• Hydrocarbon Extractions
• Somerton Gas fired Power Station
• Hallett Gas Fired Power Station
• AGL Hydro
• Hallett Wind Farm (Construction Project)
• Bogong Power Development - Kiewa Scheme (Construction Project)
• Camden Gas Project

In simple terms we look at the direct impact our business has on the environment in two main areas.  The first is the renewable & non-renewable resources we utilise to operate our business.  These are the inputs to our business.  We also look at the outputs or the wastes and emissions that our business generates, which also have a direct impact on the environment.  AGL aims to minimise our impact on the environment while maintaining sustainable growth for our business.

Hydrocarbon Extractions

HC Extractions (HCE) located at Kurnell in Sydney takes refinery waste fuel gas from the adjacent Caltex refinery and extracts products such as LPG and naptha. During the year the plant was closed for major planned maintenance, resulting in a slight reduction in operating days.

HCE encompasses a small plant area of 5.9Ha.  Stormwater from the site drains to the Towra Point Nature Reserve and with this in mind AGL has worked with the EPA to retrofit a storm water emergency shut off valve, which when operated prevents stormwater discharge to the reserve, say in the event of a spill.

In 2006/07 water used as part of our cooling system at HCE totalled 24,798 kL compared to
28,610 kL in 2005/06.  This reduction was a result of the reduced days of operation.

Water Use at HCE (kL)

NO_x and CO emissions as reported in the National Pollution Inventory (NPI) ^*3  have decreased from last year, commensurate with the reduction in operational days at the plant. Emissions of particulates and SO₂ have risen, partly due to a change in calculation methodologies but we are also carrying out additional air quality testing to further understand this increase.

^*3  The National Pollutant Inventory (NPI) reports on pollutant emissions from industry and diffuse sources.  Industrial facilities annually estimate their NPI pollutant emissions and diffuse emissions are determined by state and territory environment agencies.

HCE continues to monitor air emissions four times per year and we will continue to report these results

Bogong Power Development - Kiewa Scheme

In 2006, AGL commenced construction of the Bogong Power Development.  This project comprises the construction of a power station on the shores of Lake Guy, a regulating pondage located adjacent to the small village of Bogong in the Victorian Alps.  Additionally, a 6.9km tunnel is being constructed to connect the new power station to the existing Mckay Creek Power Station.

Permission for the scheme was granted by way of a Planning Scheme Amendment (PSA) under provisions of the Victorian Planning and Environment Act 1987, after referral to the Federal Department of Environment and Heritage under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999. The Federal Minister for the Environment's determination was that the project was 'Not a Controlled Action' as defined under the EPBC Act.

Direct benefits of the project include: the generation of new renewable energy; returning the flow regime within Pretty Valley Creek back to near natural conditions and rehabilitation of existing disturbed sites within the local Bogong area

The scheme incorporates a variety of design features to mitigate environmental impacts such as restricting all surface construction works to land managed by AGL Hydro outside the Alpine National Park area and the tunnel being constructed beneath the surface of the National Park.  A further social benefit is that the power station at Bogong will be buried, utilising spoil material from the tunnel, and providing the opportunity to improve the visual amenity of the site.
A significant proportion of the tunnel spoil from the Main Headrace tunnel is being diverted for use on a major upgrade to the Bogong High Plains Road between Falls Creek and Omeo.

Site work on the Project commenced in October of 2006 and is due for completion by the end of 2009.

Camden Gas Project

It has been a busy year in the NSW Camden Gas Project calendar. At 30th June 2007 the Camden Gas Project joint venture was operating 72 existing gas extraction wells, and during the year, had drilled 22 new wells. 

Additional achievements include the planning, installation and trialing of two new compressors at the Rosalind Park Gas Plant.  This will significantly increased the capacity of the plant to process gas for distribution to the Sydney market, and were commissioned in late July 2007.  The new lean burn compressors have a reduced emissions footprint per output than our older existing compressor (particularly NO_x emissions) as they are installed with catalytic converters.

In December 2006 we gained NSW Department of Planning Project Approval for two new well fields at Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute and Razorback. 

In February 2007, we successfully shutdown the Ray Beddoe Treatment Plant, and redirected the gas to the Rosalind Park Gas Plant.  This has removed all air emissions from the treatment plant.  The Ray Beddoe Treatment Plant is still licenced by the NSW Environmental Protection Authority (Licence No. 11713).

