Toshiba Group's business activities are deeply interrelated with the existence of natural capital, as we have sites located in areas with high water risks and sites which use and emit large volumes of water and chemical substances during production. Therefore, we have identified "Consideration of ecosystems" as one of our material issues and conduct activities that contribute to realizing a "nature positive world,"*1 helping create a society in which people live in harmony with nature and continue to enjoy the blessings of the ecosystems under Environmental Future Vision 2050.
*1 To halt and reverse biodiversity loss to put nature back on the path to recovery.
Governance
Toshiba Group has established an environmental management structure and is promoting group-wide initiatives for "Consideration of ecosystems." Items of the Environmental Action Plan and priority measures for conservation of biodiversity and proper management of water resources and chemical substances are formulated and progress is checked at Toshiba Group Environmental Management Committee, and the content is reported to Sustainability Strategy Committee and Board of Directors.
Strategy
Toshiba Group aims to help conserve ecosystems around the world by providing its products, technologies, and solutions. In addition, the Group will continuously promote conservation of biodiversity and proper management of water resources and chemical substances that we have promoted in the Environmental Action Plan for the long term as company-wide common activities.
Furthermore, to evaluate both the "impact of nature on our business activities" and "impact of our business activities on nature" from the perspective of "double materiality," we are assessing the dependencies and impacts of our business activities on nature based on the LEAP approach*2, identifying nature-related risks and opportunities that may arise in the future, and considering countermeasures, by referring to the final recommendations issued by the Task Force on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) in September 2023.
*2 A comprehensive approach to assessing nature-related issues such as points of contact with nature, dependencies on nature, impacts, risks, and opportunities consisting of four steps of Locate, Evaluate, Assess, and Prepare that are recommended by the TNFD.
(1) Assessing the dependencies and impacts on nature capital
<Step 1: Scoping>
Among business domains indicated in the business strategy of our mid-term business plan, we included approximately 60 production sites (directly operated) in and outside Japan in the following business domains. This assessment excludes the Digital Solutions Domain, which does not have production sites.
<Target>
- Energy Systems & Solutions Business
- Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Business
- Building Solutions Business
- Electronic Devices & Storage Solutions Business
- Retail & Printing Solutions Business
- Other (Battery Business, etc.)
<Step 2: Assessing / creating heat maps>
To clarify the dependencies and impacts of businesses at each production site, we conducted scoring using ENCORE*3, a tool recommended for use in the TNFD framework to analyze whether and to what extent business activities affect ecosystems, and created heat maps shown in Tables 1 and 2.
In the assessment, we classified businesses owned by production sites into categories based on the International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) and assessed their dependencies and impacts on nature on three levels (high, medium, and low). For some results, we made a relative evaluation within Toshiba Group based on the actual activities of each business and made corrections.
*3 A tool for assessing exposure to nature-related risks and understand dependencies and impacts on nature. Assessment is conducted using the latest database updated in July 2024. ENCORE. (UN Environment Programme (UNEP))
Heat map related to "dependencies" (Table 1)
Heat map related to "impacts" (Table 2)
Based on the results, we recognized again that our production sites are "dependent" on "provisioning services" such as water supply and "regulating and maintenance services" such as solid waste remediation, dilution by atmosphere and ecosystems, and rainfall pattern regulation, and that there are potential "impacts" on the state of nature, such as use of water resources at factories, emissions of greenhouse gas (GHG) and non-GHG air pollutants, emissions of toxic pollutants to soil and water, generation and release of waste, and noise disturbances.
(2) Extracting priority sites
Then, for items with a high degree of "dependencies" or "impacts" identified in the assessment in (1), we assessed the locations of activities (sites' addresses) using relevant tools and indicators, and extracted priority sites based on the business scale and relevant environmental data. For the assessment, we evaluated the common indicators (IBAT*4, Biodiversity Risk Filter*5), which indicate the state of nature and biodiversity of the activity locations, and individual indicators of each item (Aqueduct*6, Biodiversity Risk Filter, Water Risk Filter*7), respectively, and used maximum values in both evaluations.
