Annual Report 2003/2004

1 Overview

2 Statement of Service Performance for the Year Ended 30 June 2004

3 Financial Statements for the Ministry for the Environment

4 Financial Statements and Schedules: Non-Departmental

5 Triple Bottom Line Progress

6 Management of the Ministry

7 Contact Information

Office Environmental Policies and Systems

During 2003/04 an overarching Environmental Policy Statement was adopted and published on the Ministry's website, www.mfe.govt.nz. Supporting policies for energy and waste were also published during the year. A Procurement Policy Advisory Group has been established for the Ministry including representatives from a number of central government agencies. The Ministry's own policy on sustainable procurement is now expected to be finalised by December 2004.

During 2003/04 the Ministry appointed an external Advisory Group to provide expertise on sustainability issues associated with the development and fit out of our new office building. It is currently expected that the Ministry will be moving to the new building in 2005/06.

Meanwhile, the Ministry's 'Govt3' project is attracting a growing number of central government agencies through delivering practical advice on procurement, office waste and other issues. Over 20 agencies have been attending regular bi-monthly meetings of Govt3 which are run by the Ministry in partnership with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Overarching environmental policy, and policies for purchasing, waste and energy to be published and embedded by June 2003.	Partly achieved: The Overarching Environmental Policy Statement was adopted in 2003/04. Supporting policies for waste, and energy were also adopted and published. The purchasing policy is expected to be finalised before December 2004.
Drive responsible procurement for all of government.	Ongoing: The Ministry's Govt3 project continues to develop and now has the support of 20 central government agencies.

Materials

Publications

2003/04 was a busy year for the Ministry and we published 200 different reports, brochures, booklets, cards, etc. The paper content of these publications was 11 tonnes or 53 kg per full time equivalent staff member (FTE). Whilst this is an increase on 2002/03 [7 tonnes - 108 items], it remains well below the comparative figure for 2001/02 [22.5 tonnes - 126 items].

The increase in the number of publications reflects the diversity of the Ministry's work programmes, our ongoing commitment to build relationships with our stakeholders and the need to keep them informed. We continue to limit the initial print runs of major publications and to increase the numbers of web based only documents that we produce.

We estimate that 97% [91% 2002/03] of publications by weight were chlorine-free and that recycled paper content by weight was 60% [20% 2002/03]. The revision of the paper purchasing policy has been delayed until December 2004, so as to incorporate it within the framework of an overall Ministry procurement policy.

Office paper

During the period we have reduced our total use of A4 copier and headed paper by 14% to 6.8 tonnes [7.9 tonnes 2002/03] or by 30% to 13.1 reams per FTE. The saving has been achieved through the continued introduction of printers and photocopiers with duplexing ability and the initial set up of computers and staff training by our Information Management Team. We have now exceeded our commitment to a 10% reduction to 17 reams per FTE from 2001/02.

During the year approximately 93% of office paper used was 100% recycled and chlorine free [58% 2002/03].

Our performance over time

	Actual 2003/04	Actual 2002/03	Actual 2001/02
Weight of publications per staff member (kg)	53 kg	41 kg	162 kg
Reams of copier paper per staff member (number)	13.1	18.8	19.4

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Investigate alternatives to printing large numbers of publications as a way of achieving our overall objectives.	Achieved: Senior management reviewed proposed publications in 2002/03. Management and senior staff are to improve systems for ensuring publications contribute to achieving our objectives.
Review and update our paper purchasing policy.	Revised commitment: The review of internal procurement policies is now to be completed by December 2004.
A 10% reduction in reams of paper used to 17 reams per staff member from 2001/02	Achieved: A 32% reduction in paper use per FTE has been achieved since 2001/02.

Waste

Ministry for the Environment analysis of waste streams

The total waste and recycled material generated by Ministry staff is estimated to have increased by 20% to 45 tonnes this year. However, taking account of the growth in staff numbers over the period, waste per staff member has remained stable at 215 kg.

The growth in total waste is attributable to a 26% increase in paper sent for recycling [188 kg/FTE]. This increase is due to the clearing out of old materials, as due to the growth in staff numbers teams have been relocated around the Ministry's offices. This clearing out process can be expected to continue into 2004/05 as we prepare for the move to our new office building in 2005/06.

This increase in paper recycled masks a 72% reduction in waste to landfill from 32 kg/FTE to 9 kg/FTE. The reduction has been achieved through the implementation of a food waste collection system. Food waste is now taken to a composting facility, and all other waste is separated into recyclable or non-recyclable categories.