During the year we have been preparing an Environmental Assessment for a Concept Plan and new well fields at Spring Farm and Menangle Park.  This formal process is administered by and completed in accordance with the requirements of the NSW Department of Planning and the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

The construction process for the gas extraction wells traditionally requires the use of water to stimulate the coal seam for the production of gas.  During the year 8,168 kL of water was used in the construction of 22 wells around the Camden area. This compares with 6,639kL water in 2005/2006 to construct 6 wells.  This is a great result, in that our reuse strategy combined with improved technology has allowed us to utilise a much smaller volume of water per well.  All water that is injected into the coal seam is recovered, along with minor amounts of existing water within the coal.  The recovered water is collected in lined pits or tanks and can be reused in the construction of future wells.  We are currently searching for options to reuse or recycle the water from the drilling process, and are in discussion with government agencies to find a suitable outcome.

Water Use at Camden Gas Project (kL)

The NSW Camden Gas Project operations are licensed under the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997, licence No. 12003 and 11713.  Although minor non-compliances with some licence conditions have been recorded at the Rosalind Park Gas Plant, no fines or penalties have been incurred.  AGL continues to work closely with the EPA and the NSW Department of Planning on environmental management matters.  In the coming financial year, the environmental protection licence will be formally reviewed.

Air emissions as reported to the National Pollution Inventory slightly increased at Rosalind Park Gas Plant for VOC's and SO₂ on account of the increase in production at the plant.  However, a decrease was noted for NO_x, CO and particulates due to the continued operating improvements made to the existing compressor.

Air emissions at the Ray Beddoe Treatment Plant decreased over the whole year as a result of its closure in February 2007.

Environmental Incidents

We had a total of 8 environmental incidents recorded in our corporate incident reporting system.  None of these incidents were classed as significant incidents or resulted in any permanent damage to the environment or any penalty infringement notices or fines.

Environmental Performance at our Offices

AGL now has four main offices following a major restructure of the organisation during 2006.

In August the majority of the AGL workforce in Melbourne moved from Collins St in Melbourne and the Pinewood complex in Mt Waverley to 120 Spencer St, Melbourne on the western edge of the CBD.  A number of AGL people are still accommodated at 333 Collins St Melbourne but there has been a significant reduction in water use due to the reduction in numbers.

The move of the AGL Retail organisation to Melbourne has resulted in a reduction in staff at our St Leonard's office in Sydney and our Eastwood office in South Australia.  These moves have resulted in a reduction in water usage at both sites.

Limited assurance results are detailed within the Calculation Methods and Assurance Outcomes section of the report.

Paper Purchases

Paper use still remains a large environmental impact of our office operations.

Printed paper has reduced over the last year from 419 to 384 tonnes, due to the reduction in company size. 

Office copy paper has reduced dramatically this year from 132 tonnes in 2005/2006 to 37 tonnes in 2006/2007.  Even considering cultural change and awareness of environmental impacts in our office operations and reduction in the size of business we are surprised by the dramatic reduction we see compared with last year.  However, paper use per person, has also reduced from 33 kg per person to 21 kg per person.  This is a great result and work is now needed to maintain this trend over the coming year.

Paper use from our bill printing operations reduced slightly from 240 tonnes in 2005/2006 ^*5  to 216 tonnes in 2006/2007.

AGL remains part of the Cartridges for Planet Ark program and over the year returned a total of 1.422 tonnes of printer cartridges for recycling.  AGL took part in the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association Mobile Muster and collected 101 kg of unwanted employee mobile phones to be diverted from landfill to be recycled and reused.

AGL employees who make use of the car parks at our St Leonards, NSW and Melbourne city Spencer Street offices are required to subscribe to a Greenfleet program.  Greenfleet is a non-profit organisation, which offers a subscription, whereby they will plant enough trees to absorb the greenhouse gases that an average car produces in one year.

At 30th June 2007, 178 AGL employee cars were registered with Greenfleet.

In 2006, 3133 trees were planted at Lancefield & Kyneton in Victoria as a result of AGL employee Greenfleet subscriptions and from subscriptions to 22nd August 2007, 1266 trees will be planted in 2008 at a site yet to be determined.

^*5  Revised from 117 tonnes reported in 2005/2006 to 240 to include envelope tonnage.  Figure for 2006/07 includes envelopes, while 2003/04 and 2004/05 does not include envelopes.

• Verification and Assurance
• Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Index
• Glossary