Contribution to the Earth’s Environment

Panasonic reduces CO₂ emissions by various efforts,
including products, production activities, logistics, and at offices.

Global warming is now an urgent issue that we humans are facing. Panasonic is working to reduce CO₂, which is said to be the cause of global warming, through both aspects of “products” and “during production.” In particular, because electrical products consume more energy during use than during production, Panasonic works to comprehensively reduce CO₂ emissions with the four concepts of "saving energy," "creating energy," "storing energy," and "managing energy.“

One typical example of such development of energy-saving products is ECONAVI, which is a function that uses sensor technologies to identify wasteful power consumption and automatically saves electricity. Energy-creating products include photovoltaic power generation systems and household fuel cell cogeneration systems, and energy-storing products are those such as lithium ion batteries. As energy-managing products, we have developed and marketed the Energy Creation-Storage Linked System, which enables smart utilization of electricity by linking a photovoltaic power generator with storage batteries, and Smart HEMS, a Home Energy Management System.

As for activities “during production,” we are engaged in Green Factory (GF) activities that aim to reduce our environmental impact to as close to zero as possible in all Panasonic factories worldwide. As part of these activities, we have introduced energy management systems in about 300 factories across the globe, and are reducing energy consumption through visualizing energy usage conditions and results of reduction measures.

In addition to these measures, we are also rigorously promoting CO₂ reduction through various activities in logistics and at offices, together with our partners.

Panasonic contributes to a sustainable society through Recycling-oriented Manufacturing
to conserve limited resources for the future.

With rapid economic growth advancing worldwide, matters relating to resources are gaining higher social attention and concerns. Sourcing new resources and materials not only impacts our global environment, but could also cause depletion of mineral resources and sharp increase in material prices.

Bearing the responsibilities as a manufacturing company, we are working on various initiatives to reduce as much as possible the quantity of new materials used. One such initiative is the use of recycled resources based on the concept of “Product to Product.” We take out plastics from products such as televisions, refrigerators, air conditioners, and washing/drying machines at the end of their lifecycle, and recycle them into materials to be used in various household appliances. In addition, recycled metals are used as housing material.

In addition to these activities, we are pursuing zero waste emissions by reducing final disposal to an absolute minimum. For instance, in Singapore, sand used as the core in manufacturing case components for compressors used in refrigerators was conventionally discarded by sending the sand to landfills. Instead of this, however, the sand is now treated and sorted to be reused as core sand in the production process, or reused as construction materials by external companies. This has led to a significant reduction in the amount of waste and revenue-generating waste, material procurement costs, and waste sand disposal costs.

We will contribute to materializing better living standards and a sustainable society through continued promotion of Recycling-oriented Manufacturing.

Panasonic works to develop water-saving products
as well as conservation of water resources in production activities

Ninety-eight percent of the water on Earth is seawater. Of the remaining 2% freshwater, and excluding glaciers and other inaccessible water sources, the amount of water available in lakes, rivers, and shallow underground water is only less than 0.01%. According to the Global Risk Report published by the World Economic Forum in January 2015, water crisis is listed as the top risk with the highest global impact.

With this background, in order to secure household, industrial, and agricultural water necessary to form and maintain an abundant living environment, Panasonic is taking measures to conserve water resources both in products themselves and in production activities. By thoroughly analyzing the use of water through our products, we have developed functionalities that allow a considerable amount of water conservation by utilizing water at a maximum level through improvement of water flow control and cyclic use. Such products include washing/drying machines, dishwashers, warm-water toilets, and flat range hoods with cleaning function.

In our production processes, we are working to reduce environmental impact by using less volume of new water and discharging less volume of wastewater, by recovering and recycling wastewater. As one example, the Nishikinohama Factory of Panasonic Corporation Eco Solutions Company which manufactures solar panels, reuses the wastewater discharged when creating pure water by filtering the impurities in the wastewater using another water purifier.

Panasonic manages chemical substances throughout the supply chain
to protect customers and the environment.

Used in home appliances and other household products, chemical substances support our affluent and convenient lifestyles in many ways. At the same time, however, because some chemical substances have a harmful impact on humans and the environment, it is important to manage chemical substances from the product development and manufacturing stages, taking into account the influences on people’s health and the environment during usage by the customer as well as after disposal.

Based on this recognition Panasonic complies with relevant laws and regulations of each country and engages in business activities in line with its basic policy of reducing the impact of chemical substances throughout the product’s entire lifecycle-from material procurement to production, use by the customer, and disposal.

Panasonic works to identify chemical substances contained in products. By evaluating the impact on people and the environment, and by voluntarily discontinuing the use of chemical substances in the case they pose a potential risk, Panasonic aims to provide safe and secure products.

In addition, in order to prevent air, water, and soil pollution in the local area of its factories, as well as to prevent adverse effects on neighboring residents, Panasonic is working to reduce the amount of chemical substances used at its factories by improving production methods.

Panasonic works to conserve biodiversity in three key areas:
Products, Procurement and Land Use.

Our social activities are founded on natural blessings (ecosystem services), including soil, air, water, plants, and animals. Nature is built upon a delicate balance of life, and it is essential to conserve biological diversity in order for us to pass these blessings on to next generation.

Panasonic committed to properly understanding the impact of its business activities on biodiversity as well as contribution to conservation, Specifically, Panasonic promotes initiatives in the following three key areas; (1) Products: Increase products that contribute to biodiversity conservation; (2) Procurement: Promote green procurement for wood toward sustainable utilization of forest resources; and (3) Land Use: Use of green areas at business divisions to contribute to biodiversity conservation.

In the area of Products, a system to objectively assess the contribution to biodiversity by products has been built jointly with an international NGO, and is applied in product manufacturing at Panasonic. Also, items relating to biodiversity have been added in our Green Product accreditation criteria, and we voluntarily assess the relationship between materials, functions, and biodiversity.

In the area of Procurement, Panasonic consulted extensively with World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Japan, formulated the Panasonic Group Green Procurement Guidelines for Wood, and is promoting material procurement with consideration for biodiversity.

In the area of Land Use, the biodiversity of green areas in Panasonic business sites was evaluated to develop mechanisms that not only conserve rate local plants and animals but give local wildlife organic connection with space to live and breed.

Panasonic will continue to cooperate with local governments, environmental NPOs, and specialist organizations to conserve biodiversity.

For details, see Environmental activities: