4th PBEC Environmental Award
Finalists
CLP Power Hong Kong, Ltd.
Hong Kong, China
 Project Name:
Powering into a Greener Environment: The Environmentally Friendly Substation and Transmission Circuit Project
Objective:
CLP Power’s transmission and distribution network transmits electricity generated by their three power stations and is comprised of over 8,000 km of overhead and underground cables, linking 194 primary and over 10,300 secondary substations. In order to keep up with the infrastructural demands of the coming decades, the CLP Power transmission and distribution system will be expanded through the “Environmentally Friendly Substation and Transmission Circuit Project,” which encompasses 52 environmentally friendly substations with 860 km of electricity circuits of 132kV or greater.
The results achieved thus far include having all cables laid by Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), a drilling technique used to install ducts under the seabed for laying cables. Four environmentally friendly 132kV substations were built, replacing over 9km of oil-filled cable with cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) cable. 1,000 square meters of mangrove were also planted and 260,000 trees and shrubs were planted along overhead power line routes.
Benefits:
Conservation benefits include the planting of mangroves, trees and shrubs in environmentally sensitive areas and the benefits of an environmentally friendly substation. The substation provides more efficient land use, reduction in noise emission, and conserves energy through non-mechanical cooling, minimal lighting, and low auxiliary electricity power requirements. Economic benefits also arise due to lower cable costs, reduced water pollution and land contamination, as well as low disposal costs from minimal waste generation.
Ebara Corporation
Japan
 Project Name:
Chemical Recycling in the Pressurized Two-stage Gasification and Slagging Combustion System
Objective:
The realization of a zero-emission society rests on two essential conditions: the development of new recycling technologies and the development of a society that supports them. The consensus among experts working in the waste gasification area has been that the dry feeding of wastes and the simultaneous treatment of liquid wastes present major environmental problems. Ebara has contributed to the development of technology aimed at achieving zero-emissions and surmounting the environmental problems related to the recycling process.
The Ebara process for the chemical recycling of plastic waste is a two-stage process in which a fluidized-bed low-temperature gasifier is directly coupled with a high-temperature revolving combustion and slagging furnace. The industrialized West, by contrast, typically has some systems converting the raw materials into liquids that are used as the feed for high-temperature gasification, or by using conventional solid bed or shaft furnaces. The present technology used in the Ebara process has resolved the difficulties of both dry-feed and simultaneous liquid treatment. Furthermore, Ebara has achieved cool gas efficiency roughly identical to that of the gasification of fossil fuels.
Benefits:
The project offers a number of environmental benefits, including saving fossil fuels by producing synthesis gas at a high pressure, CO2 emission reducing effects attributed to the Ebara process, and the reduction of dioxin emission levels. Moreover, the process is suitable for any type of plastic, and requires minimal processing of dry-feed for raw materials. The high sales/reuse potential of the incombustible metal parts contained in the plastic waste also makes for a considerable business benefit.
Fonterra Co-operative Group, Ltd.
New Zealand
 Project Name:
The Cleaner Production Project
Project Objective:
In order to reduce the negative effects dairy industry manufacturing sites have had on the environment, Fonterra has set forth a number of objectives. Among them are the reduction of water and chemical use, volume and organic loading of wastewater, the reduction of product losses, and initiatives to increase yields. In the 1970s, a team at the New Zealand Dairy Research Institute (NZDRI) was formed as part of an industry effort to determine yields for manufacturing dairy products and monitoring wastewater production. The loss monitoring techniques worked to increase the product yields, thereby reducing waste treatment costs and contamination of the environment.
Even while the number of dairy manufacturing sites in New Zealand decreases, the quantity of milk produced on the remaining sites continues to increase. This can be attributed to reduced wastewater production by requiring less processing and cleaning water. Air emissions of powder fines from drier stacks were also reduced, in part by the introduction of bag houses that recover particulates (fines) from the milk powder manufacturing process. The Cleaner Production Project is also continuing the development of on-line methods to measure the protein, milk fat and waste streams for further wastewater reduction.
Benefits:
Benefits of the project consist of the reduction of waste products resulting in increased product recovery and reduced emissions. The organic strength of wastewater requiring treatment is reduced and emissions of powder fines to the environment are nearly eliminated. The economic benefit of reducing losses from the plant and manufacturing process result in significant decreases in operating costs, including a financial benefit of close to US$40 million per year in terms of the present value of the milk products produced by the company.
MTR Corporation
Hong Kong, China
 Project Name:
The Tseung Kwan O Extension Project
Objective:
The Tseung Kwan O Extension Project extends the mass transit railway service in Hong Kong to Tseung Kwan O New Town, a population center in the eastern part of the territory where half a million people will reside. The MTR network design goal is to reduce risk to the environment, customers, and staff through conservation, and focus on improvement in productivity with the use of new technologies and management innovation. While providing commuters with convenient access and a safe, reliable means of transportation, the consumption of non-renewable resources and the generation of noise emissions to air and water will be minimized.