The following are the items and number of sites within Toshiba Group that should receive priority consideration with regard to "dependencies" and "impacts" on nature, as extracted through the assessment. Based on these results, we will work to organize future risks and opportunities according to the LEAP approach, and strive to discover new insights and set new indicators and targets in the future.
| Items | Number of sites that should receive priority consideration (priority sites) | Countries where the priority sites are located |
|---|---|---|
| Water supply | 2 sites | Japan |
| Solid waste remediation*8 | 3 sites | Japan, Thailand |
| Dilution by atmosphere and ecosystems*9 | 1 site | Japan |
| Rainfall pattern regulation*10 | 1 site | Japan |
| Items | Number of sites that should receive priority consideration (priority sites) | Countries where the priority sites are located |
|---|---|---|
| Water supply | 2 sites | Japan |
| Solid waste remediation*8 | 3 sites | Japan, Thailand |
| Dilution by atmosphere and ecosystems*9 | 1 site | Japan |
| Rainfall pattern regulation*10 | 1 site | Japan |
| Items | Number of sites that should receive priority consideration (priority sites) | Countries where the priority sites are located |
|---|---|---|
| Use of water resources | 4 sites | Japan, Thailand |
| Emissions of non-GHG air pollutants | 3 sites | Japan, U.S., China |
| Emissions of toxic pollutants to soil and water | 13 sites | Japan, U.S., China, India, Vietnam |
| Generation and release of solid waste | 2 sites | Japan |
| Items | Number of sites that should receive priority consideration (priority sites) | Countries where the priority sites are located |
|---|---|---|
| Use of water resources | 4 sites | Japan, Thailand |
| Emissions of non-GHG air pollutants | 3 sites | Japan, U.S., China |
| Emissions of toxic pollutants to soil and water | 13 sites | Japan, U.S., China, India, Vietnam |
| Generation and release of solid waste | 2 sites | Japan |
The above results indicate sites that were extracted as those that should receive priority consideration for possible future risks, and do not represent locations where risks currently occur. Toshiba Group is thoroughly implementing activities for risk reduction at its sites around the world, including Japan, such as setting and managing voluntary control standards to prevent pollution.
*4 A tool that provides specific information on biodiversity and critical habitats for each region. Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool (IBAT) (Link to an external site).
*5 A tool to identify and assess biodiversity risks for each region. WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter (Link to an external site).
*6 A tool to identify and assess global basin water risks. World Resources Institute (Link to an external site).
*7 A tool to identify and assess operational water risks in addition to global basin water risks. WWF Water Risk Filter (Link to an external site).
*8 The natural process of environmental pollution remediation by degrading, reducing, or detoxifying pollutants by microorganisms, plants, algae, etc.
*9 The process of diluting gas, liquid and solid waste generated by business activities with water (fresh water and salt water) and atmosphere.
*10 The effect of vegetation, especially forests, on maintaining rainfall patterns through evapotranspiration on a subcontinental scale.
Risk Management
For business risks that have significant impact on management—including risks related to ecosystems such as water and biodiversity—we clarify management decision criteria, permissible risk limits, and corporate policy on business withdrawal in making management decisions to achieve Toshiba Group's sustainable growth and increase corporate value. In addition, for each risk case, the Business Risk Review Committee conducts risk assessment, identifies the maximum risk, and establishes items for monitoring. Matters of particular importance are discussed at the Management Meeting. The Business Risk Review Committee meeting is held several times monthly as matters arise.
In addition, as Toshiba Group's production sites use water resources in their operations, we consider that addressing water risks such as water shortages is also an important issue for us. Therefore, from the perspective of the business continuity plan (BCP), we are working to strengthen management by conducting assessments and analyses of all production sites in and outside Japan (approximately 60 sites) and reflecting the results in risk reduction plans for those sites.
Metrics and Targets
We will consider setting targets based on the LEAP approach in the future.
Currently, we set targets for conservation of biodiversity, water resources, and chemical substances and manage the progress in the Toshiba Group Environmental Action Plan.