environmental performance

Waste

In their effort to lower energy costs and greenhouse gases, communities across North America and around the world are turning to a system that the ancient Romans first developed to heat their buildings and communal baths.

The Roman hypocaust district heating system circulated warm air underground, under floors and between walls from one central heat source.

The modern day equivalents – called district energy systems – use natural gas, oil and other energy sources to produce steam, hot water or chilled water, which then moves underground through a dedicated piping network to heat or cool buildings within a designated area of a community. District energy plants often also include power generation to provide local electricity needs.

Enbridge Gas Distribution is working with communities in the Toronto area to provide district energy solutions to homes, offices and classrooms.

Since the late 1990s, we have been working with the Town of Markham to develop a world-class district energy system. We helped Markham District Energy Inc. design their first plant, which uses high-efficiency natural gas boilers, chillers and a natural gas cogeneration facility with waste heat recovery technology.

Our ongoing support includes improving plant efficiency through demand-side management and helping to expand their system to serve Markham Centre, a new downtown that will be home to more than 25,000 residents and 17,000 employees. When fully developed, Markham’s district energy system will achieve a 50 per cent reduction of local greenhouse gas emissions.

Enbridge is also working on similar district energy initiatives with the University of Toronto, York University, and Enwave, one of the largest district energy systems in North America that provides heating and cooling services to more than 130 institutional and commercial buildings in downtown Toronto.

Our Impacts

Our operations produce mostly non-hazardous wastes, consisting of paper, scrap metals, package materials and construction-related materials. Typically, our operations generate only limited amounts of hazardous wastes. Overall, we make every effort to reduce our waste volumes, regardless of hazard classification, through measurement and management programs at our various facilities.

Our performance

We minimize the amount of waste from our operations, wherever possible, by reducing the amount of waste we generate or by finding beneficial ways to reuse waste by-products. One of our priorities is to promote consistent waste management practices across our businesses. The development of waste management tracking and training programs helps our employees achieve better waste recovery and meet regulations.

Waste management and minimization in the United States

In 2006, our United States Natural Gas Business published a comprehensive Waste Minimization and Management Plan, a one-stop reference to assist operating personnel in determining the best practices for handling all types of waste generated at Enbridge facilities. We wrote the plan from a field perspective, providing step-by-step procedures for managing waste – from identification and testing, to handling and properly disposing of waste, as well as how to minimize waste by eliminating, reducing in volume and/or toxicity, recycling or reclaiming generated waste whenever possible.

Disposing of nuclear densitometers

When Liquids Pipelines acquired the assets that we renamed the Spearhead Pipeline, which runs from Chicago to Cushing, Oklahoma, we inherited from the previous owner eight nuclear densitometers that no longer fit our operations. The densitometers, which are used to measure the density of crude oil, contain radioactive material. We wanted to find the best and safest means to dispose of the densitometers, so, in 2005, we followed the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s requirement to utilize a licensed disposal company to manage the removal and disposal, which was done successfully.

Tracking waste at Enbridge Gas Distribution

In 2005, Enbridge Gas Distribution generated about 1,098 tonnes (2004 – 998 tonnes) of non-hazardous waste. Of this total, 497 tonnes, or 45 per cent of the total weight, were diverted from landfill.

Enbridge Gas Distribution reports liquid and solid hazardous waste materials to the Ontario Ministry of the Environment’s Hazardous Waste Information Network. In 2005, we reported just over 908,000 litres of liquid hazardous waste, compared with 230,000 litres in 2004. The major increase was due to a project to place regulator station equipment underground at a site that was a former manufactured gas plant. The soil was deemed contaminated, and all water that came into contact with the soil (including rain water) during the project had to be disposed of as hazardous waste. We also reported just over 1,050 kilograms of solid hazardous waste in 2005, down 54 per cent from the previous year.

Employee commitment

By making a personal commitment to waste recycling, Enbridge employees across the company are demonstrating that even small initiatives can go a long way to protecting and improving the environment.

For example, employees with Liquids Pipelines’ eastern Canada operations have rolled out a program to collect small batteries used in calculators and other equipment, ensuring the batteries are sent to hazardous waste disposal areas. They also mark Earth Day every year by holding a ‘clean-up day’ at our facilities, ensuring all the waste they collect is disposed of correctly. For their part, employees with Liquids Pipelines’ western Canada operations have been pitching in over the past eight years to keep the ditches clean on a section of highway near Edmonton as part of Alberta’s Adopt-a-Highway program. In 2006, they also introduced a program to encourage all of their employees to recycle as much as possible, establishing stations in facilities where waste can be segregated – white and coloured paper; cans and bottles – before being sent out for recycling.