Protecting
the Environment
Some,
perhaps even most, consumers do not think about the
environmental consequences of their use of energy. Nevertheless, when a
light or television is turned on ... or when a home is heated ... or cooled
... or when an oven heats... energy is being used. Energy operates the
appliances that are central to the lifestyles American's enjoy.
But energy is not a commodity that comes free of environmental
concerns. There are gas storage facilities, miles and miles of gas
pipelines, generating plants which burn fossil fuels (coal, oil or gas) or use
nuclear fuel to generate electricity - all of which have a potential for certain
adverse environmental consequences.
But the people who are responsible for ensuring that the
energy needed to run America’s homes, businesses, industries and public
institutions are acutely aware of their dual responsibility: to the users of
energy and to the environment. Consumers
need reliable and adequate service at an affordable cost, and the Energy
Association’s member utilities strive to provide that service in a manner that
minimizes adverse consequences for the environment.
EAPA’s members have a long and proud tradition of
responsible environmental stewardship. In
addition to the billions of dollars invested annually in environmental controls,
our member companies continually explore renewable energy sources, like water or
wind power, and engage in a variety of environmental activities that go well
beyond compliance with regulatory requirements.
Here is a sampling of
some of the kinds of activities our
member companies are engaging in across the Commonwealth...
Dominion
Peoples 
Dominion Peoples coordinates
an employee-driven program called “Putting our Energy to Work for the
Environment”. A variety of
projects have been completed across an eight-state area.
In October, 2001, 35 employees partnered with the Westmoreland
Conservation District and Pennsylvania CleanWays in Greensburg, PA to relocate
and paint a storage shed, lay landscape timber and mulch, build a podium, and
stain doors and windows in an old renovated barn at the Conservation
District’s education center.
 Another
recent project took place at Schenley Park, where Dominion volunteers helped the
Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy to stabilize the hillside behind Schenley Park’s
Visitors Center to prevent erosion. Forty
employee volunteers dug trenches, cut, spread and staked jute matting in place
over the hillsides. A total of 28
rolls of jute was used which covered a 22,666 square foot area.
Dominion is a member of the
Southwest Pennsylvania Ozone Action Partnership, a diverse mix of area
businesses, environmental groups and government organizations that urge
businesses and individuals to take voluntary actions that would reduce
pollutants that cause ozone. Employees
are notified when Ozone Action Alerts are issued and encouraged to take what
actions they can to help toward cleaner, healthier air.
 Each
April Dominion volunteers organized an annual Earth Day Celebration at the
Dominion Tower in Pittsburgh. Twelve environmental organizations participated in this
year’s program, presenting hands-on exhibits that focused on the conservation
and preservation of our natural resources.
Employees from the building, the general public and children from a
nearby pre-school visited the exhibits and enjoyed hand-on activities.
Dominion is a Pennsylvania
state sponsor for the Annual River Sweep Program, a volunteer program that
involves river bank cleanup for the Ohio River and its tributaries, encompassing
more than 3,000 miles of shoreline. Dominion
sponsored a site along the Monongahela River bank where, on a rainy Saturday in
June 2001, volunteers collected approximately 200 tires, along with a dumpster
full of other debris.
Dominion Foundation and the
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy are co-sponsors of the School Garden Initiative
in 59 schools in the Pittsburgh area. Dominion
Peoples employees participate annually in the Conservancy’s flower-bed program
and is one of the major sponsors for the Point State Park site.
Volunteers and their families are recruited each spring to plant flowers
and then invited to return in the fall to remove the flowers and prepare the
flower beds for winter.
Columbia Gas of
Pennsylvania
 Natural
beauty and color are two extraordinary elements of community revitalization, and
both are provided courtesy of Columbia Gas and the Western Pennsylvania
Conservancy. Through an ongoing partnership that began in 1996, Columbia Gas of
Pennsylvania and Columbia Gas of Maryland employee volunteers work with the
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy and community leaders to plant flowerbeds at
more than two dozen locations throughout Pennsylvania.
In May 2001, over 50 Columbia Gas employees and
their families worked to plant flowers at the entrance to Pittsburgh’s Liberty
Tunnels. Volunteers planted over 7,000 petunias, marigolds, begonias and coleus
in two flowerbeds, covering 9,773 square-feet. The Liberty Tunnels flowerbed is
one of the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy’s largest and most visible. Over
100,000 motorists drive through the Liberty Tunnels every day, and thanks to
Columbia Gas, what used to be a cement-laden intersection now bursts with sprays
of colorful annual flowers, trees, shrubs and perennial grasses.
 The
Western Pennsylvania Conservancy appreciates the work Columbia Gas employees do
to beautify the region through the Conservancy's garden planting program. In
fact, the Conservancy is so appreciative, they decided to devote a section of
their Web site to Columbia Gas and its employee volunteers. The site is located
at http://www.wpconline.org/columbia/index.html
and features photos of flowerbed planting, as well as a Quick Time video of
employees planting flowers at the entrance to Pittsburgh’s Liberty Tunnels in
May 2001.
Columbia Gas fuels environmentally-friendly
Pittsburgh development project…Through a partnership with the Pittsburgh
Urban Redevelopment Authority, Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania committed a
substantial amount of labor and pipe to develop the former site of the LTV steel
plant and turn it into the “South Side Works,” a 110-acre residential and
commercial development.
