Inside The Mind Of An Automotive Geek

Toyota adheres to its solid green credo. And to share how far the automaker has gone with its commitment to greener environment, it has earlier reported the progress of its environmental goals.

The automaker issued its first update on progress toward the goals and targets in the company’s new 2011 Environmental Action Plan (EAP). The 2007 North America Environmental Report details Toyota’s efforts in 6 key areas of impact: Environmental Management, Energy and Climate Change, Air Quality, Substances of Concern, Recycling and Improved Resource Use, and Cooperation with Society.

“Toyota’s approach to reducing CO2 is far broader than just a commitment to fuel economy standards,” said Dian Ogilvie, senior vice president of Toyota Motor North America. “We take these targets very seriously. Our environmental reports show a consistent history of achieving -- and in many cases exceeding -- our targets. We believe that the combination of actions we are taking will all play a part in meeting the challenges we all face.”

2007 North American Environmental Report Highlights

Environmental Management: Toyota facilities in North America have Environmental Management Systems (EMSs) in place to check that our activities comply with all federal, state, provincial, territorial and local requirements, as well as our own internal best practices. Our employees receive training in EMS awareness and in related topics.

Toyota works closely with suppliers as they undertake a range of activities, such as building an EMS, eliminating substances of concern, contributing to Toyota’s life-cycle assessment program, reducing CO2 emissions in logistics operations, and reducing packaging.

Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealerships are provided with resources such as online training courses to help manage service-related waste streams and comply with environmental and safety regulatory requirements. We also work with dealerships to promote greener building practices.

Energy & Climate Change: Toyota has reduced its total energy use at our North American manufacturing operations by 22% since FY2002, and has targeted a 27% reduction by 2011 compared to 2002.

Toyota is continuously improving the fuel efficiency of its full line vehicle fleet, and remains committed to hybrid technology as a key component for improving fuel efficiency and environmental impact. Every 100 gallons (378 liters) of gasoline not consumed saves nearly one metric ton of CO2. As of September 2007, estimates show North American Toyota hybrid drivers had saved over 319 million gallons (1.2 billion liters) of gasoline, and avoided over 2.7 million metric tons of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. (1)

Air Quality: The most significant emissions from Toyota’s manufacturing facilities are Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from painting operations. We are on track to meet our five-year target to reduce VOCs from our body painting operations to a corporate average of 14.0g/m2 by FY2011.

At our Fremont, California vehicle assembly plant, painting bumpers with a water-based primer has contributed to a 50% reduction in VOC emissions over the last two years. For the 2007 model year, 90% of all Toyota, Lexus and Scion cars are certified as ULEV (ultra low emission vehicle) or better.

Substances of Concern: Toyota is focusing on the phase-out of four heavy metals – mercury, cadmium, lead and hexavalent chrome – from parts and accessories as well as phasing out VOCs in the automobile cabin that can cause the “new car smell.” We are working to be in compliance with voluntary standards regarding methods to reduce VOCs in vehicle cabin interiors set by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association (JAMA) by 2011.

Recycling and Improved Resource Use: Toyota plants in North America have maintained their zero waste-to-landfill status and have exceeded Toyota’s new five-year Environmental Action Plan target by reducing nonsaleable waste (nonhazardous waste plus materials Toyota pays to have recycled) to 28 kg/vehicle.

Toyota introduced soy oil-based polyurethane foam for passenger seats in both the Corolla and the Lexus RX, lowering the amount of petroleum used for production and reducing the carbon footprint the vehicles.

Cooperation with Society: Toyota partners with a variety of organizations, including nonprofits, schools and universities and other businesses, to support programs that help make our world a better place. Corporate philanthropy focuses our community efforts on environmental education and conservation programs, such as the Toyota International Teacher Program which sent teachers to the Galapagos Islands and Costa Rica. In our efforts to contribute to a recycling-based society, we launched 166 remanufactured parts in FY2007 and rolled out the pilot “Tire Shark” dealer tire disposal program.

For more information on Toyota’s environmental initiatives visit http://www.toyota.com/.

It is true. The future will be green thanks to automakers like Toyota.

[credit: World-Wire.com]