Medtronic has cut its energy consumption and CO2 emissions (normalized to revenue) by about 12 percent in fiscal year 2009, according to the company’s 2010 Corporate Citizenship report . In 2008, Medtronic announced a five-year plan to reduce volatile organic compound (VOC) air emissions, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and water use 10 percent by 2013. The company also said it would reduce regulated and non-regulated waste by five percent. Here’s how the company progressed on those goals. Medtronic generated approximately 12,200 metric tonnes of non-regulated solid waste in fiscal year 2010, which accounted for approximately 90 percent of the company’s total waste generation. This represents a 10 percent decrease normalized to revenue compared to fiscal year 2009. The company attributes this decrease to company-wide education efforts. The medical company also generated approximately 1,400 metric tonnes of regulated waste in fiscal year 2010. This includes waste that is produced primarily by manufacturing facilities, such as scrap metal and solvents. This represents a 13 percent decrease normalized to revenue compared to fiscal year 2009 thanks to improvements in manufacturing processes as well as more efficient use of materials. Excluding construction and demolition debris, Medtronic recycled nearly 7,000 metric tonnes of waste materials or 52 percent of its total waste generation (both regulated and non-regulated solid waste) in fiscal year 2010, normalized to revenue, compared to 49 percent in fiscal year 2009. The improvement is primarily due to expanded recycling programs within plants and at individual workspaces, which promote the recycling of manufacturing materials, plastics, metals, beverage containers, fiber (printing paper, newspaper, cardboard, etc.), ink cartridges, and batteries. In fiscal year 2010, Medtronic generated 134 metric tonnes of VOC air emissions. This represents a 14 percent decrease from fiscal year 2009, normalized to revenue. Medtronic used approximately 481,000 megawatt-hours of energy (electricity, natural gas and fuel oil) in fiscal year 2010. This resulted in corresponding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of approximately 225,000 metric tonnes carbon dioxide (CO2e). Normalized to revenue, the company’s rates of energy consumption and CO2 emissions were approximately 12 percent less than in fiscal year 2009. Some of the company’s energy conservation measures include energy efficient lighting and ventilation systems and automated building controls. Medtronic used approximately 1.2 million cubic meters of water in fiscal year 2010, representing more than a 10 percent reduction compared to fiscal year 2009, normalized to revenue. In the area of manufacturing, the company’s Design for Reliability and Manufacturability program identifies ways to reduce manufacturing waste by analyzing and enhancing aspects related to mass production, such as materials selection and assembly. The company also is strengthening the sustainability of its supply base by joining the Electronics Industry Citizenship Coalition in May. Medtronic is also working to decrease shipments and related transportation, energy use and emissions by consolidating its domestic shipping through three U.S. centers located close to freight industry hubs. Medtronic Operations also launched GreenBox shipping, a sustainable thermal management packaging system for shipping chemicals and pharmaceuticals. These packaging products can be reused and are biodegradable. Medtronic was selected as one of the Global Green 100 companies by the Uptime Institute in 2009. The list highlights significant energy efficiency achievements of global corporations operating major data centers. The company was also chosen as one of the health-care leaders in Newsweek’s inaugural environmental rankings of America’s 500 largest corporations last year.
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Medtronic Corporate Citizenship Report: Energy Use, CO2 Emissions Down 12%
Image Courtesy of R. Drake, via Wikipedia Howard Weamer first visited Yosemite National Park in 1971 to do research for his doctoral thesis, on John Muir . In 1974, the Yosemite Association hired its first winter hut keeper to staff the Ostrander Ski Hut in the park’s backcountry. We… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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"Winters of My Life" – The Story of a Man Who’s Spent the Last 35 Winters at Yosemite (Video)
Photo via Ingridtaylar Guest Post by Dr. Greg Stone, Senior Vice President for Marine Conservation and Chief Ocean Scientist, Conservation International Twenty years ago when I had the opportunity to dive to 18,000 feet in the Japanese research submersible, Shinkai 6500 in the Sea of Japan I fantasized about the amazing animals our team might see deep on the ocean floor: rat-tails, deep sea sharks, and octopi. But when we reached the sea bottom, it was littered with trash that included food bags, soda cans, empty boxes, and even a broken toy doll. I shudder to imagi… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Three Steps to Cure Our Ailing Ocean
Photo via Deutsche Welle In its new online short-film documentary series Global Ideas, Germany-based news broadcaster Deutsche Welle draws attention to smart sustainability projects all over the world: island conservation in Micronesia, reforestation in Tanzania, green electricity in Spain, energy-efficient stoves in Peru (like the one above), and more. The quick clips, most less than 10-minutes long, show off the future of green technology and its effect on local communities — and reach a wide audience. … Read the full story on TreeHugger
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11 Potentially World-changing Projects Tackling Climate Change (Slideshow)
I’ve been wondering recently whether we’ll see the worst of the BP gulf oil spill at all; whether the combined use of toxic chemical dispersants and media corralling would prevent the public from ever fully grasping the extent of the disaster. While those principles are still very much in play, it looks like we will: thick oil is now unfortunately hitting an estimated 70 miles of Louisiana shoreline, coating threatened brown pelicans and other birds. And one intrepid video crew from ABC just dove headfirst into the spill to show … Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Must-See Video Shows BP Gulf Spill & Toxic Dispersants Underwater
Here is an idea that rocks: Students at the University of Karlsruhe have developed Rollit, a housing design where spaces serve different functions depending on how it is rolled. For example, you can roll between having a bed on the ceiling or a desk. … Read the full story on TreeHugger
Image credit: goosmurf /Flickr Earthworms, it has long been thought, benefit plants by recycling nutrients—leading to richer soil for the plants to grown in. New research, however, has uncovered some unexpected—and potentially unsettling—worm behavior. Instead of simply rejuvenating the soil, these studies have found, earthworms actually hunt for young plants and seeds—devouring them before they have a chance to poke through the surface…. Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Invasive Worms Eat Baby Plants
Image: AP Photo/seaphotos.com, David Hall, HO/a> via HuffPo This frogfish, walking on its fins, is one of the Arizona State University International Institute for Species Exploration “Top Ten New Species” for 2010. Each creature on the list distinguished by some fascinating feature or tale, these ten specimens of mankind’s new knowledge of the world around us make a fascinating exploration of diversity of the species. See… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Top Ten New Species 2010 Include Psychedelic Frogfish and Dracula Minnow (Slideshow)
Image credit: avlxyz /Flickr Japanese conservationists have sent 13 captive-bred hawksbill turtles to a Singapore aquarium for fitness testing. The goal, after a period in the aquarium, is to release the turtles into the wild. However, because the endangered species of sea turtles faces so many threats in the open ocean, managers must ensure they have developed the strength and skill necessary for survival…. Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Endangered Sea Turtles Sent to Singapore for Fitness Testing
“It is difficult to realize how great a part of all that is cheerful and delightful in the recollections of our own life is associated with trees.” – Wilson Flagg, Naturalist There’s a sadly familiar pattern that comes with environmental news stories about the world’s great forests. “Here’s why they’re too precious to squander. Here’s why we’re squandering them. Go see them while you still can.” But take heart – because on Thursday, the trees won . The boreal forest of Canada is a natural marvel on a staggering scale. Covering well over half of the entire country and storing twice as much carbon per acre as tropical forests , it’s – you guessed it – way too precious an environmental resource for us to squander. Yet that’s exactly what some people have been trying to do – with oil and gas exploitation, hydroelectric development and loosely regulated logging galore. Thankfully, these efforts have to date been too puny to make much of a dent in this 1.3-billion acre behemoth. Given time, this story might change for the worse. For any unscrupulous developers casting an avaricious eye over all this natural wealth – time may have just have ran out. On Thursday, members of the Forest Products Association of Canada and nine environmental organizations, including ForestEthics and Greenpeace, announced their backing for the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement . First up – the suspension of 29 million hectares of logging to protect caribou habitats (and as a trade-off, environmental groups are dropping a number of “Do Not Buy” campaigns.) So yes, go see the stunningly beautiful boreal forests of Canada. But don’t feel in any great hurry. Because thankfully, they’ll still be here tomorrow. Images: pentaboxes and axiepics .
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The Boreal Forest of Canada Gets a Second Chance at Life