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Toshiba Corporation (TOKYO:6502) today announced publication of the English edition of the Toshiba Group Environmental Report 2014. The report includes coverage of progress in execution of the Fifth Environmental Action Plan to achieve Toshiba Group’s Environmental Vision 2050. This comprehensive corporate vision envisages affluent lifestyles in harmony with the Earth as the ideal situation of mankind in 2050, and targets increasing Toshiba's eco-efficiency to 10 times the FY2000 level by FY2050 (Factor 10). The scope of the report ranges from introducing the characteristics of T-COMPASS^*1, Toshiba environmental management concept, to promotion of biodiversity, including ex-situ conservation^*2 of daylilies at Toshiba Group's Yokosuka Operations. The report also introduces Toshiba Group Global Environmental Action, environmental activities that took place around the world from April to June 5, World Environment Day; effective use of resources; and management of chemical substances.

The report can be downloaded from the Toshiba Environment website at: http://www.toshiba.co.jp/env/en/communication/report/index.htm  

The report has the following sections:

1. Vision and Strategies

This section includes a message from the CEO; Toshiba Group Global Environmental Action initiatives, including “TOSHIBA BATON,” established to form links between activities at different sites around the world by “passing a baton” symbolizing environmental action project on websites and at ceremonies; the reason for introducing “T-COMPASS,” and presenting its footprint with original radar charts; achievements in conservation of biodiversity; realization of “Environmental Vision 2050”; strategies towards the establishment of a position as the world’s foremost eco-company; a report on progress made under the Fifth Environmental Action Plan; and an overview of environmental impacts.

2. Greening of Products

Excellent ECPs^*3 bring benefits to the consumer and the environment. This section of the report looks at how Toshiba Group is expanding their creation, and at the products that won certification as “Excellent ECP” in FY2013. The reviews focus on mitigation of climate change by products and services; efficient use of resources; and management of chemical substances. The section also features the company’s efforts to minimize the environmental impact of healthcare business products, one of Toshiba’s three pillars of business, throughout their lifecycles.

3. Greening by Technology

Under the Fifth Environmental Action Plan, Toshiba Group is seeking to increase sales of energy-related products to 1.9 trillion yen and to reduce CO₂ emissions by 490 million tons in FY2015. This section focuses on Toshiba's contribution to a stable power supply and mitigation of climate change through low-carbon energy supply technology. The section introduces thermal power generation systems, including development of a new system that cuts the emission of CO₂ into the atmosphere, a plan to commercialize carbon capture technology, and nuclear power as a main energy source; hydroelectric power, geothermal power, wind power, and photovoltaic power generation as renewable energy; and power transmission and distribution technologies, including use of SCiB™ rechargeable batteries in diverse solutions to store surplus energy from renewable energy sources to secure stable power supply, and smart meters.

4. Greening of Process

Toshiba’s goal in manufacturing is to achieve the world’s lowest level of environmental impacts in its production processes. Measures include mitigation of climate change; efficient use of resources; management of chemicals; responding to environmental risks; and recycling end-of-life products. This section also introduces visualization of greenhouse gas emissions in the supply chain for all categories of product, in line with the Scope 3 standard; analysis of production equipment and its operation at production sites; development of improvement activities, and the process for making energy-saving diagnoses at production sites after improvement measures are taken.

5. Green Management

Toshiba Group aims to be the most environmentally conscious company in the world, and this section looks at basic activities toward that, including the Group’s environmental management structure; environmental education to develop human resources; environmental audits; environmental accounting; formation of partnerships; and third-party evaluations.

Notes:
*1 T-COMPASS defines four domains for the group's environmental contributions and represents these domains as the symbols of the four cardinal compass points. The letters of the four cardinal points—north, south, east and west—represent environmental issues Toshiba Group is addressing: Natural resources (Minimizing the amount of natural resources consumed) ; Substances (Minimizing the risks involved in chemical substances) ; Energy (Responding to climate change and energy issues) ; and Water (Minimizing the amount of water resources consumed) .
*2 Ex-situ conservation is the re-location of endangered or rare species from their natural habitat to protected areas equipped for their protection and preservation, and return them to their natural habitat. It is an essential alternative strategy when in situ conservation is inadequate.
*3 Environmentally Conscious Products. An ECP is a product that offers reduced environmental impacts throughout its lifecycle, including procurement, manufacturing, intended use, and disposal. Excellent ECP is Toshiba's term for products that have been found to meet the industry's highest level of environmental performance at the time of their announcement.