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Combating climate change

Veolia Environnement emits greenhouse gas (GHG) through management of its activities on behalf of its clients, but it also contributes to the fight against climate change through our efforts to make a global reduction of GHG.

Contributions of Veolia Environnement's divisions
Good practices

Performances

Combating climate change

Veolia Environnement is highly concerned by two aspects of climate change and the need to reduce GHG emissions.

Three of our activities (energy services, public transportation, waste treatment), are critical emitters of carbon dioxide and methane.
The water sector is less directly involved in GHG emissions, but is very much affected by the effects of global warming on the availability of water resources.
Our clients, managers of our cities and companies, are the parties most closely involved in the drive to reduce GHG emissions, either through the responsibilities that they hold or as a result of constraints set by regulations.

Thus, the management of GHG emissions is, for Veolia Environnement, a responsibility, in some cases a constraint (facilities are subject to quotas in the European Union) and, more often an opportunity to develop expert services for the benefit of our clients.

However, our business model has two unusual features

Veolia Environnement cannot reduce its absolute GHG emissions without sacrificing business growth.
Each new contract we win to manage municipal or industrial facilities brings a significant increase in emissions under our responsibility.
Thus, unlike many other stakeholders, growth of our emissions must be perceived as being a positive, to the extent that it enables us to broaden the scope of our energy efficiency and carbon services, which if all other things being equal, contribute to a global reduction of GHG emissions.

Our carbon performance

Carbon efficiency ratio

Thus, our carbon performance is based on the demonstration of this energy and carbon efficiency model, to which all of our activities can contribute.

The objective is to use verified methodologies to demonstrate a continuous improvement in the ratio between reductions in emissions achieved by our management and the emissions for which we accept responsibility.

In 2007, the Group emitted:

Direct and indirect emissions of Total GHG 2006 and 2007 and global reduction of GHG emissions

Graphics: 1 & 2

42.8 million metric tons of CO2 eq., an increase of 8% compared with 2006, while the revenue increased by 14%.

N2O emissions (waste incineration) are included for the first time, together with CO2 emissions from SNCM ships (France).

Veolia Environnement's global reduction of GHG for 2006 was recalculated with a homogeneous basis, the 2006 value being 20.2 million metric tons of CO2 eq.

In this context, our carbon strategy can be broken down into three areas

In 2007 Veolia Environnement contributed 24.6 million metric tons of CO2eq. to the global reduction of GHG emissions.

Accompanying innovation : Veolia Environnement invests in low CO2 emission technologies - biomass, solar energy, recovery of byproduct energy. Research is also being undertaken on carbon storage in order to determine appropriate sites, increase the reliability of techniques and verify economic relevance.
Although this solution is promising, it will only be viable in the medium or long term.

Promoting renewable and alternative energy for decentralized systems : these energy "decarbonize" the energy mix. However, for technical and economic reasons they are not a complete substitute for fossil fuels.

Rationalizing the use of energy to reduce waste by improving energy efficiency.
All urban and industrial activities have significant potential for greater savings and efficiency. Techniques are available for controlling consumption. The high cost of energy and fuel recovery makes most energy efficiency investments economically attractive.

This is the mainstay of our business.