Environmental Management

We at KDDI Group conduct internal environmental audits as required by ISO 14001. Auditors are selected by the Sustainability Planning Department.
In fiscal 2021, 22 divisions and 22 offices in KDDI and group companies were audited. Referring to the internal environmental audit results of fiscal 2020, emphasis was placed on (1) reflecting each corporate issue to its environmental targets, (2) compliance with environmental laws and regulations, and (3) EMS operation. Self-checks using a check sheet were conducted along with audit interviews by auditors. There were no non-conformances, and eight items requiring improvement or receiving proposals.

KDDI collects environmental data on energy, waste, water, and other topics as well as supervises and evaluates the trends in each data set within our framework of promoting environmental activities. To ensure the reliability of collected environmental data, we have obtained third-party assurances. When verifying this data, verification organizations provide us with opportunities to obtain advice on reducing burdens related to energy, waste, water, and so forth. For data for which we have obtained assurance, please see the following.

We promote reuse activities that regenerate and effectively use retired telecommunications facilities. We also conduct material recycling that turns unneeded equipment and structural materials into resources. In fiscal 2021, we recycled deteriorated storage batteries installed in telephone exchange stations used in test environments to utilize the materials and achieved a total recycling volume of 1,714 tons within KDDI. We will continue our commitment to reuse and recycle communication equipment, including base stations, retired due to regular upgrades.

Starting from late May 2021, KDDI and OKINAWA CELLULAR TELEPHONE COMPANY, have gradually switched plastic shopping bags used at au Shops, au Style shops and UQ Spot shops to paper shopping bags containing no plastic materials as part of our global environment protection initiatives. By replacing about 5,700,000 shopping bags distributed at the shops per year with those made of FSC-certified paper ^*1, we will contribute to deforestation control and environmental conservation through the use of highly recyclable FSC-certified paper made from wood harvested from properly managed certified forests. In addition, both plastic covers for protecting shopping bags from rain and plastic bags for carrying catalogs and leaflets are also replaced with ones made of the material containing 25% biomass.

There are fears of losing water resources because of increasing global population and decreasing water availability due to climate change. As disputes concerning water distribution and pollution have broken out in various locations around the world, it is significant to make efficient use of water. We are making efforts to reduce water use in our business activities as well as to offer products and services that contribute to efficient water use.

We believe that enhancing the environmental awareness of all employees and encouraging them to better understand environmental issues are essential to promote our environmental activities.

KDDI has acquired the Eco ICT Mark established by the ICT Ecology Guideline Council ^*3 to work toward improving environmental consciousness and reducing environmental impacts.

We formulated the KDDI Green Procurement Guidelines to promote purchasing of more environmentally conscious products and business equipment (communication devices, air conditioning systems and power supply facilities) with high energy-saving performance. The Guidelines target the devices defined in the latest Ecology Guideline for the ICT Industry specified by the ICT Ecology Guideline Council.
We also apply the KDDI Group Sustainable and Responsible Procurement Guidelines to our business partners and follow up on their response toward environmental management, using the Responsible Procurement Surveys.

We are working on LCAs that assess environmental impact by calculating CO₂ emitted through all processes related to products and services, including manufacture, use, disposal and recycling.^*4 Since fiscal 2008, we have regularly conducted LCAs for the "au" and "au Hikari" brands every three years. We conducted LCAs in fiscal 2021.

Environmental Impact of "au"

CO₂ emissions per "au" user decreased 10.8% from the previous assessment. Despite an increase in smartphone battery capacity, overall CO₂ emissions from cell phones have decreased as a result of lower smartphone manufacturing costs and increased purchasing demand for lower-cost products.

Environmental Impact of "au Hikari"

CO₂ emissions per "au Hikari" user increased 20.8% from the previous assessment. On-premises equipment and network-side equipment were replaced with high-performance 10 Gigabit service-compatible equipment, and overall CO₂ emissions increased in line with the increase in power consumption.