2012 Sustainability Report

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Managing Our Legacy

Hazardous substances, including asbestos, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and coal tar, have historically been used or produced by Con Edison of New York and Orange and Rockland operations. Some of these sites (many of which are no longer owned by the company) still contain measurable levels of materials that are left over from historic operations. We have made substantial investments in investigating and, when necessary, remediating these sites, and strive to do so with minimal impact to property owners and our neighbors.

We are working closely with local, state, and federal regulatory agencies to identify and address sites that may be impacted by historic operations. A substantial number of sites are addressed under voluntary cleanup programs, where we have committed to minimize adverse impacts on health and the environment. In addition, the company is working closely with the community, keeping the public informed and aware of current projects and programs, through regular meetings, signs and notices, and an informational company website. We work hard to minimize disruptions to the local community, and monitor our impacts on a real-time basis throughout our remediation projects.

We accept our responsibilities for the investigation and cleanup of sites that we have historically owned and operated that were impacted by operations. Under state and federal laws, the company is held financially responsible for its impact to these sites and the remediation of impacted areas. The company sets aside money for the investigation and cleanup of these sites. For more information, please see the annual 10K report (PDF).

Today, we have active remediation sites throughout our service territory, where we are continuing to evaluate and, if necessary, clean up impacted soils and groundwater. We continue to identify areas throughout our service territory where investigation and remediation may be needed.