Environmental Communications/Communications for Environment and Energy 2|Environmental Action Report 2006|Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc.

INDEX

Contents

Environmental Activities in Close Cooperation with Local Communities

Activity to Support Energy and Environmental Education

Communications for Environment and Energy1

Communications for Environment and Energy2

Communications for Environment and Energy 2

"Eco & Energy Workshop" for College Students

Sendai Customer Services Office has, since FY2004, held "Eco & Energy Workshop" for college students as the leading the next generation.

This activity is intended to provide college students in the Sendai area, the largest energy consuming area in the Tohoku district, with an opportunity to feel the environment and energy close to themselves, and lead them to specific action.

The workshop in the third year started in December 2005, and 34 students from six colleges participated. Six students of a data collection team as leading members collected data on "slice society" where the true nature of matters and the whole cannot be seen well, starting with cell phones, plastic shopping bags and disposable wooden chopsticks. The reality where resources are wasted in common life and measures against such waste were compiled into a report.

In June 2006, we held an event called "environmental and energy issues that are difficult enough to make our heads spin--reading slice society from cell phones, plastic shopping bags and disposable wooden chopsticks" and gathered college students as a stage to announce the results of the six-month workshop. Through stage talks (presentation) and table talks (exchanges and conversations), we discussed, together with college students in the same generation, how our life styles are linked to the world and what effects our life styles have on energy and environmental issues.

As the first attempt made this year, we separately held a meeting for an advance presentations by elementary and junior high school students and their parents to help them learn energy and environmental issues.

About 200 participants listened attentively to repeatedly trained reading, plays by members of drama, movie and photo clubs, and other performances on the stage with many images. The event ended successfully as collaboration between corporations and students.

The presented works will be digitized and widely used as educational materials to learn the environment and energy for environmental communication activities to be hosted by Sendai Customer Services Office.

Navigators are cat college students

Students who participated in the workshop

Environmental Newsletter "Setsuyaku Setchan" Issued by Sendai Customer Services Office

Sendai Customer Services Office has assigned leaders in respective sections and promoted on an office-wide basis its in-house environmental management activities (the usage of electricity and tap water, reduction in wastes and paper).

In addition to such activities, the office has since September 2004 sent by e-mail an environmental newsletter named "Setsuyaku Setchan" periodically to all of its staff members to further raise their awareness about the environment.

In the newsletter, an original character of a young lady named "Setchan" plainly introduces timely information about the environment to the staff members of the office. A total of 67 issues have been sent by the end of March 2006.

The information sent by the newsletter ranges from social matters such as "global warming" and "environmental taxes" to familiar matters such as "charging fees for plastic shopping bags," etc. Sometimes it introduces difficult topics in a humorous vein, referring to on-site data collection.

Saving-oriented posters titled "Request from Setchan" are put up at many places in the office. Through such activities, the awareness of staff members of the office about the environment has been steadily taking root.

Latest Trends in FY2006

ECO Life Talk 2006

In June 2006, Tohoku EPCo held "ECO Life Talk--Wonderful Discovery, That is the Earth" at its Head Office.

This event was held with an aim to think about environmental issues such as global warming and recycling and act together with local residents who participated in the event. About 220 people participated in the event.

On the day of the event, Ms. Waka Okoshi, professor of Agricultural Department of Tohoku University graduate school, who participated in Japan's 42nd Antarctic Survey Party (summer party) as the first Japanese mother, held a talk show titled "Think about Global Warming--Message from Antarctica." Mr. Tomo Yamaguchi, a percussionist, held an attraction of "junk percussion instrument performance."

During the talk show, Ms. Okoshi talked about the environment based on her experience and introduced her life in Antarctica. As for the attraction, Mr. Yamaguchi played junk percussion instruments that were made by himself by using styrene foam, discarded materials, etc. All of the participants made peckers (shakers) by using PET-made bottles, and played in concert. Environmental communication activities were conducted in a united manner during the event.

