This paper was published in Pollution Prevention Review, Winter 1990/91 and is a prompt to go back to basics. Many concepts may be old but they are still applicable to businesses.
The techniques used in waste reduction are broken down into four major categories-managing inventory, modifying production processes, reducing waste volume, and recovering waste. Within each category, the paper gives examples of process or materials changes or modifications that can be implemented to minimize waste.
This publication was supported by UNDP and GEF and published under the auspices of the Bhutan National Environment Commission. Although published in 2011, there are useful perspectives included because it was produced as a teaching tool.
The publication is split into four main sections: Environmental Management Concepts; Environmental Management Principles; Environmental Management Tools and Techniques; and Other best known Environmental Management Tools and Processes. The explanations for many common terms and concepts are in plain language and are good for the “newbie” and the veteran, alike.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) define global priorities and aspirations for 2030. They represent an unprecedented opportunity to eliminate extreme poverty and put the world on a sustainable path.
The objective of the Guide, developed by GRI, the UN Global Compact and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), is to support companies in aligning their strategies with the SDGs and in measuring and managing their contribution. There is also a four page, Summary of the guide for those who wish to sample the contents.
The guide has been developed with a focus on large multinational enterprises. However, small and medium enterprises and other organizations are also encouraged to use it as a source of inspiration and adapt it, as necessary. It is designed for use at high level, but may be applied at product, site, divisional or regional level as required.
Designed for global action: Between 2000 and 2015, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) provided an important development framework and achieved success in a number of areas such as reducing poverty and improving health and education in developing countries. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have succeeded the MDGs, expanding the challenges that must be addressed to eliminate poverty and embracing a wide range of inter-connected topics across the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development. The SDGs were born out of what is arguably the most inclusive process in the history of the United Nations, reflecting substantive input from all sectors of society and all parts of the world. Through the UN Global Compact alone, more than 1,500 companies provided input and guidance.
The goals are universally applicable in developing and developed countries alike. Governments are expected to translate them into national action plans, policies and initiatives, reflecting the different realities and capacities their countries possess. While they primarily target governments, the SDGs are designed to rally a wide range of organizations, and shape priorities and aspirations for sustainable development efforts around a common framework. Most importantly, the SDGs recognize the key role that business can and must play in achieving them.
“…There is no such thing as chance or accident; the words merely signify our ignorance of some real and immediate cause…”
Adam Clarke
Introduction
After incidents and accidents, most organisations go through some form of review or soul-searching to ask themselves if they could have done things better. The problem with this is that often company staff are too close to the systems to be honest (consciously and unconsciously) and often the phenomena of “industrial blindness” means that they are unable to objectively observe shortcomings or areas for improvement.
Any improvement, or reflection on improvement, needs to occur fairly soon after the incidents or accidents, whilst the memories of the events are still fresh. By bringing in an outside, “disinterested party”, it is possible to collect valuable evidence and intelligence which can be constructively used to make improvements and close any gaps in response and reactivity that may exist in the company’s systems, awareness, procedures, training and response mechanisms.
Process
There are many different processes and routes that can be taken to guide the activities for review. They depend very much upon how much the company is willing to spend and what information it would like to gather. Before costing the review exercise, it is important to have a meeting between the company and the external reviewer:- to establish an outline understanding of the event or occurrence; and define a scope of work and activity. This can then result in a cost effective and optimal proposal which can lead to a useful document for continuous improvement purposes within the company.
Topics to be reviewed
The following pointers are a sample of the topics that should be covered in the review:-
Was the cause of the incident covered in the corporate risk assessment, risk policy and or aspects and impact register? Was it covered by the company’s ISO 9001, 14001, OHSAS 18001/ ISO 45001, ISO 31001, ISO 37101, etc. certified or aligned systems?
Was there a response plan based upon the scenarios developed in the planning of the emergency response plan/policy/procedure?
Was the response team adequately briefed and trained to deal with the incident? Is there an effective succession plan in place to cover temporary or permanent absences of key management and technical staff in the response plan?
Was communication to identified and appropriate stakeholders on the incident spelled out in a communication strategy/procedure, including who to communicate with, what to say to them and how to maintain the dialogue? Was anyone tasked to track and file media coverage of the incident and feedback strategic content to the response team and or senior management?
Was there a structure in place to ensure that any necessary high level decision could be taken, passed down to the response teams and communicated to stakeholders and the media timeously?
Was there a mechanism is place to ensure that key information from the incident, as it unfolded, was fully recorded, documented and circulated to pre-identified key decision making individuals?
Was there a multi-dimensional incident investigation process/procedure in place to commence investigating cause and effect as soon as possible?
Were staff sufficiently trained and empowered to deal quickly with the incident and minimise the damage/loss/cost? Could hesitation or delay be put down to lack of confidence due to inadequate training, exercising or sequential tasks steps?
Are there procedures in place to respond to the incident? If so, were they successful? If not, why not and what was used in their place?
Is the incident isolated or could it occur again in the same, or similar, form elsewhere in the company?
Concluding Thoughts
The passing of time generally means that it is very difficult to completely “undo” the consequences of accidents and incidents. If it is possible, this may take a long time and may cost considerable resources.
