Environmental Risk Management

  The goals of the Yamaha Group include reducing the environmental impact of our business activities and ensuring compliance with environmental laws. We regularly monitor emissions, wastewater, noise, odors, and other byproducts of our activities at each of our places of business, confirming our management status and strictly assessing compliance.

  We perform our monitoring activities according to the annual plan made by Yamaha Corporation's environmental department and the management of each business location. Monitoring activities are performed by the departments in charge of environmental measurements at each location.

  We assess our monitoring results according to our own standards, which exceed existing legal standards. In the event that measurements exceed standards or are unusual in some way, we take immediate emergency measures and initiate corrective actions, doing our utmost to prevent environmental contamination.

  Based on the ISO14001 integrated management system, the entire Yamaha Group collects the latest legal and regulatory information, disseminating the information throughout each relevant Group location to ensure the consistent compliance for the Group as a whole.

Taking environmental measurements

  The Yamaha Group conducts internal environmental audits according to the ISO14001 integrated management system. We also conduct Group-wide environmental audits to prevent environmental accidents or violations of law. These activities serve to reduce our environmental risk as a corporate group.

  The Yamaha Corporation Environment & Facilities Administration Department conducts these audits, using audit staff who have skills and expertise in environmental preservation. In addition to certification as an internal environmental auditor based on ISO standards, Yamaha audit staff have also received official Pollution Control Manager, Working Environment Measurement Expert and other relevant certifications.

  We conducted environmental audits at three domestic factories (Kakegawa, Toyooka, Yamaha Music Winds) during fiscal 2010. We did not note any significant risks or non-compliance in the process of checking our environmental facilities management, legal compliance, waste product management, etc. at the locations noted above. However, we did offer guidance and suggestions for improvements, etc. to reduce the level of risk to as close to zero as possible.

  During fiscal 2010, the Yamaha Group did not violate any laws, receive fines, pay fees, or be named in any lawsuits with respect to environmental concerns. The Yamaha Group did not experience any accidents having an effect on the outside environment, nor did we receive any significant complaints.

  Under the provisions of the ISO14001 integrated management system, we assume an emergency situation to exist for events that may have a serious impact on the environment (leakage of hazardous substances or oil), or for leaks, etc. that have actually occurred in the past. Each Yamaha business location has put procedures, equipment, and tools into place to respond to such emergency situations. Each location also conducts emergency response training.

Emergency response training at the Toyooka Factory

  During fiscal 1997, the Yamaha Group conducted a soil and groundwater survey at all Group manufacturing facilities. We confirmed contamination due to chlorine-based organic solvents at two locations.

  Having initiated cleanup measures based on these findings, we completed groundwater cleanup at the Yamaha Corporation Toyooka Factory at the end of fiscal 2008. We reported our status to the prefecture authorities and held a meeting with the local citizens. The Yamaha Headquarters Factory has been restored to near-standard levels, and we continue cleanup activities at present.

  We completed cleanup activities at all locations with confirmed soil contamination during fiscal 2000.

Groundwater purification equipment at the Headquarters Factory

  The Yamaha Group has historically worked to reduce usage of fluorocarbons to protect the ozone layer. We eliminated the use of all chlorofluorocarbons (CFC) in our manufacturing processes during fiscal 1993. After 1993, we used hydrocholorofluorocarbons(HCFC) as cleaning agents in the degreasing process for metal materials. Compared to CFCs, HCFCs have a smaller impact on ozone layer destruction. However, we also eliminated the use of all HCFCs during fiscal 2005. As of the end of fiscal 2005, we use no CFCs or HCFCs in our manufacturing process.