To minimize the effects we have on the ecosystem and human life, Epson is working to control substances of concern in products, manage chemicals used in production processes, and manage environmental risks. Epson also emphasizes communication with stakeholders.

• Management of Chemical Substances in Products
• Chemical Management (Performance)
• Environmental Risk Management

The Epson Group is managing the chemical substances contained in its products to reduce the impact that these substances have on the environment and human health and to ensure compliance with laws and regulations in countries around the world. We emphasize supply chain-wide management and have established a consistent assurance system that extends from procurement to shipping.

Effective management of chemical substances in products requires information sharing and cooperation across the supply chain. Epson asks its suppliers to comply with green purchasing standards and to provide information on chemical substances contained in products. Epson works with suppliers to strengthen regulatory compliance and quality assurance.

¹ A written standard that sets forth requirements for the building and maintenance of a substance control system by suppliers who provide parts and materials used in Epson products. The standard also defines requirements relating to the elimination or exclusion of legally restricted substances and requirements for providing information on substances present in parts and materials.
² Use of the industry standard information sharing scheme chemSHERPA

Legal and Regulatory Compliance

In recent years, chemical substance regulations have expanded and become stricter in countries and regions around the world, and the time from the publication of legislation to its enactment and implementation has tended to shorten. Epson continuously monitors these trends and has established a system to respond quickly to new regulations, in addition to complying with existing laws and regulations.

• Case Study 1: Responding to Global chemical substance Regulations

Epson is managing the substances used in its products as a unified global initiative. We control substances in our products to ensure compliance with the various chemical substance regulations in different countries and regions, including the European RoHS Directive, REACH Regulation, and U.S. TSCA. This minimizes the need for localized responses in each sales region and enables us to ensure consistent product quality and compliance worldwide.

• Case Study 2: Proactive Risk Management

Epson's green purchasing standards reflect not only the requirements of national laws and regulations but also the requirements of international treaties, including the POPs Convention. This enables Epson to proactively manage potential future regulations that may be adopted by individual countries, allowing for early action across the entire supply chain.
In particular, Epson is investigating and managing PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), which are subject to increasing global regulation, in line with the latest regulatory trends. This allows Epson to take preemptive action in anticipation of future regulatory tightening, rather than merely responding after laws and regulations are enacted.

• Case Study 3: Complying with GHS¹​

In 2003, the United Nations recommended that a globally harmonized system (GHS) be established to inform consumers and vendors about the hazards and harmful effects of chemicals and about the appropriate ways to handle them. The GHS has been adopted as a legal requirement in different countries and regions at different times. Epson has been complying with the GHS in the labeling of ink cartridges, toner cartridges, and other chemical products.
¹ The GHS (Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals) provides a unified, worldwide system for classifying the hazards of chemicals and for labeling them and providing safety data sheets.

• Case Study 4: IEC 62474 compliance

Epson tracks the chemicals contained in Epson products by obtaining composition data on products from its suppliers based on the IEC 62474 Declarable Substances List (DSL).
With the exception of some substances, such as those that are exempt from the European RoHS Directive and SVHC of the European REACH Regulation, Epson products do not contain substances on the IEC 62474 DSL.

Providing Ink for All Types of Printed Matter

We provide inks with safe chemical properties as required for products made with inkjet technology (labels, stickers, fabric, etc.).

• Case Study 1: Providing Textiles with Third-Party-Certified Safe Ink

² UltraChrome DS inks for dye-sublimation printers, UltraChrome DG inks and pretreatment agents for garment printers, and inks for inkjet textile printers.
³ Certification standard for the safety and assurance of chemical substances used in dyes, pigments, auxiliaries and finishing agents for textile production.

• Case Study 2: Printing Ink for Food Labels

Complies with European food contact materials regulations⁴
Epson's SurePress digital label presses and ColorWorks on-demand color label printers inks comply with the European Union's Food Contact Materials regulation "Food Contact Material regulation (EC No.1935/2004)".
⁴ Only when printed on non-food contact surfaces

Switching to Safer Materials (e.g. Eliminating Harmful Substances)

Epson standards specify substances that are prohibited from inclusion in products, and substances whose inclusion must be controlled. Information on these substances is collected and managed in a database. This database is used to ensure safety in all processes, from design and procurement to volume production. Epson is proactive in eliminating from its products substances that could adversely affect the environment or human health.