ECO Life Talk 2006

Lecture Meeting on Environment for Tohoku EPCo Company Group Held at Head Office

A lecture meeting on the environment was held at the Head Office on June 8, 2006 (Thursday). This lecture meeting is held every year in June as part of the Environmental Awareness Month of Tohoku EPCo Company Group. This time, about 250 employees from the Head Office, establishments in Sendai and its vicinity, power stations and company group participated in the lecture meeting. This time, Mr. Shigeatsu Hatakeyama was invited as the speaker from Kesennuma, and he delivered a lecture titled "Forest is Lover of Sea--Tangle Saves the Earth." Mr. Hatakeyama has been engaging in promotion of the activities to encourage fishermen to plant broad-leaved trees, while farm-raising oysters and scallops. Last year, he took office as a professor of Field Science Education and Research Center of Kyoto University.

Mr. Hatakeyama said, "To protect the environment of sea, it is important to protect the river that pours into the sea and the upstream forests." He delivered a lecture on the close relationships between the sea and forests as well as the mechanism thereof, showing meaningful experiences using his abundant expertise. The participants listened interestedly to his lecture that referred to specific examples of history and science.

Lecture meeting on the environment

Eco Partnership 2006 Held in Sendai City

On June 4, 2006 (Sunday), Eco Partnership 2006 was held in Sendai city. This event is planned and held by the executive committee members of the Ministry of the Environment, the Miyagi prefectural government, the Sendai municipal government and Tohoku EPCo during the Environmental Awareness Month in June every year. This time, it was held under the theme of "Global Warming from Meteorological Point of View and Measures against Global Warming from Energy Point of View." About 100 listeners for various circles participated.

In the first session, a keynote speech titled "Is the Earth Ailing? Global Warming from Meteorological Point of View" was delivered by Mr. Hitoshi Takada, a weather forecasting reporter of NHK. In the second session, a staff from Kuzumaki-machi municipal government of Iwate prefecture presented examples of environmental activities for "Creation of Energy Self-Sufficient Town" and energy conservation and new technologies. The participants deepened their interest in familiar global warming issues and environmental measures.

Holding of "Autumn Festa in Riverhead Forest"

In October 2005, "Autumn Festa 2005" was held in "Tohoku EPCo Riverhead Forest" (located in Tadami-machi in Fukushima prefecture).

Hoping that may people will become aware of the charms and importance of nature, we have, since 2001, held the exchange events every year.

In the fifth year, "Autumn Festa" was held in full cooperation with the local community of Tadami-machi, consisting of two sessions, i.e., "Concert in Riverhead Forest" and "Gathering in Riverhead Forest."

In "Concert in Riverhead Forest," the concert was given by "Takaatsu Kinoshita Forklore Connection" led by Mr. Takaatsu Kinoshita who is Japan's representative player of forklore (ansemble of folk instruments in the Andes), holding the audience spellbound with beautiful tones that are in harmony with nature.

In "Gathering in Riverhead Forest," adventure games in the field of forest, a handcraft lesson to use the lumber of forest and a tree-thinning lesson were given. Parents and children who participated in the event enjoyed themselves and renewed their awareness about the importance and beauty of the local nature in Tadami-machi.

*"Tohoku EPCo Riverhead Forest":
We participated, as part of the project commemorating the 50th anniversary of our Company's foundation, the "Secondhand Books-and-Forest Exchange System" developed by Tamokaku Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tamokaku") located in Tadami-machi in Fukushima prefecture. Some 180,000 secondhand books and 12,000 CDs donated from our employees were donated to Tamokaku, and the right to use a land of about 40,000 square meters was given to Tohoku EPCo in exchange for these books and CDs. Then, "Tohoku EPCo Riverhead Forest" was opened in March 2001. We received in 2002 the Chairman's Prize from "3R Promotion Conference" organized by consumer organizations and industrial organizations concerned for our contribution to 3R of "Reduce, Reuse and Recycle" toward recycling society.

Concert in Riverhead Forest

Adventure game

Tree-thinning lesson

Handcraft lesson in the forest

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