Water

We seek to manage water more sustainably by reducing risks in water-stressed areas and avoiding potential risks related to pharmaceuticals in the environment (PiE).

We assess our water risks, and while we generally operate in locations where the risk of water scarcity and poor quality is low, we continue to focus on conserving and reducing water use and improving the quality of the water we discharge from our facilities. We work with our sites around the world to identify water-saving opportunities and wastewater treatment technologies to support our environmental goals. Additionally, we have reported on our water programs through CDP.

Our Water Goals

By 2030, we aim to:

• Establish and implement water management plans for Lilly sites in water-stressed areas

• Ensure 100% of Lilly sites meet predicted no-effect concentrations (PNEC) for Pharmaceuticals in the Environment

• Implement appropriate controls with Lilly contract manufacturers designed to prevent discharge of pharmaceuticals in wastewater above applicable PNEC-based limits for Pharmaceuticals in the Environment

Water Use

Manufacturing operations account for the majority of our water use. The production of injectable medicines requires exceptionally high-quality water, and our sites rely on utility operations to produce purified water and water for cooling and steam systems. To reduce our water consumption, we use reclaimed water when possible and have optimized our cooling systems to reduce water usage. In 2025, our facilities recycled or reused 277 billion liters of water, representing 96.8% of our total water demand.

In 2025, 6.9% of our total water intake occurred at sites in geographies that are defined as "water-stressed" through tools such as the World Wildlife Fund's Water Risk Filter and the World Resources Institute Aqueduct tools. Potential future regional water risk, unpredictable costs and climate change concerns have further strengthened our commitment to using water more efficiently and improving water quality based on local needs. Hence, we have established water management plans for Lilly sites located in water-stressed geographies.

Managing Water-Stressed Geographies

The water stress management plans were developed based on guidance in the Alliance for Water Stewardship International Water Stewardship Standard V2.0 (AWS Standard). The AWS Standard has five outcomes that represent fundamental aspects of water. The intent of these outcomes is to act as fundamental “pillars” of water stewardship – or themes that are reflected in all water stewardship efforts.

1. How humans are responsible and accountable for water (governance)

2. Quantities and timing of water (water balance)

3. Properties of the water (water quality)

4. Spatial aspects of areas that may or may not contain water at a given time, but that are critical to maintaining the human-derived benefits of water including the ecosystem services from Important Water-Related Areas (IWRAs)

5. Provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene for all.

Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE)

There are various public and stakeholder concerns regarding pharmaceuticals in the environment (PiE). The detection and biological potency of pharmaceuticals raise questions about potential risks to the environment. The World Health Organization, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Geological Survey have all concluded that the presence of pharmaceuticals in drinking water is unlikely to have a direct impact on human health. Publications by Gunnarsson et al. (2019) and Wilkinson et al. (2022) conclude that for most pharmaceuticals, presence in surface water presents a low risk to environmental species, whether based on predicted or measured environmental concentrations.

We believe the discharge of pharmaceuticals into the environment should be minimized. We strive to ensure our internal and external manufacturing operations do not adversely impact waterways due to discharges of pharmaceuticals.

PiE Governance

Lilly has a PiE Governance Committee that sets strategic direction related to PiE and provides long-term oversight of Lilly’s Aquatic Exposure Guideline (LAEG) program designed to prevent harmful discharges of pharmaceuticals from manufacturing operations.

PiE Risk Assessment

We assess the pharmaceuticals in our medicines for potential environmental risks before introducing a medicine to market. To do this we use environmental risk assessment procedures that are aligned with several global regulatory agencies.

We assess the environmental risk posed by patient use of our medicines as part of the approval process for new medicines in the U.S. and Europe.

As a part of the LAEG, we also assess the environmental risk posed by the manufacturing of our medicines. The results drive appropriate treatment and containment strategies at our manufacturing sites to protect aquatic species in downstream surface waters and the communities and wildlife using these waters. The LAEG program has been in place for more than three decades at Lilly facilities, and we have also implemented LAEG assessments at applicable contract manufacturers across our supply chain.

Collaborations and Partnerships for Understanding and Mitigating PiE

We continue to partner with industry, academia and governments to improve both our understanding of and response to PiE. Lilly scientists and technical experts have been engaged in the following efforts:

• Collaborating on Novel PiE Assessment – We are currently engaged in a second Innovative Medicines Initiative consortium project, the Prioritization and Risk Evaluation of Medicines in the EnviRonment (PREMIER). This six-year project aims to deliver a novel assessment system for characterizing the environmental risks of pharmaceuticals while addressing several of the actions stated in the EU’s published Strategic Approach to PiE. As part of this project, we are collecting environmental data on prioritized legacy pharmaceuticals and contributing to the evaluation of the relationship of external and internal concentrations of pharmaceuticals in fish.

• Assessing the potential for designing environmentally biodegradable pharmaceuticals – We participate in the American Chemical Society’s Green Chemistry Institute Pharmaceutical Roundtable, a consortium of companies that is considering pharmaceuticals' environmental biodegradation potential.

• Advancing the Science of PiE – We continue to support efforts to advance PiE-related research by authoring papers, serving as journal reviewers, presenting at conferences and workshops and participating in meetings concerning risks related to pharmaceutical residues in water.

• Partnering on Take-Back Programs – In collaboration with regulators and other pharmaceutical companies, we are key partners in take-back programs for unused medicines such as MedsDisposal in Europe and Med-Project in the U.S.

• Engaging in Industry Initiatives – We participate in several industry PiE initiatives, such as Eco-Pharmaco-Stewardship, a multi-faceted program developed with several pharmaceutical trade organizations (European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), Association of the European Self-Medication Industry (AEGSP), Medicines for Europe (MFE)).

• Developing PiE Tools and Resources – We are also actively engaged in creating tools and resources to share with industry peers, including in-person and online training on risk-based approaches to managing effluents, a user-friendly tool to calculate discharge limits for pharmaceuticals, an industry guidance document on controlling pharmaceutical discharge and audit protocols to evaluate PiE supply chain risks.

Our water stewardship work spans how we use water in manufacturing, how we manage sites in water-stressed regions and how we prevent pharmaceuticals from entering the environment. The three goals reported below sit at the center of that work: water management plans for water-stressed sites, PNEC compliance at our own manufacturing sites and controls at our contract manufacturers. In 2025, we maintained 100% conformance with PNEC limits across our operations, have established water management plans at all sites in water-stressed geographies, and continue to make progress on site-specific water management plans.

Goal: Establish and implement water management plans for Lilly sites in water-stressed areas

100% of our manufacturing sites located in water-stressed areas have developed water stress management plans. Each water stress management plan includes localized targets and initiatives with specific delivery dates related to reducing water stress where these sites operate. In 2025, each site progressed its water management plans.

Goal: Ensure 100% of Lilly sites meet predicted no-effect concentrations (PNEC) for Pharmaceuticals in the Environment

In 2025, 100% of Lilly manufacturing sites met pharmaceutical PNEC values established by the Lilly Aquatic Exposure Guideline (LAEG) program. Furthermore, 100% of our manufacturing sites achieved wastewater discharges that were less than 10% of PNEC-based limits established for pharmaceuticals.

Goal: Implement appropriate controls with Lilly contract manufacturers to prevent discharge of pharmaceuticals in wastewater above applicable PNEC-based limits for PiE

Through the end of 2025, we completed assessments of 100% of our applicable contract manufacturers. All contract manufacturers were found to have appropriate controls in place to meet the established PNEC-based limits.

Related Topics

• Climate

• Waste

• Product Stewardship

• HSE Governance

• Biodiversity

• Patient Safety