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NTT
Addressing environmental risks
Air quality survey
The key environmental impacts of the NTT Science and Core Technology Laboratory Group's main facility, the NTT Atsugi Research and Development Center, include the use of chemicals, generation of wastewater, gas emissions and waste products, and consumption of electricity by the air-conditioning systems of the clean rooms that it uses for research. NTT invests systematically in plant and equipment to prevent contamination from such impacts.
To monitor and assess environmental impacts, NTT SCTLG also conducts regular environmental surveys of air, rainwater/ groundwater, odors, soil, noise and vibration, as well as round-theclock monitoring of water quality and other items. It also endeavors to prevent contamination by setting voluntary targets that are more rigorous than legally mandated targets. In the air quality survey that it conducted in fiscal 2012, all results were within both mandatory and voluntary limits. In fiscal 2013, it will conduct water quality and noise/vibration surveys.
NTT EAST
Leveraging overhead cable stringing technology to help protect endangered species
Animal pathway improvement
NTT East Yamanashi Branch Group and NTT East's Technology Cooperation Center have since April 2009 been supporting the animal pathway creation efforts of the Animal Pathway Research Society (APRS) in Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture. APRS is made up of Kiyosato Educational Experiment Project (KEEP) Dormouse Museum and several companies in addition to NTT East, including Taisei Corporation and Shimizu Corporation.
Animal pathways are bridges or tunnels connecting wildlife habitat that has been divided by roads to help protect populations of endangered species such as the Japanese dormouse (about 8 cm long) that use tree branches as paths.
Creating and maintaining such pathways for small treedwelling animals invariably involves equipment and technology for stringing overhead cables. The Yamanashi Branch is leveraging its cable stringing expertise to support these efforts by providing boom lift trucks and veteran operators for such work.
This initiative was recognized in May 2010 with a Minister of the Environment award in the Keidanren Committee on Nature Conservation's 1st Contest for Corporate Activities on Biodiversity.
The NTT Group is currently maintaining animal pathways in the city of Hokuto, and in fiscal 2012, replaced a main cable that had rusted. The replaced cable supports NTT communications cables, and so the job was one that made the most of NTT's communications technology for connecting people.
In October 2011, another animal pathway was established in the Nasu Heisei-no-Mori Forest in Tochigi Prefecture as the first pathway towards taking this initiative nationwide. There are plans for additional pathways in Nagoya and Chino in Nagano Prefecture. NTT will continue to help protect tree-dwelling animals through supporting the spread of animal pathways.
NTT Communications
Designing submarine cable laying routes to minimize impact on coral reefs
NTT Communications endeavors to minimize impacts on the marine natural environment of shallow coastal areas when planning routes for the laying of submarine cables.
For example, we endeavor to protect coral reefs and the creatures living within and around them by carrying out detailed assessments in areas of coral to develop plans that enable us to avoid the coral colonies as we lay cables. In the Inland Sea, where the majority of the marine area is designated as a national park, we work with the relevant government agencies and local authorities to develop careful plans before laying cables.
Also, when cable-laying ships raise their anchors, there is a risk of marine organisms being brought up with anchors and transplanted to other areas where they could disrupt the local ecosystem. To prevent this from happening, NTT Communications ensures that anchors and anchor pockets are cleaned meticulously.
NTT FACILITIES
Biodiversity risk analysis and creation of a relationship map
In line with the NTT Group's basic policy, NTT FACILITIES sees the preservation of biodiversity as the preservation both of biodiversity and the benefits to be gained from biodiversity.
To ascertain the impact of its main business activities on the preservation of biodiversity, in fiscal 2011 NTT FACILITIES analyzed biodiversity-related risks, identified factors, and organized priorities. It analyzed the impacts not only of its own activities, but also those of its suppliers, users and other indirect impacts over complete lifecycles, and visualized the results as a biodiversity preservation relationship map that it uses in its GreenITy Building projects and other business activities (see illustration below).
It is currently drawing up an action plan based on the results of this analysis.
- Map of the relationship between GreenITy Building projects and biodiversity
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