Environmental Indicators
| Management Approach | We constantly look for ways to improve and grow our company while reducing our impact on the environment. | |
| INDICATOR | TOPIC | RESPONSE |
|---|---|---|
| Materials | ||
| EN1 | Weight or volume of materials | Most high volume materials are purchased by length, reel, pole, transformer, case, truckload or other measure with no consistent relationship to weight or volume. See EN3 for fuel quantities. |
| EN2 | Materials used that are recycled content | It is not possible to precisely determine how much of the material we use to provide electric and natural gas service comes from recycled sources. A portion of steel, aluminum, other metals and plastics may come from recycled sources, and we actively pursue recycling of these materials when their useful life has been reached. Nearly all fuel used is virgin material, because sufficient volumes of recycled fuels are not available. |
| Energy | ||
| EN3 | Direct fossil fuel consumption for electric generation | See the Fuels Consumed for U.S. Electric Generation table. See EN 29 for vehicle fuel consumption. |
| EN4 | Indirect energy consumption | We do not centrally track these data. Indirect energy consumption is very small relative to direct energy consumption from fuels to generate electricity. |
| EN5 | Energy saved due to conservation and energy efficiency efforts | In our Duke Energy Sustainability Plan and Progress at a Glance we have a goal to help our customers reduce energy consumption by 2,500 gigawatt-hours (GWh) and peak demand by 2,100 megawatts (MW) by 2013. Click reveal in the Innovative Products and Services section of the Plan for an update. We also have a goal to reduce electricity consumption at 13 of our largest commercial buildings 10 percent by 2012 compared to the 2005 through 2007 average. We are on track to meet this goal. See U.S. Electricity Consumed in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN6 | Providing energy efficiency products and services |
Energy efficiency programs vary by state and we provide information for each state on our website. Also see Expanding our energy efficiency offerings in our Sustainability Report. |
| EN7 | Reducing indirect energy consumption | Teleconferences, videoconferences, online meetings and other travel-reducing measures are widely used. Duke Energy also subsidizes bus passes to encourage use of mass transit in our main office cities. We currently do not have a reliable way to quantify energy saved through these programs. |
| Water | ||
| Commentary on Water Management | See Water: A limited resource in our Sustainability Report for a discussion of our collaborative approach to water and watershed management. | |
| EN8 | Water withdrawal | See Water Withdrawn and Consumed in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN9 | Water sources and habitats affected by withdrawals | Water for various aspects of electric generation is drawn from underground and surface sources. Large volume withdrawals are regulated by state or federal permit conditions that are designed to prevent adverse impacts on aquatic species and communities. |
| EN10 | Water recycled or reused | We do not record the volume of water recycled through our closed-loop cooling systems. |
| Biodiversity | ||
| EN11 | Land in and adjacent to protected areas and areas of high biological diversity value | We help protect the biological diversity of lands we own or manage. Specific permits and licenses regulate our operations in some of these areas. See several examples. |
| EN12 | Impacts on high biodiversity value areas, including transmission line corridors | Environmental analyses performed during planning stages of new facilities are used to identify potential areas of high biodiversity value. If such areas are found, permit conditions are designed to prevent or minimize impacts. |
| EN13 | Habitats protected or restored | We manage and protect various habitats surrounding our facilities and along our rights-of-way. |
| EN14 | Programs to manage biodiversity | Duke Energy is a strong partner with wildlife and biodiversity management organizations. We also provide examples of how we are Restoring Forests in Brazil and protecting bats in recent sustainability reports. |
| EN15 | Special species habitats | At times, species of special concern to state and/or federal agencies are found on company land. We work closely with agency personnel to protect these species. See EN14. |
| Emissions, Effluents, and Waste | ||
| EN16 | Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions | See Emissions from Generation and our response to the Carbon Disclosure Project. |
| EN17 | Other relevant indirect GHG emissions | We do not track or report our indirect emissions. They are a very small percentage relative to our direct emissions. |
| EN18 | Initiatives to reduce GHG emissions, and reductions achieved | See Letter from the Chairman in our Sustainability Report. See also Climate change update. |
| EN19 | Ozone depleting emissions, by weight | We do not centrally track these data. Each facility is responsible for its own compliance with recordkeeping requirements. |
| EN20 | NOx, SO2, & other significant air emissions by type and weight | See the Emissions from Generation and U.S. Toxic Release Inventory tables in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN21 | Total water discharges | Given our combinations of once-through cooling systems, recirculating systems and other water discharges, we do not record a total quantity. |
| EN22 | Total weight of waste by type and disposal method | See the Waste table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN23 | Total number and volume of significant spills | See the Reportable Oil Spills table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN24 | Transported hazardous waste | See the Waste table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| EN25 | Water discharge impacts | Discharges are to rivers and lakes by regulatory permits. Those permits and our operating practices are designed to protect the environment and aquatic species. |
| Products and Services | ||
| EN26 | Environmental impact mitigation | We offer a number of programs to help customers be more energy efficient and we also protect sensitive habitats on our property. |
| EN27 | Percentage of product that is recycled | Electricity and natural gas cannot be recycled in the usual sense. See the Waste table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| Compliance | ||
| EN28 | Incidents and fines for environmental non-compliance | See the Environmental Regulatory Citations table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| Transport | ||
| EN29 | Transportation impacts for logistical purposes | See the U.S. On-road and Off-road Vehicle Fleet Emissions and Fuel Consumed table in the Environmental Performance Metrics section of our Sustainability Report. |
| Overall | ||
| EN30 | Environmental protection expenditures | We do not centrally track this broad range of expenditures. However we have spent approximately $5 billion over the last decade to significantly reduce sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emissions from our existing coal fleet, improving air quality. We have invested more than $2.5 billion in our commercial renewable business over the past five years. By the end of 2012, we expect to have more than 1,800 megawatts of commercial wind and solar power in operation. And we are making substantial investments in smart grid and cleaner power plant technologies. See our Sustainability Report for more information. |