The project expects to conserve approximately 3 million square meters of land with no impact to any at-risk species. Five new stations with 12.5 km of track and a new depot have been added to the MTR network. By saving road space and providing an environmentally friendly transport solution, an improvement of 1-3 points on Hong Kong’s Air Pollution Index is anticipated. The project has a design life of 120 years and is scheduled for completion in mid-August 2002.
Benefits:
Through the integration of an environmentally friendly design and the promotion of greener construction practices, the network achieved new heights in conservation. In addition to a handicapped-friendly design, natural lighting was used to supplement artificial lighting, and platform screen doors that retain cooled air were installed to save an estimated 20 percent of air conditioning costs. Also, no ozone-depleting substances are used in electrical and mechanical systems, and segregating foul water from storm water in all tunnels at all stations will minimize water wastes generated by the railway.
NEC Corporation
Japan
 Project Name:
Internet Environmental Management System for Small/Mid-Sized Companies
Objective:
The Internet Environmental Management System for Small/Mid-Sized Companies (EMS) refers to the requests from companies who are members of the “Japan Metal Stamping Association.” The EMS system allows for efficient ISO 14001 introduction, acquisition and certification including internal audit education in less time, using the Internet. The system consists of three functions: Net-EMS, E-Learning, and Net-Audit. Introducing ISO 14001 in less time, and at low-cost, revitalizes environmental activities, strengthens management practices and contributes to global environmental protection. It took five short months to develop the system (nearly half the conventional time), and stands to issue 70 certifications via the Internet by July 2002.
The Net-EMS extracts the EMS from the Internet where it is stored, to use forms, procedures, and data, in building ISO 14001. E-Learning will allow internal auditors to be trained and employees to be educated about the environment. Moreover, the Net-Audit function allows assessment registration organizations to perform ISO 14001-compatible assessments via the Internet. Nearly 70 percent of all assessment jobs are conducted via the Internet; the other 30 percent consist of on-site assessments.
Benefits:
The EMS eliminates any loose ends in sampling the environmental impacts of each company and relevant laws. This makes a large environmental impact on the small/mid-sized metal stamping-related companies which lack environmental expertise and personnel. The company is able to create greater environmental awareness, and ISO introduction allows a designer to increase their environmental consciousness while promoting new technology and Eco-products.
United Plantations Berhad
Malaysia
Project Name:
Environment Quality Management in the Palm Oil Mill through Optimal Utilization of Biomass Residues
Project Objective:
In the processing of oil palm fruits for the extraction of palm oil from the flesh of the fruit and palm kernel oil from the seed or kernel, large quantities of organic waste are produced in the mill. For every ton of fresh fruit bunches processed, 670kg of palm oil mill effluent (POME) and 230 kg of empty fruit bunches (EFB) are generated as residues. United Plantations Berhad (UPB) has for years been developing suitable technologies for the management and utilization of these residues, and as a result, both materials are fully exploited commercially and are an additional source of revenue.
There are three approaches to the utilization of POME in UPB. First, mixing the “Decanter Cake,” which has a moisture content of 82 percent, with inorganic fertilizers and then drying it in a rotary drier produces organic fertilizers for commercial markets. Second, the effluent making up 75 percent of the BOD generated in the mill can be dried via the decanter-dryer system and the resulting solids used as animal feed. Finally, the sterilizer condensate resulting after anaerobic treatment in biodegradation ponds is used for irrigating oil palms.
Benefits:
The decanter drier which reduces BOD and methane gas by 75 percent, and the zero burn technique of replanting oil palms are both part of the greener technology used. Between 1987 and 2001, 2,600 tons of the material were sold as animal feed and 12,785 tons were sold as organic fertilizer. The income derived amounted to RM$312, 000 and RM$5.47 million, respectively. When used as fuel for boilers, besides saving on energy costs, EFB also results in the recovery of residual oil and kernel. The recycling of EFB and POME back to oil palm land is an environmentally friendly practice that is consistent with the overall concept of sustainable crop production.
Past Finalists & Winners:
Ford Motor Company (2001 Silver-Level Award); General Motors China; Green Island Cement Ltd. (1999 Award); Hansol Paper Co., Ltd.; Honda Motor Company (2001 Bronze-Level Award); I-Mei Foods Co., Ltd.; JUSCO Co., Ltd.; Motorola KLM; New Zealand Dairy Board; Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. (2001 Gold-Level Award); Placer Dome Inc.; PTT Exploration and Production Public Co., Ltd.; Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.; Shiseido Co., Ltd.; Sony Corporation; Sony Magnetic Products Co., Ltd. (2000 Award); and Weyerhaeuser Company.
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