It is crucial to look forward and learn from the experience, good or bad. Fobbing off the incident as “a freak chance” or “not likely to happen again” is not constructive. Minimising the possibility of recurrence requires careful deliberate investigation, root cause identification and modification and change of systems procedures, training and preparedness. It may even require the implementation of a change management process to test options and alternatives.
Arend Hoogervorst
EMS Auditor
Eagle Environmental
Annually, BP produces an informative and broad-based review and prediction of energy production and usage. There is a 6½ minute video presentation by BP Group Chief Economist, Spencer Dale, which summarises the contents of the report. On the same page as the video presentation, there is a link to the Energy Outlook launch webcast hosted by BP Chief Executive, Bob Dudley, assisted by Spencer Dale, held on 25th January 2017.
Spencer Dale commented, “…The main story in this year’s Energy Outlook is about energy transition that is taking place and is likely to continue to take place over the next 20 years. On the demand side, there’s a shift in the pattern of demand, away from the US and Europe to the fast growing Asian markets. On the supply side, the story is one of a continuing shift in the fuel mix towards lower carbon fuels…”
Palm oil is the world’s most common and versatile oilseed, found in products ranging from cooking oil to biofuels and household chemicals. Conventional palm oil production can be associated with illegal and unethical practices such as clearing of rainforest, land appropriations and the use of forced labour. These issues create regulatory, operational, and reputational risks for companies that can threaten their market access and overall brand equity.
This document, released by CERES in January 2017, aims to increase understanding, transparency, and accountability regarding responsible palm oil production by providing a shared set of reporting guidance for companies across the supply chain. Its primary purpose is to inform the content of public corporate communications and transparency on responsible production and sourcing activities including and beyond certification.
The document can also be used as a resource to guide dialogues and due diligence processes between companies, their suppliers, civil society stakeholders and investors.
The guidance document builds on, and integrates, common recommendations from existing reporting frameworks and sustainability initiatives. It is not intended as a new verification standard or as a separate reporting survey or scorecard. Companies are encouraged to report the information outlined in the guidance document through existing channels, such as sustainability reports, dashboards, and existing reporting frameworks.
While the document sets out “better practice” reporting, it can be used to improve reporting and transparency through a process of continuous improvement, regardless of where companies are in their sustainability journey.
The downloadable print version of this book is available here. However, should you wish to make use of the on-line toolkit, along with all of its various links, start here. The on-line kit and handbook includes information on energy efficiency, waste reduction, biodiversity protection, and sustainability beyond the office. The on-line facility also links to case studies which can be downloaded.
This initiative was championed by the Cape Town City Council with the help of various commercial sponsors, and was actually launched in 2013 but the material is still relevant and usable. It covers many bases and is a very useful way for businesses to start the process. It needs more depth to sustain an initiative of this nature but there are links to sites and organisations that can assist with taking the programme to more mature levels, once the basics are achieved.
The UNEP publication, “The Business Case for the Green Economy – Sustainable Return on Investment”, although published in 2012, is still a relevant and valuable document, particularly when preparing motivations for sceptical directors and reluctant managers.
This 40 page document is right-sized to provide the basic facts and these are well supported by nine, one page, company case studies. The full Technical Report is available for those who wish to delve deeper into the facts.
For those who need to understand the emerging issues that may affect corporate risk management programmes, there is a very useful table on page 8 which describes material issues in various industry sectors and the implications for transition to a Green Economy. Of course, these implications also highlight the issues that are developing for those sectors which have not yet decided to consider the transition to a green economy focus.
Another useful table, on page 22, describes how brand reputation is often seen as an important reason for organisational responses to calls for increased sustainability. The thought provoker here is the list of business benefits along the bottom access of the table.
The Business & Sustainable Development Commission (BSDC) has launched its flagship Better Business, Better World report. The report sets out to map the economic prize that could be available to business if the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are achieved. Following extensive research, it has identified 60 sustainable and inclusive market “hotspots” across four key areas (energy; cities; food and agriculture; health and wellbeing) that could create at least US$12 trillion in business value by 2030 and generate up to 380 million jobs. The report was produced by three dozen leaders from the private sector and civil society (including CEOs from four WBCSD member companies and our President and CEO, Peter Bakker).
The Better Business, Better World report was supported by: the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Global Green Growth Forum (3GF), the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the UK Department for International Development (DFID).
The Business and Sustainable Development Commission was launched in Davos in January 2016. It brings together leaders from business, finance, civil society, labour, and international organisations, with the twin aims of mapping the economic prize that could be available to business if the UN Sustainable Development Goals are achieved, and describing how business can contribute to delivering these goals.
The Environmental Resource Guidebook for SME Manufacturers was produced by the Federation of Hong Kong Industries in September 2008. Despite its age, it has a great deal of very useful information on key environmental issues in different industry sectors and discusses in basic terms, different environmental management tools that are available. The general checklist for environmental audit is excellent and a good basis on which to build any internal environmental audit.
The general content of this guidebook will be of use to anyone involved in environmental management and can be downloaded free of charge.
