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We have had hazardous waste minimization programs in place for a number of years, which has resulted in significant reductions in the amount of hazardous wastes generated at APS facilities.
All our facilities are now normally classified as Small Quantity Generators (SQG) or Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQG) of hazardous waste, and in 2007 none of our facilities were classified as Large Quantity Generators of Hazardous Waste. In 2007, APS has continued to show good results in hazardous waste reductions, as shown in the chart below. All of our hazardous wastes are transported by permitted companies to EPA permitted hazardous waste disposal facilities located in the United States.
We have an aggressive waste reduction, recycling and reuse program in place at facilities across our organization. Our first priority is waste reduction. Each facility reviews its waste streams and looks for opportunities to reduce waste. Some of these activities include working with suppliers to reduce packing materials and pallets, substituting products, paper reduction in offices and other strategies to try to reduce wastes. Our second approach is an extensive program to recycle materials. Our Deer Valley Service Center serves as a central management point for many recycled materials. As the chart below shows, APS recycles thousands of tons of materials each year. APS also has a very successful Investment Recovery department that manages surplus materials for reuse.
APS is a member of the EPA's WasteWise Partnership and Coal Combustion Products Partnership (C2P2). WasteWise is a voluntary EPA program through which organizations work to minimize solid waste. C2P2 is a cooperative effort between the EPA and the Utility Solid Waste Activity Group (USWAG) to help promote the beneficial use of coal combustion products and the environmental benefits that can result. Each year, APS sends almost 1 million tons of coal combustion products for reuse, which results in significant benefits to the environment, including hugh reductions in overall CO2 emissions as described in our Climate Change section.
Nuclear waste issues as discussed in the Generation section of this report.
The EHS Audit Group performs audits of all vendors that provide waste disposal or recycling activities and services to company facilities. This program evaluates our vendors' facility operations, environmental management systems and financial strength in order to minimize short- and long-term liability caused by vendor actions or omissions. The audits also ensure that our waste materials are being properly managed once they leave our facilities. Twenty-six vendor audits were completed in 2007, including sixteen audits of waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities, five audits of recycling firms, four EHS service providers, and one laboratory.
Pinnacle West belongs to the Joint Utility Vendor Audit Consortium (JUVAC), CHWMEG Consortium and the Desert Utility Vendor Audit Team (DUVAT). The consortiums are made up of various organizations or partnerships that conduct vendor audits and make them available to their members. Participation in these consortiums helps to leverage auditing resources and performance.
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