Updated: September 21, 2026
At Bristol Myers Squibb, our mission is clear: to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that transform lives. But our responsibility doesn’t end when a therapy leaves our facility. Human health is connected to the health of our environment — and water is at the heart of both.
Our commitment to environmental sustainability includes a focused effort on water — aligning science with our responsibility to patients, communities and the planet. Through this lens, we’re enhancing the resilience of our operations, supporting global health equity and driving efficiency across our network.
To guide this work, we’ve adopted clear enterprise-wide ambitions:
- Reduce freshwater withdrawal by 20% by 2033
- Implement water stewardship programs across all operations by 2040
Our roadmaps include projects that will achieve freshwater reduction through decarbonization, optimization and reuse.
This commitment is not only about protecting a critical resource — it’s about safeguarding the patients, communities and ecosystems we serve around the world.
One drop forward: A water stewardship story
Manisha
I consider water as that miracle that we look. Life just doesn't stay near water. Life is water. It's one of those quiet systems that make medicines possible.
Water is not just a utility or a service. It's an ingredient that touches every aspect. It touches every formulation that we design. It touches every manufacturing process that we design. It is required and used in our sterile operations. And it also enables the ecosystem that surround our facilities. So for a pharmaceutical manufacturing operation, water is not just a backdrop.
It is actually the medium through which we make medicines more safe, effective and reliable.
Spencer
So our water usage is are primarily in our heating and cooling systems, which include our cooling towers as well as our boilers. And that goes beyond the things that you see on an everyday basis, which is sinks, irrigation. And a lot of the water usage is actually within our process itself.
Bristol-Myers Squibb goal is to reduce our fresh water usage by 20% by 2033.
Manisha
So when you have a number like that, it's not just a metric, it's a promise, because water is really deeply connected to reliability and quality with which we serve our patients.
Spencer
So we want to be good water stewards. And to do that, we had to look at our processes, our HVAC and all the different uses across the sites.
The three sites that are within watersheds catchments are New Brunswick, Lawrenceville, and San Diego. Lawrenceville and New Brunswick are very similar in terms of why they're waterstressed, increasing population growth, and competition for that same supply, which is dwindling. Within San Diego. They actually have a different problem where they actually have to import almost all of their potable water from a river outside the vicinity.
When we're looking at our water reduction roadmap, they're built around three levers optimization, decarbonization and reuse. Optimization being focused on our utilities and trying to optimize the water use within those. The second being decarbonization, where we actually do a lot of heat recovery in order to take the loads off the cooling towers, as well as use less water for steam generation within our boilers and other utilities.
And then the final being the reuse, where we actually try to match water quality with the use for those things that don't necessarily require potable water use. We're really focused on trying to decouple our water usage from climate related events. And by doing that, we actually make our sites more resilient because we're not so dependent on potable water supplies. We'll actually have almost a secondary water supply with the reuse supply that can provide continuity and business resiliency in the short term. If we do have interruption in our public or potable water supply.
Manisha
When you look at BMS sites, the older sites are being adapted, the modern sites are being optimized, and newer sites that are yet to be designed for the future that we do not even know, you're looking at a company such as BMS that is writing the autobiography of a water. And it's a connection between being proactive to being progressive, to being wise.
Spencer
It's been a lot of work, and to see it come to fruition is a massive milestone. Gives me a great sense of accomplishment.
Manisha
Water is that element that makes this most personal viscerally. So as corporations, as policymakers, as communities, it's the decisions that we all make today has impact on what we leave behind for the next generation. That's what we are doing at BMS, writing that next chapter with water inside that story.
Water sustains the ecosystems our supply chains depend on, powers our manufacturing and lab operations and supports the health and dignity of people in every community where we operate. It’s a core part of how we deliver medicines to patients in need today — and key to how we’ll ensure access tomorrow.
Yet around the globe, fresh water is increasingly under pressure. Severe weather events, population growth and pollution are accelerating stress in key watersheds. For BMS, these risks are not abstract — they have the potential to impact our ability to reliably deliver for patients, especially in regions already vulnerable to climate instability.
Our Water Stewardship Roadmap is designed to meet this challenge. By focusing mitigation, adaptation and resilience, we’re continuing to strengthen our operations while preparing for the possibilities of tomorrow. We’re implementing efficiencies, reusing water, investing in local watershed health and ensuring our systems are resilient — even in times of scarcity.
Beyond just relevant information about Bristol Myers Squibb's therapeutic areas and innovation, Our stories offer a window into the work our employees do every day for patients.
Our 20% freshwater reduction target by 2033 is powered by science-based strategies — decarbonization, optimization and reuse — applied across our network. In New Brunswick, NJ, we’re already leading innovative reuse projects that demonstrate what’s possible: reducing our impact, increasing efficiency and contributing to the resilience of our communities.
But for us, stewardship goes beyond metrics. We’re aligning to globally recognized frameworks while tailoring our work to local needs. Whether it’s co-developing watershed partnerships or integrating climate-related risk into our supply chain planning, our approach is grounded in operational excellence.
We know the path ahead isn’t easy. But we choose optimism. We choose action. We choose to lead.
These commitments are more than milestones — they are a reflection of our business values to deliver for patients. We believe every drop of water represents a chance to protect a patient, empower a community and deliver on our promise of health equity and environmental care.
At Bristol Myers Squibb, we don’t treat sustainability as optional. It’s core to our resilience and how we deliver on our promise of providing life-saving therapies, wherever and whenever they’re needed.
Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company whose mission is to discover, develop and deliver innovative medicines that help patients prevail over serious diseases. As global citizens, we work sustainably and responsibly to create a positive impact in the communities where we live and work.