Press releases

Mercator Medical co-creates 20 nature micro-reserves

The Mercator Medical Group, a manufacturer of medical gloves and a distributor of single-use medical materials based in…

The Mercator Medical Group, a manufacturer of medical gloves and a distributor of single-use medical materials based in Kraków, will bring about the creation of 20 nature micro-reserves in the Carpathian Forest in co-operation with the Dziedzictwo Przyrodnicze [Natural Heritage] Foundation. New protection zones will prevent the logging of old trees, many of which are natural monuments, thereby supporting the protection of rare and protected lichen and birds, including species that occur very rarely in Poland: golden eagles, lesser spotted eagles and black storks.

It is an honour for us that we can contribute so actively to the protection of nature in our country,” comments Wiesław Żyznowski, PhD, President of the Management Board of Mercator Medical S.A. “The preservation of natural heritage and ensuring a safe habitat for wild animals are one of the biggest challenges of the modern world. We must save these few spaces, uncontaminated by humanity, so that not only we, but also further generations will have the opportunity to commune with the original, untouched nature,” he adds.

Micro-reserves in the Carpathian Forest will be reported for establishment thanks to the financial support of the Mercator Medical Group for the Dziedzictwo Przyrodnicze [Natural Heritage] Foundation, which has been working for years to protect Poland’s natural heritage, particularly the borderlands of Poland, Ukraine and Slovakia. Twenty protection zones for the establishment of which the Foundation will apply will be reported in the territory of 15 Carpathian forest districts: Bircza, Baligród, Brzozów, Cisna, Dukla, Dynów, Gorlice, Komańcza, Krasiczyn, Lesko, Lutowiska, Łosie, Rymanów, Stuposiany and Ustrzyki Dolne. Thanks to the establishment of micro-reserves, the scope of protection will encompass not only stands of protected bird and lichen species requiring zonal protection, but also old majestic trees that provide shelter to many other species.

These are the places where majestic golden eagles, an extremely rare species in Poland, build their nests,” explains Radosław Michalski, President of the Dziedzictwo Przyrodnicze [Natural Heritage] Foundation. “Their abundance in our country is estimated at 25–30 pairs, most of which occur in the Carpathians. It is there, high above the ground, that golden eagles spend the first weeks of their lives. Black storks also choose old trees in secluded areas. Below, in tree hollows, nests are built by other bird species, including our smallest owls – pygmy owls. In order to protect their nests, we must protect trees against logging and establish nature micro-reserves there,” he adds.

The protection zones that will be established in the Carpathian Forest thanks to support from the Mercator Medical Group will prevent the logging of old invaluable trees with nests and protect the surrounding area of 50 to 200 metres, depending on the species. It is worth mentioning that the ban on cutting down trees in such a designated protection zone refers not only to natural monuments, but also to other trees situated within its borders. This is particularly important in the context of the blockage of the extension and creation of national parks and reserves in the Bieszczady, Przemyśl Foothills and the Low Beskids. Thanks to the activities of the Dziedzictwo Przyrodnicze [Natural Heritage] Foundation in the Carpathian Forest, 144 zones for the golden eagle, the lesser spotted eagle, the pygmy owl, the black stork and lichen have been established to date. Twenty protection zones of the Mercator Medical Group will be reported for establishment by the end of 2021. The cost of establishment of one zone is PLN 1,000.

Mercator Medical has been a socially responsible company since the beginning,” says Wiesław Żyznowski, PhD, President of the Management Board of Mercator Medical S.A. “We consistently take care of the development of local communities in which we function. We want to build value for our immediate environment and we try to reduce our ecological footprint in a special way. We reduce or exclude adverse effects on the environment both in our daily activities and in long-term projects under way,” he adds.

The Mercator Medical Group actively seeks new low-emission solutions and tries to optimally utilise its resources. In its Thailand factories, the organisation regularly invests in modern technologies that allow it to expand its scale of activity without adverse impact on the natural environment, particularly thanks to the reduction of electrical energy consumption and the rational management of resources. In the last quarter of 2019, the Group launched a water treatment plant in its Thai plants, thanks to which the treated water can be reused for the production process (in this way, up to 2,000 m3 of water can be reused each day, which accounts for around 1/3 of daily demand for water with the current scale of production). Mercator Medical (Thailand) Ltd. also effectively produces electrical energy based on solar panels.

To jest wyrób medyczny. Używaj go zgodnie z instrukcją używania lub etykietą.