Epson has a system in place to control chemical substances in its production processes. We specify what substances are prohibited or restricted within the Epson Group and carefully assess the safety of chemicals before they are used at any Epson site. We use a "E-Chem" chemical substances management system to register information about chemical substances used in production as well as in other areas. The system is also used to track the quantities of substances used, volatile organic compound (VOC) released into the environment, and emissions of substances subject to reporting under the Pollution Release and Transfer Registers (PRTR) system.

In Japan, we inspect CFC-related equipment and calculate the amount of leakage in accordance with the "Fluorocarbon Emissions Control Act" to ensure legal compliance. The Epson Group is currently below the reporting requirement in terms of amount of leakage. 
CFCs have a very great greenhouse effect that is hundreds to more than 10,000 times greater than that of carbon dioxide. Hoping to prevent global warming, Epson will work to avoid leaks of CFC refrigerants and switch to refrigerants with a smaller greenhouse effect.

We report and publish data on these chemical substances and communicate with local communities to build trust.

Please see ESG data for data on PRTR substance emissions and VOC emissions.

Related Information

Any environmental pollution resulting from Epson's business activities could have a serious impact on residents of the surrounding area, as well as for the rest of the region or country. We follow Group-wide standards for pollution control and ensure that all members are well acquainted with the ideas and laws of environmental risk management. Each promotion unit uses ISO 14001 to identify and assess the risk of failing to meet standards or of experiencing environmental complaints or incidents in an ongoing effort to continuously mitigate those risks.

In fiscal year 2025, there were no exceedances of legal standards, no environmental accidents or administrative penalty, and no fines were paid for violations of environmental laws.

Environmental due diligence

We investigate the environmental aspects prior to acquiring new businesses and land through M&As as part of due diligence. We investigate all newly acquired sites, and not only manufacturing sites, to confirm whether there are any problems involving things such as soil and groundwater pollution and hazardous wastes prior to entering into new contractual agreements.

Epson is actively assessing the current status of soil and groundwater contamination at its sites and is working on remediation and preventive measures. Additionally, to prevent contamination from chemical substances and reduce associated risks, Epson is enhancing the safety of environmental facilities, including leak prevention measures.

As of FY2025, 6 sites have been confirmed to have contamination resulting from past business activities. At sites such as the head office, where trichloroethylene in groundwater was found to exceed regulatory standards during voluntary inspections, we are continuously implementing barrier measures and water extraction remediation to prevent off-site contamination. These measures require a long-term approach, but both the extent and concentration of contamination have been showing a declining trend, and regular monitoring confirms that no contamination is escaping off-site.

Moreover, if new contamination is discovered during investigations conducted under the Soil Contamination Countermeasures Act, such as when changes to the land are made, we will report the findings to the authorities and implement remediation and countermeasures appropriate to the specific conditions of each site. We will also work with authorities to ensure transparency of information.

Moving forward, Epson will continue to advance remediation using appropriate methods in line with legal requirements and developments in remediation technology, while also prioritizing communication with authorities and neighboring communities.

Epson's Chitose Plant is located upstream from Lake Utonai, which has been designated as a national wildlife protection area and a Ramsar Site.

Wastewater generated in manufacturing processes is detoxified and then discharged into sewers. To prevent leaked chemicals and other substances from leaking offsite, rainwater is collected in a retention basin to monitor the pH and oil levels before flowing into Lake Chitose and Lake Utonai via the Bibigawa River. All chemicals, waste materials, and wastewater treatment systems are located indoors to prevent them from leaking off the site.

Epson's internal policy specifies that wastes must be processed in the country in which they originate. We do not directly import or export any wastes, including hazardous wastes specified under the Basel Convention.
However, we employ subcontractors who satisfy the requirements of the Basel Convention to process fluorescent lamps, etc., that originate in countries and regions where it is difficult to process them domestically.

PCB Waste Storage

As of FY2022, all PCB waste identified and kept in storage had been disposed of. Furthermore, if any PCB waste is discovered in the future, we will promptly carry out proper disposal by the applicable legal deadline.
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All buildings owned by the Epson Group in Japan were investigated for asbestos by the end of the 2019 fiscal year. Level 1 asbestos (extremely high friability) and level 2 asbestos (high friability) are enclosed, sealed or, when necessary, removed to prevent human exposure. We also regularly test for airborne asbestos dust indoors in areas where asbestos-containing building materials are used, including where asbestos has been enclosed and sealed, to verify safety.

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