Environmental Management
We are firmly committed to concrete action for the promotion of environmental protection, energy conservation, and carbon reduction in search for potential responses and adaptations for climate change mitigation. We continue to implement energy conservation and carbon reduction measures in our office areas. The power-saving rate from 2017 to 2022 reached 10.1%–16.3%. In addition, we have set a target of 16.5% power savings for 2023.
MediaTek has passed the certification audit for ISO 14001 Environmental Management System. Consistency of environmental protection goals and implementation strategies is maintained by relying on the PDCA management cycle and through adoption of systematic management approaches. In addition, a pollution prevention and mitigation mechanism has been established to maximize MediaTek's influence in the field of environmental protection.
The Company has also passed the certification audit for the ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System. The goal lies in the guarantee of workplace health and safety through systematic management. MediaTek operations are characterized by low energy intensity. Management of internally utilized energy resources can be divided into the five major dimensions of electricity, water consumption, waste management, transportation, and greenhouse gases.
▌Environmental Policies
As a global, fabless semiconductor company, we specialize in IC design. All manufacturing operations including wafer production, packaging, and testing are carried out by commissioned manufacturers. MediaTek therefore prioritizes green product design, green procurement and management for subcontractors, reduction of resource and energy waste, and safeguarding of employee health and safety.
This not only demonstrates MediaTek's commitment to fulfilling its sustainable development but also represents a key asset securing the Company's international competitiveness in the future. MediaTek proactively implements its environmental policies through four major management approaches. In 2022, total environmental expenses amounted to NTD64.59 million
▌Resource Management
In response to industry expansion, MediaTek built five new office sites and expanded its IT data center in 2022, which consumed a total of 165.508 GWh of electricity. The electricity consumption increased by 34% compared to the previous year, and therefore the target of 17.8% set for 2021 could not be achieved. Despite the increase in total electricity consumption, MediaTek has been working on energy saving and carbon reduction measures, and the percentage of electricity saved this year reached 16.3%. In the future, we will continue to plan and implement various energy reduction measures, and at the same time, we set 16.5% as our proactive electricity saving target for 2023.
Take a look at our Three priorities of energy management and conservation in MediaTek's 2022 ESG Report.
▌Greenhouse Gas Emission Management
● Scope 1 & 2 GHG emissions
Sources of GHG emissions from resource use include purchased electricity, common facilities,
boilers, cooling towers, and chillers. Purchased electricity, the main emission source, accounts for 93.27% of Scope 2 emissions. As the Company's scale of operations continues to grow, we are committed to improving energy eciency and planning for renewable energy use in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from our operations. The main reduction measures in 2022 are to improve the energy eciency of the data center, to replace the lighting of existing office locations with LEDs etc. in order to improve the efficiency of electricity consumption.
In addition, the company continues to pay attention to various climate actions, such as the
Science Based Targets (SBT) that limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 ° C and the global
renewable energy initiative—RE 100. Enhancing the use of renewable energy is currently one of the main ways to reduce carbon for companies around the world, and it is also Mediatek's essential approach to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, the company will continue to plan the renewable energy use target in two years, in order to gradually realize the effectiveness of corporate greenhouse gas reduction.
● Scope 3 GHG Emissions - Shuttle Bus Services
With a view to reducing carbon emissions from employee commuting, MediaTek proactively adopts environmental protection measures targeted at transportation issues which are of immediate concern to employees. In 2022, carbon emissions generated from transportation amounted to around 219 metric tons CO2e. To practically respond to the low carbon emission trend, in addition to maintaining the scheduled shuttle bus and electric shuttle bus between offices, 13 more electric vehicle charging stations were installed in 2022. Moreover, the first corporate Gogoro swapping station in Hsinchu Science and Industrial Park is expected to be launched in March 2023.
For specific performance information on greenhouse gas management, please refer to section 5.3.3 Greenhouse Gas Management" of MediaTek's 2022 ESG Report.
▌Water resource management
MediaTek's office water is supplied from the waterworks in each district. Due to the increase in the number of employees this year and the expansion of five new office premises and IT data centers, a total of 485,629 metric tons (approximately 486 million liters) of water was consumed. Its water consumption has increased by 27% compared to the previous year; therefore, the target of 5% set in 2022 could not be achieved. Despite the increase in total water consumption, MediaTek continues to carry out water resource improvement projects, and the average water saving rate reached 3.7%.
In the future, MediaTek will continue to implement various water reduction measures accordingly. In terms of risk management, the WRI Aqueduct tool was used to simulate the IPCC RCP 8.5 scenario to simulate and confirm that the sites in Taiwan are not located in areas with high water stress. Our wastewater is mostly domestic sewage.
It is discharged into natural water bodies upon treatment in wastewater plants in a unified manner in accordance with regional regulations to avoid local environmental impacts. The total discharged wastewater quantity of 202,792 metric tons (around 203 million liters) in 2022 is 12% more than the previous year for the same reason as the said increase water consumption.
▌Waste Management
● First enterprise in the Hsinchu Science Park area to set up a resource recycling machine in cooperation with EPA.
We reinforce waste management and prioritize waste reduction to realize the goal of resource recycling and reuse. Sorting, recycling, reuse, and proper treatment is carried out in a conscientious manner. In addition, ongoing improvements are implemented in the fields of waste storage, transportation, and treatment and environmental impacts. MediaTek selects qualified manufacturers for waste disposal and reuse operations in a rigorous manner and conducts non-scheduled audits of the legality of waste clearance processes to fulfill its supervision responsibility. In 2022, the waste treatment and recycling rate reached 38%. In addition, we are the first enterprise in the Hsinchu Science Park area to set up a resource recycling machine in cooperation with EPA and offer detailed information on our achievements as a reference for other companies.
For more information, please refer to the Environmental Management section of MediaTek's 2022 ESG Report.