

In Saint Andrieux, northern France, a team from the NYK Le Havre office mobilised to clean up a section of beach on May 31st. This was done in collaboration with AquaCaux (an organisation who aim to maintain local coastlines and ecosystems) and a total of almost 3 tonnes of varying waste was collected.

Each of the clean up activities have been a great way to improve links with local communities and take some responsibility for the effects our work and personal lives have on the environment.

ENDS

About NYK:
Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha is one of the world's leading transportation companies. The NYK Group operates approximately 777 major ocean vessels, as of the end of March 2008, as well as fleets of planes, trains, and trucks. The company's shipping fleet includes around 155 containerships, 286 bulk carriers, 55 wood-chip carriers, 113 car carriers, 21 reefer carriers, 79 tankers, 30 LNG carriers, and three cruise ships. NYK's revenue in fiscal 2007 was about $26 billion, and as a group, NYK employs about 51,000 people worldwide. The company has offices in 240 locations in 27 countries, warehouses on nearly every continent, and harbor operations in Asia, North America, and Europe. NYK is based in Tokyo, and has regional headquarters in London, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, and Sao Paulo.