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Sustainability Goals and Indicators
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Conserving Energy and Water to Protect the Global EnvironmentContextEnergy and water are two of the most critical environmental issues facing the world today. Our long-term ability to operate, and provide patients with the medicines they need, is at significant risk without reliable sources of energy and clean water. We have therefore identified these as the most material environmental issues for our company. Our dependence on energy and its impact on global climate change is a concern for all industries, including the health care sector. Energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, from the burning of fossil fuels, are a significant source of greenhouse gases. Rising concentrations of greenhouse gases generally produce an increase in the average temperature of the Earth, which in turn contributes to climate change. By reducing CO2 emissions, we hope to help reduce the negative impacts of climate change. Clean water is essential to life. Along with all industries, we are wrestling with ways to protect the quality and availability of water, especially in areas of scarcity. For our industry in particular, there is increasing attention and research focused on the effects of pharmaceuticals in the environment through patient use. Energy Use and Global Climate ChangeGoals and Performance MetricsBristol-Myers Squibb’s greenhouse gas emissions are mostly the result of our energy use. We have adopted energy use and greenhouse gas emission goals as part of our Sustainability 2010 Goals:
We report greenhouse gas emissions in the form of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents. This includes direct CO2 from fuels used and other greenhouse gases from our operations, indirect CO2 from purchased electricity, on-site waste treatment, and other sources such as fermentation. From 2001 to 2007, we reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 21 percent, when normalized by sales. This exceeds our reduction target under our 2010 Sustainability Goals. We will continue to strive to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. Bristol-Myers Squibb leases vehicles in the United States and Canada; the estimated annual CO2 emissions from these vehicles for 2007 were 40 million kilograms. This is roughly 4 percent of the CO2 associated with our facilities worldwide (either directly released or resulting from the generation of electricity purchased and used by us). Data from 50 countries tracked by our corporate travel service indicate that company employees flew a total of 307 million air miles in 2007, representing approximately 54 million kilograms of annual CO2 emissions, or 5 percent of our facilities’ global CO2 emissions.
Programs and InitiativesWe will continue to strive to meet our reduction targets, and our major sites have identified opportunities to support the corporate 10 percent reduction goal. As we continue efforts to maintain or exceed this performance for the coming years, we are identifying additional opportunities for improvement, such as reducing our reliance on fuel oil and diesel fuel at our manufacturing facilities. We continue to implement cost-effective energy conservation projects, and have started to make use of new or emerging technologies. For example, in late 2004 we installed a high-tech solar photovoltaic system at the company’s on-site child development center for employee children in Hopewell, New Jersey. During its first two years of operation, this renewable energy system generated over 130,000 kilowatt hours of electricity and reduced greenhouse gas emissions by over 43 metric tons. We operate a combined heat and power (CHP) plant at our pharmaceutical research and development facility in Wallingford, Connecticut, which consists of a 4.8-megawatt combustion turbine that uses clean-burning natural gas and a heat recovery system (waste heat boiler). The efficiency of the CHP system is approximately 72 percent, as compared to an estimated 32 percent efficiency for the entire U.S. electric system. Considering the amount of electric and steam energy that the Wallingford facility draws from its CHP plant and comparing this with the alternative (buying power from the New England power pool and generating steam through a typical boiler), the CHP system has reduced site greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 20 percent, or roughly 5,500 metric tons per year. At our Mead Johnson Nutritionals facility in Evansville, Indiana, we are planning a bio-methane gas-to-energy project, which will enable the site to directly use landfill gas from a landfill located six miles away. The project is expected to result in lower air emissions, including CO2 emission reductions of more than 20,000 metric tons annually. The company also has several programs in place to reduce travel-related energy use. Videoconferencing is being used throughout Bristol-Myers Squibb to save time, costs, and the EHS impacts of traveling to attend company business meetings. We have videoconferencing facilities in 23 countries. By using these videoconferencing capabilities, our employees are conserving energy and reducing pollution. We estimate that we avoided several million air kilometers and hundreds of thousands of automobile kilometers annually by using videoconferencing. Bristol-Myers Squibb also actively encourages the use of electronic meetings via our intranet as a means for reducing the impacts of travel. Our company also participates in the Voluntary Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Program, required by Section 1605(b) of the U.S. Energy Policy Act of 1992. The 1605(b) greenhouse gas registry records the results of voluntary measures by corporations, government agencies, and others organizations to reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions or sequester carbon. In addition, we voluntarily disclose information to the Carbon Disclosure Project. In 2007, the CDP – representing more than 200 institutional investors – requested information on corporate risks and opportunities associated with climate change from more than 2,000 companies globally, including the world’s 500 largest publicly-owned companies. The company responses are available on the CDP website. Water UseGoals and Performance MetricsThe company continues to focus on reducing our water use around the world and striving to make sure our wastewater effluent does not negatively impact the quality of water available for others. We have established two Sustainability 2010 Goals for water use:
Bristol-Myers Squibb’s water use decreased by 7 percent since 2001, and by 20 percent when normalized by sales. This reduction exceeds one of our Sustainability 2010 Goals: to reduce water use by 10 percent, normalized by sales. In countries where water resources are severely stressed, we have established a more stringent 2010 goal: in each of the water-stressed countries in which we have facilities, we will reduce water use by 20 percent from a 2002 baseline year. In 2007, the combined water use of our facilities in 4 of the 9 water stressed countries had achieved this 20 percent reduction goal.
Programs and InitiativesThe company participates in voluntary initiatives to reduce water use and other environmental impacts. For example, our facility in Wallingford, Connecticut, is a participant in the U.S. EPA and Department of Energy Labs 21 Program for improving laboratory water and energy efficiency, encouraging the use of renewable energy sources, and promoting environmental stewardship. Very low levels of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have been reported in surface water samples. The sources of these detected concentrations appear to be primarily related to the use of PPCPs by consumers. We recognize the importance of scientific research to better understand this issue. Bristol-Myers Squibb is partnering with other pharmaceutical companies through the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America to evaluate pharmaceuticals in the environment. |
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