Former
industrial sites, also known as “brownfields,” were once thought to have no
value, but through this partnership, Columbia Gas helped inject new life into
what was formerly thought to be a wasteland.
Once the site is completed, the South Side Works
development is expected to house businesses, over 650 housing units, retail
stores, office complexes, parks and parking. In addition to the over 4,000 jobs
that are expected to be created, the site will allow public access to
Pittsburgh’s riverfront.
PECO
Energy Company
Minimizing
emissions is a big part of PECO's many environmental
activities. They have reduced sulfur dioxide emissions
by 95 percent since the 1980's, and spent $20 million
in 1995 to install nitrogen oxide emission controls.
Through a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy's
Climate Challenge Program, PECO will voluntarily reduce
carbon dioxide emissions by five million tons annually
by the year 2000 from a 1987 baseline.
PECO
is also doing its part to protect wildlife in its service
territory. The habitats of American Bald Eagles
and American Shad on the Susquehanna River are protected
and monitored. Every year, tens of thousands of
American Shad use fish lifts installed at the Conowingo
Dam on their migration to upper Susquehanna spawning
grounds. And PECO, the Nature Conservancy and
the Pennsylvania Game Commission are managing 1,535
acres of land associated with transmission lines for
rare plant and animal species and wildlife enhancement
activities.
PECO
Energy Company provides environmental assistance to
commercial and industrial customers through a toll-free
helpline (1-800-PECO-ECO), helping them keep up-to-date
on environmental issues and regulations affecting their
businesses.
Pennsylvania
Power & Light Company (PP&L)
In
a landmark agreement with the Pennsylvania Department
of Environmental Protection, PP&L will investigate
and clean up sites that may have been contaminated by
past PP&L operations or those of its predecessor
companies. This voluntary agreement allows both
PP&L and the state to focus resources on cleanup
efforts instead of studies and legal and engineering
fees.
In
an effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, PP&L
joined the U.S. Department of Energy's Climate Challenge
program. PP&L's Climate Challenge initiatives
include: off-setting coal-fired power by increasing
the power output and operating capacity at the company'
nuclear plant; offering demand side-management programs
to encourage energy efficiency; and continuing efforts
to increase efficiency in the utility's energy generation
and distribution facilities.
Other
environmental activities include:
·
Partnering with Northampton County Community
College to build an electro- technologies center that
will help customers develop environmentally friendly
ways to produce products;
·
Removing unnecessary waste from PP&L
facilities, including old paints, solvents and other
chemical products;
·
End-of-year bonuses if a corporate incentive
goal is reached in recycling paper, wood, and cardboard;
and
·
Investing in new power plant water treatment
facilities and dry fly ash handling systems to improve
water quality.
PP&L
is also helping re-establish the endangered peregrine
falcon in eastern Pennsylvania and building fish lifts
on two hydroelectric dams to allow shad to migrate up
the Susquehanna River to spawn.
Duquesne
Light Company
In
conjunction with the Pennsylvania Environmental Council,
Duquesne Light Company sponsors the Three Rivers Environmental
Awards. These awards-now in their fifth year-recognize
and honor outstanding individuals or organizations in
Western Pennsylvania that have demonstrated a commitment
to environmental excellence, leadership, and accomplishment
in their respective fields.
Duquesne
recognizes employees through the Environmental Stewardship
Award (see Allegheny Power) and sponsors environmental
beautification and restoration projects at utility disposal
sites, including river cleanups, all-paper recycling
projects, and tree planting. Boy Scouts can earn
credits toward nature-related badges through the Wild
Wonders environmental education program.
Duquesne
Light also sponsors the North Park Arboretum Revitalization
Project in conjunction with the Allegheny County Department
of Parks, Recreation and Conservation and the Penn State
Cooperative Extension of Allegheny County. This
is a community partnership to renew, develop and manage
a living museum of native and exotic trees and managed
habitats for public education and community recreation.
Beyond
community activities, Duquesne Light is a leader in
energy compliance efforts that have surpassed the Environmental
Protection Agency's regulations on emissions.
The utility takes pride in its initiatives to ensure
clean air, which include investments in state-of-the-art
emissions monitoring equipment and participation in
the U.S. Department of Energy's Climate Challenge programs
to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Allegheny
Power
Allegheny
Power encourages its employees to participate in environmental
responsibility through its Environmental Stewardship
Awards. This new program recognizes five employees
for their involvement with non-profit or civic organizations
that work to enhance and improve the environment.
Each winner receives $500 on behalf of their organizations.
Allegheny
also participates in the Southwest Pennsylvania Ozone
Action Partnership. Ozone is the primary ingredient
in urban smog. This program asks employees to
participate in volunteer initiatives to reduce ozone-producing
pollution. When there is an Ozone Action Alert,
employees are asked to car pool, consolidate trips,
refuel vehicles after dark, postpone lawn mowing, and
conserve energy. Prizes are raffled off to award
people who car-pool.
Together
with PA Clean Ways, a non-profit organization helping
people clean up their environment, Allegheny Power coordinated
the first Household Hazardous Waste Collection for all
Westmoreland County residents. For five consecutive
years PA Clean Ways has presented Allegheny Power with
an "Outstanding Corporation" award recognizing
their continued support and contributions to improving
the environment.
Energy
Association of Pennyslvania
301 APC Building | 800 North Third Street | Harrisburg,
PA 17102
Phone: 717-901-0600 | Fax: 717-901-0611
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