Entergy 2007 Annual Report Download - page 8

6
Entergy Corporation and Subsidiaries 2007
the Board wasn’t focused on doing the right thing, but because they
were focused on absolutely assuring we get it right and not leave
any money on the table in the transaction.
For another example, I would remind you Entergy did not jump
in front of the parade aer climate change became “fashionable”
or aer stakeholder pressures were applied. More than six years
ago, the Board directed the company to begin reducing emissions,
not just talk about it. ey have established principles for the
climate change debate consistent with the economic realities and
our company’s values. For example, we are a large independent
power generator, but our principles for climate change do not
promote free emission allowances under a cap-and-trade program
to power generators. We believe any free allowances should go
only to the end-use customers. We also believe the bulk of research
and development money should go to research for the retrot of
existing coal plants even though almost all of our generating plants
are nuclear- and natural gas-fueled. And even given the fact that
we have been voluntarily reducing our own emissions for years,
we are not prepared to support any mandatory plan for everyone
else, who have done little or nothing, that does not consider the
potential devastating nancial eects on the poor and middle class.
We recognize that it could be argued our principles are awed.
e company would be better o supporting free allowances
for all generators based on output or not supporting research to
“save” the existing competing coal plants. But that’s why they call
them principles. You can read more about the facts supporting our
principles later in the report.
I started by asking “Are we having fun yet?” Admittedly, it wasn’t
much “fun” seven years ago to answer questions on why we were
spending money to voluntarily reduce greenhouse gases before it
was mainstream to even acknowledge climate change was real. It
wasn’t much fun to hear the chuckles when we were buying nuclear
plants when the conventional wisdom was they were a liability. It
wasn’t much fun when the combination of hurricanes Katrina and
Rita wiped out 120,000 square miles of our system, including our
corporate headquarters, putting hundreds of employees out of a
place to work or live, and thousands on the road day and night
in the recovery eort. And we didn’t have answers to employee
questions like, “When will we have a day o to check on our home?”
or “Will the company ever be able to return to our home city –
New Orleans?” It wasn’t much fun when, despite our best eorts,
our goal of zero accidents was too distant to see. And it wasn’t
much fun when the stock price of the company remained in the
$20s as it had for decades.
Now, it is fun to see the results of years of eort and executing
on a solid point of view. But despite the skepticism of others or our
own frustrations at the slow progress in some areas over the years,
we have always had fun. It’s fun because we love what we do, and
believe in the long run, doing it well while doing the right thing
makes a dierence. A dierence for owners, for employees and
their families, for our communities and for future generations.
J. Wayne Leonard
Chairman and Chief Executive Ocer
We believe now is the time to
implement a smart carbon policy –
using certain guiding principles – in
order to stabilize harmful emissions
of greenhouse gases.
CLIMATE CHANGE