ESB Annual Report 2012 - (Page 36)

36 ESB Annual Report 2012 - Energy for connecting you SUSTAINABILITY CHARTER To underpin our commitment to becoming exemplary in sustainability, ESB developed and adopted a Sustainability Charter in 2008. CHARTER COMMITMENT Reduce CO2 PROGRESS IN 2011 emissions from generation by 30% by 2012; 50% by 2020 and become carbon neutral by 2035 (based on 2005 baseline) Adopting a target of a 30% reduction in carbon emissions from our internal business activities by 2012, in addition to our targets for the performance of Network and Generation assets Committing to leadership in sustainability through partnership at all levels in the organisation Reducing our impact on the environment to a practicable minimum by the prevention of pollution, reduction of waste and the efficient use of energy, water and other resources Identification and dissemination of best practice in sustainability throughout ESB, including our international operations Integrating sustainability considerations into our procurement activities as well as in our investment and expenditure decisions Actively and effectively communicating and involving staff and contractors in identifying and implementing performance improvements Adopting appropriate management structures, management systems and targets Assessing the impact of our operations on biodiversity and implementing opportunities for enhancement Openly reporting on our environmental performance in a verifiable way We have achieved our 2011 goal of reducing emissions by 30% and we are well on our way to achieving our 2020 target. At the end of 2011 ESB’s internal carbon footprint has been reduced by 25% against the baseline set in 2006. In 2011, staff surveys show an ongoing strong commitment to sustainability (over 90% of staff support the Sustainability Programme). In 2011 remote electronic water metering was installed in all of our major locations. In 2011 we extended our Sustainability Awards Scheme to our international operations and introduced bi-monthly awards. Our overall sustainability award for 2011 was won by our team in Rousch, Pakistan. Our procurement policy continues to require that procurement specifications should take into account best-practice environmental and sustainability standards. In the 2011 staff survey, 74% of staff confirmed that they are adequately informed how to be sustainable at work and 71% reported improvements in sustainability in the past year. Sustainability continues to be a key target for all ESB directors and business units. A new Biodiversity Policy was approved in 2011; the plans will be managed through our Environmental Management Systems (EMS) process. Our 2011 Sustainability Report was aligned to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). In October 2011 ESB was one of 4 companies in Ireland to be accredited to the new Business Working Responsibly Standard (BWR). PROGRESS IN 2012 As part of the new ESB Corporate Strategy to 2025, ESB has committed to achieve a net-carbon neutral portfolio across our generation activities by 2050 in line with other European utilities. At the end of 2012 ESB’s internal carbon footprint has reduced by 33% against the 2006 baseline. We will continue to reduce our carbon footprint as part of our new Sustainability Strategy. ESB continues to use central and local partnership groups to further embed sustainability throughout the company supported by a network of sustainability champions with leadership and support from directors and senior managers in each business. Formal accreditation of the environmental management system in Electric Ireland and a number of additional wind farms to the ISO 14001 standard was achieved. In 2012 we launched our Sustainable Innovations web-site which enables staff to share innovative sustainable ideas with other staff in other locations across ESB. Over 640 Sustainable Innovations were recorded in 2012 spread across 60 locations. We undertook a further review of the impact of our procurement activities (including fuel) focussing in particular on the social and societal impact. Following this review ESB has proposed a revised Corporate Procurement Policy which includes key Corporate Social Responsibility principles in line with SA8000 social certification standard for industry. The 2012 Sustainability Awards were selected from a shortlist of over 640 Sustainable Innovations which were proposed by staff across over 60 ESB locations in Ireland and overseas. As part of the review of the next phase of the Sustainability Strategy, a series of workshops were held with staff to canvas views, opinions and feedback on our work to date and on the next phase of our sustainability journey. As part of the launch of the new Corporate Strategy in 2012, work began on a new Sustainability Strategy which will be rolled out in 2013. The new Biodiversity Policy was launched in 2012 and communicated to all parts of ESB for inclusion within business unit EMS. Each business area in ESB has an Environmental Management System (EMS) which ensures the management of environmental performance in a verifiable way. In 2012, Electric Ireland and a number of operational windfarms were the latest businesses to certify their EMS to the ISO 14001 standard.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ESB Annual Report 2012

ESB Annual Report 2012
Contents
Business Overview
Chairman’s Statement
Chief Executive Review
Our Strategy and Business Model
Operating and Financial Review
Operating Environment
Finance Review
Business Unit Sections: ESB Generation and Wholesale Markets
ESB Networks
NIE
Electric Ireland
Corporate Social Responsibility
Introduction from Executive Director, People and Sustainability
Sustainability Charter
Energy Usage 2012
ESB Innovation
Equality and Diversity
Our People
Our Community
Corporate Governance
Chairman’s Corporate Governance Statement
The Board
Executive Team
Board Members’ Report
Risk Management Report
Statement of Board Members’ Responsibilities
Independant auditor’s report to the stockholders of Electricity Supply Board (ESB)
Statement of Accounting Policies
Financial statements
Prompt Payments Act

ESB Annual Report 2012

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