NASHVILLE,
Tenn. - Nissan North America's (NNA) automotive manufacturing
plants in Smyrna, Tenn., and Canton, Miss., have earned the
Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Energy Star award. The
first-time award, which was recently presented in Washington,
D.C., recognizes energy-efficient operations that have cut
pollution, lowered energy consumption and reduced costs.
Nissan is one of only
three automakers to receive the award and is recognized
among 17 U.S. manufacturing plants that prevented some 3
billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions. The award is
based on achieving an energy performance score in the
top 25 percent nationally, based on the EPA's plant
energy performance indicators measured on actual energy
use. EPA is working with 10 industries to advance
innovative corporate energy management tools.
"Nissan
has made conserving energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions
a priority at all three of our U.S. plants," said Dan
Gaudette, senior vice president of North American Manufacturing
and Supply Chain Management at Nissan North America. "The
Energy Star award really belongs to every Nissan employee for
their efforts to help minimize our facilities' impact on the
environment. We're pleased to be among the first automakers to
receive this award."
EPA's
national energy performance rating system, developed in
cooperation with several industries, enables companies to
evaluate the energy efficiency of their plants relative to their
industries and to develop additional energy improvement goals
and plans.
"By committing to smart energy use,
America's historic economic backbone is now supporting our
nation's brightening environmental future," said U.S. EPA
Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.
"Working with our
manufacturing partners, we are implementing President Bush's aggressive
and practical strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while growing
the American economy."
Nissan
focuses on three primary environmental objectives in its operations
around the world. They include managing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions,
recycling, and protecting air, water and soil. All three of Nissan's
U.S. manufacturing plants have received certification to the ISO 14001
international environmental management standard.
Nissan's
powertrain assembly plant in Decherd, Tenn., was not rated according to
the EPA's energy performance rating system because the federal agency's
comparison tool does not yet apply to powertrain plants.
Ongoing energy conservation practices at all three Nissan plants include
eliminating compressed air leaks, shortening startup times on process
equipment, reducing operating temperatures in equipment where possible,
and establishing plant-wide task forces to generate energy-savings
ideas. Employees are encouraged to turn off air compressors, equipment,
lights and TV monitors when not in use.
Nissan
aims to reduce volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted during the
automobile painting process. Waterborne paints are used at one of the
two paint plants in Smyrna and in both the primer and base-coat
applications in the paint plant in Canton. In the paint process,
"color blocking" -- painting a series of units in the same
color -- conserves paints and solvents, reduces waste and releases fewer
VOCs.
CO2,
nitrous oxides, sulfur oxides (SOx), and carbon monoxide emissions are
further reduced at the Smyrna Plant through the use of natural gas in
lieu of coal during critical time periods. Low-sulfur coal is burned to
further reduce SOx emissions.
