WHITE PLAINS, NY — Con Edison Inc. (Con Edison) announced today that its greenhouse gas emissions have been reduced more than 45 percent in the nine years between 2005 and the end of 2014. That reduction is the equivalent to taking more than a half million passenger vehicles off the road. That reduction also includes a seven percent reduction in 2014 alone.
Con Edison’s energy efficiency programs also helped customers cut their use of electricity by over 750,000 megawatt hours, diminishing peak electricity demand and helping to defer large billion-dollar capital investments for constructing new substations. Company programs also saved 1 million dekatherms of natural gas.
Con Edison’s 2014 Sustainability Report, containing these and other highlights, is available at http://www.conedison.com/ehs/2014-sustainability-report/. Ongoing progress converting customers from using inefficient heating oil to cleaner-burning natural gas also is highlighted, as well as significant growth efforts supporting renewable generation.
“Fostering continuous improvements is essential to our ongoing efforts toward sustainability leadership, and that remains both a fundamental focus of our business and a measure of our success,” said Andrea Schmitz, Con Edison vice president of Environmental Health & Safety. “We are committed to minimizing our environmental impact, improving our business operations and performance, and enhancing the quality of life where we work and live.”
Other highlights include:
Con Edison recycled approximately 90 percent of non-hazardous waste materials.
The company saw a rapid growth in distributed generation. An additional 2,872 customers installed solar equipment PV last year alone, growing from 53 megawatts (MW) at the start of 2014 to 84.5 MW by the end of year. Solar power production has more than quadrupled across the company’s service territory in the last four years, with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) over 75 percent.
Con Edison coordinated a robust worker safety program and saw a 50 percent reduction in the occurrence of high severity injuries.
Con Edison replaced 32.3 miles of cast-iron gas main in 2014, compared to a target of 30 miles under its regulatory plan. These activities resulted in an estimated reduction in methane emissions of 0.009 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (based upon greenhouse gas reporting per foot emission factors for pipe materials).
Con Edison supported hundreds of local nonprofit organizations and organized employee and retiree volunteers who donated more than 7,300 volunteer hours in 2014.
Con Edison earned a multitude of awards and recognition in 2014, including the PA Consulting Outstanding System Reliability Award and the winner of an Innovation Award from the Utility Analytics Institute.
