Sustainability Code: We operate our business to provide future generations with a clean and healthy environment. We minimise our environmental impacts and protect heritage as we look towards the future.
	Our mission: To effectively manage, protect and enhance our environmental and heritage values.

Our operations and activities include using and storing water to generate electricity, operating our hydropower system, construction activities, administering our business and our people travelling, all of which have the potential to have an impact on the environment wherever we operate.

Management approach

Hydro Tasmania is committed to the sustainable management of the environment within which we operate. Our Environmental Policy guides our responsibilities in relation to environmental care. We use an ISO 14001 certified Environment and Sustainability Management System (ESMS) which helps us to assess our environmental risks, track our projects and procedures that address the risks, and our compliance with internal and external obligations.

We are subject to state and federal government environmental laws and have environmental conditions placed on our water licence issued under Tasmania’s Water Management Act 1999.

Procedures include an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and an Environment Management Plan (EMP) for each construction project. These include cultural heritage assessments.

We manage the projects and procedures through our core environmental programs: aquatic, land, cultural heritage and energy and greenhouse programs.

We approach environmental care with future generations in mind and consider that compliance is the starting point and aim to go further wherever possible.

Performance

This year we continued to successfully manage the environmental condition of a number of lakes operating at low levels. Significantly, we also maintained the heritage values of the Lake Margaret Power Station during redevelopment. We were also recognised with a highly commended award for our long-term land rehabilitation projects by the GRN Australasian Ecological Restoration Projects.

One of the challenges we faced was raising awareness and encouraging the broader use of the ESMS among our employees for reporting incidents.

One solution we are examining is integrating environmental incident reporting with safety reporting systems. Another is improving the on-line ESMS reporting system for easier use.

There were no major environmental compliance breaches or monetary fines recorded for 2008/09.