Benchmarking our performance

	Actual 2003/04	Actual 2002/03	Benchmark*
Total waste generated per staff member (kg)	215 kg	215 kg	200 kg
Waste to landfill per staff member (kg)	9 kg	32 kg	-

*UK Environmental Agency good practice benchmark.

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Reduce waste per staff member per year by 10% from 2001/02	Ongoing: Decreases in parts of the waste stream have been offset by increases in paper recycling. This can be expected to continue before our move to our new building.

Energy

Ministry for the Environment electricity usage per m2

The growth in staff numbers in our Wellington offices has lead to an increase in electricity use of 16% to 432,212 kWh. However, we are utilising office space more efficiently and so electricity usage per m² decreased by 2% for offices with 'tenant-only electricity' (ie, excluding heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC)) and by 9% for offices with HVAC. Our offices continued to perform close to or well below their respective Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority low-usage benchmarks.

Benchmarking our performance

	Actual 2003/04	Actual 2002/03	Low-typical usage benchmark*
Offices - tenant electricity only (kWh/m2)	60	61	60-150
Offices - with HVAC (kWh/m2)	128	140	200-280

* Per Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA)

In November 2003, as part of its commitments as a member of the EECA Energy-Wise government scheme the Ministry employed a consultant to perform an energy audit of our Wellington offices. The audit confirmed the Ministry has already achieved a good energy efficiency performance. Suggestions focused on the removal of excess corridor lighting and the need to introduce staff education on switching off computer monitors and floor lights.

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Maintain our offices energy performance close to the low EECA benchmark.	Achieved: An external audit has confirmed the Ministry's performance.
To implement suggestions from the energy audit and continue to adhere to the EECA Energy Efficiency programme.	Ongoing: We have continued with removal of excess lighting from corridors. Staff education on Switch Off! occurred in 2004.

Transport

Ministry for the Environment travel analysis

In 2003/04 staff flew 1,857,459 km domestically and drove 81,000 km on Ministry business. Domestic air travel was 19% higher per FTE than in 2002/03. Factors behind the increase include a greater degree of Ministry engagement with our stakeholders, for example through the roadshows and an increasing need for direct consultation on a number of significant policy issues.

Senior staff also flew a total of 1,893,024 km on long haul international flights presenting or representing New Zealand concerns, a 25% increase in kms flown per FTE. The most significant element of this year's increase is because the Climate Change Office's travel was only included in the Ministry's results for six months of last year (they relocated from the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet to the Ministry in January 2003). Due to New Zealand's commitment to the Kyoto Protocol the Climate Change Office has significant commitments to attend international conferences, presentations and scientific forums.

Our performance over time

	Actual 2003/04	Actual 2002/03	Actual 2001/02
Domestic air travel per staff member (km)	8,887	7,449	6,499
International air travel per staff member (km)	9,058	7,256	8,600
Ministry and hire car travel per staff member (km)	388	362	476

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Monitor our travel and understand and report back on the reasons for any fluctuation from 2003/04 levels.	Achieved: We will continue to monitor and record our travel throughout 2004/05.
Consult staff on appropriateness of a voluntary survey of commuting methods.	Revised commitment: This survey will now be carried out by June 2005 as part of the assessment of our needs in moving to our new building.

Carbon footprint

Ministry for the Environment CO₂ equivalent emissions

In 2003/04 we generated a minimum [Note that while calculated in accordance with international Greenhouse Gas (GHG) accounting protocols, in common with many organisations reporting on their CO₂impact, our CO₂figure represents a minimum only. For example, the electricity usage for air conditioning/heating/ shared areas for two of our Wellington offices is currently not included because of difficulties in obtaining adequate data.] of 636.4 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent emissions, a 45% increase on 2002/03. However, the Ministry CO₂ equivalent emissions per staff member only increased by 17% from 2.6 to 3.0 tonnes and still remains below our result for 2000/01 [3.5 tonnes].

Of this year's increase 95% is due to increases in domestic and international flights. As explained above (see Transport) this increase was largely a result of increased domestic travel from higher staff numbers and the full inclusion of the Climate Change Office in the 2003/04 results.

Our travel policies are currently under review to ensure we remain focused on undertaking essential travel only. However, given staff numbers continued to grow throughout 2003/04 and our need to engage with our stakeholders on policy issues, we anticipate that overall travel and CO₂ emissions may continue to rise in 2004/05.

Our performance over time

	Actual 2003/04	Actual 2002/03	Actual 2001/02
CO2 equivalent emissions per staff member (tonnes)	3.0	2.6	2.5

Key targets and commitments	Progress at 30 June 2004
Monitor our CO2 emissions to understand and report back on the reasons for any fluctuation year on year.	Ongoing: We will continue to monitor our CO2 throughout 2004/05 as we embed our new supporting policies.