Eagle Environmental

Author: clareh

  • Environmental Ponderings No 9: Does “Environment” Have Anything to do With “Real Life”?

    I still periodically encounter people who will tell me that “environment” has nothing to do with “real” life and is only in the minds of “bunny huggers” and eco-freaks.

    Sadly, there are many people who judge environmental management and sustainability thinking as a luxury practiced only by, “…the rich, the feeble-minded and those with nothing better to do…”.  I use speech marks because this is an actual quote from someone I spoke to just a few months ago.

    I use a simple and understandable example to explain the significance of “environment” to “real life”.  The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) estimated that out of some 100 crop species which provide 90% of food worldwide, 71 of these are bee-pollinated. In Europe alone, 84% of the 264 crop species are animal pollinated and 4 000 vegetable varieties exist, thanks to pollination by bees.  Imagine what would happen if those crops were not pollinated and the crops subsequently failed? Human food supply would be significantly affected, and we would be faced with a  serious hunger crisis.

    Why should we worry about the environment on which bees and butterflies (who also help pollination) rely?  A new report from the United Nations shows that these pollinators are dying fast for four main reasons:

    • man-induced land use changes reducing biodiversity and increasing monoculture;
    • increased diseases and parasites brought on by human-induced changes to habitats,
    • increased human use of broad scale chemical pesticides used to control other pests but which also wipe out pollinators; and
    • climate change which is about rising global temperatures which shift and reduce the range of habitats where pollinators survive.

    US researchers report that air pollution from vehicles and power stations has been shown to inhibit the ability of pollinators  such as bees and butterflies to find the fragrances of flowers. The pollutants bond quickly with the volatile scent molecules, masking them and causing the pollinators to have to travel longer distances, away from the pollutants, to find flowers providing them with nectar.  The flowers closer by receive inadequate pollination and do not reproduce and diversify as efficiently.

    The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) are suggesting that climate change is causing bees and butterflies to emerge at different times in the year when the appropriate flowering plants were not available.

    So the next time you hear of a bee keeper bemoaning the numbers of his bees that have died due to disease and pesticides or a butterfly expert telling you that a butterfly habitat is being wiped out to make way for a massive new housing estate, think carefully on the implications of the loss of yet more populations of critical pollinators.

    Are we looking after  the critical, diverse habitats that we depend upon for our food and shelter? Can we really directly and indirectly weaken the biodiversity of our environment without ultimately effecting human survival in the long run? Closer to home, Is there anything that you can do to encourage pollinators in your garden or property?

    Arend Hoogervorst is an environmental scientist with some 35 years of experience in South Africa in environmental management and sustainable development in local and central government, commerce and industry and private practice.

    © Arend Hoogervorst, 2016.

  • Environmental Ponderings No 8: Can I Help You to Save the Environment?

    As a professional environmental advisor, I stopped using the opening line, “Can I help you to save the environment?” about 20 years ago.  Why? Mostly because very few people are altruistic enough or rich enough to magnanimously be able to “save the environment”. Even more people counter that request with the question, “What’s in it for me?”

    That triggered my thinking to my current opening gambit which tends to be along the lines of, “Can I help you to save money and make more money?” Sadly, much of our life revolves around finding ways of ensuring that there are enough Rands in the bank account at the end of each month to pay the bills. Our life is driven by consumerism and a capitalist system which is driven by spending. Yes, some of us are able to be altruistic but at a cost.

    Everyone loves to be told a story and if the story has some kind of practical message, it makes it even more useful. The Ngewana family live in an 5 bedroom suburban home and they were challenged to see what they could do to live more sustainably. Over a six month period, they moved from understanding their current resource usages, changing their behaviour and finally practising a more efficient and cheaper way of living. A report on their project has been produced and in these tough times, is an eye opener on what can relatively easily be achieved. The report on the project can be freely downloaded at http://mygreenhome.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/My-Green-Home-long-version-spreads.pdf  There are also other graphics and examples on the main website which will give you other thoughts and ideas. Having seen what the Ngewanas have achieved, you might want to “give it a go”. The thoughts and questions below may start you on the journey, if you haven’t already commenced it…..

    Like most things in life, there is no magic formula for “being green”. Much of the success depends upon your existing lifestyle and what you are prepared to sacrifice.  Do you want to change your lifestyle? What have you got used to? Does it depend upon “stuff”? Change is an anathema to most people. Most will fight change vigorously and eventually, surrender to the new requirements. If we ponder on change, it becomes clear that it is a part of life and we are constantly subject to change. In most cases, it is a creeping, imperceptible change that we are not aware of. Sudden change comes in the form or new jobs, new houses, bereavements, retrenchments, weddings, divorces and emigration.

    “Going green” is a change that requires some thinking about. Why do you want to do it?  What will you gain from it that will make you want to maintain it as a lifestyle and a philosophy? Are you prepared to invest your time and money in making the necessary physical and practical changes that will successfully make an active and noticeable difference? Can you afford to “go green”? (Yes, you will have to make an investment which will cost you and you have to commit to that investment.)

    If you have reached this stage and are still positive, maybe start putting things down on paper. Take a sheet of blank paper and draw a line down the middle.  On the left side, head the column, “Positives”  and on the right column, “Negatives”. Write down all the positives and negatives of going green, based on my questions above and what you have seen from the Ngewana s’ examples.

    Discussing the resulting  positives and negatives will give you an indication of the risks that you face in “going green”. Don’t be fooled into thinking that there are no risks. Facing the risks and overcoming them is part of managing change. Go forward, whatever you believe “forward” to be, and I wish you much luck and good fortune in the changes that you decide to make.

    Arend Hoogervorst is an environmental scientist with some 30 years of experience in South Africa in environmental management and sustainable development in local and central government, commerce and industry and private practice.

     © Arend Hoogervorst, 2015.

  • USA ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY – SUSTAINABILITY IN ACTION VIDEO SERIES

    The EPA Sustainability In Action Video Series is a page of links to short videos focusing upon US sustainability case studies. The videos can all be found on the EPA’s  You Tube page. The You Tube Channel is inspiring but a casual visit may result in many distractions ans it has many topics and directions to lead you on!

  • USA ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY – LEARN ABOUT GREENER LIVING

    Sometimes it make sense to go back to basics and revisit issues and concepts from a base level. The Learn about Greener Living page is simple in design and layout and is a useful memory jog. It has an American target audience in mind but many of the principles apply in any context. Worth a visit.

  • EPA Practical Guide To Environmental Management for Small Business

    The US Environmental Protection Agency’s Small Business Division produced its Practical Guide To Environmental Management For Small Business in 2002.  The Guide, though dated and focussing upon US legislation, is still a useful introduction to the small businessperson who is new to environment and business and needs some guidance on practicalities. The process map on page 7 is a useful first introduction to life cycle assessment (LCA) and helps to move thinking away from environmental management being a luxury, rather than a necessity.

  • JUDGING THE QUALITY OF RISK ASSESSMENTS

    Risk Assessments form an important part of business activities, particularly where there are different tasks to be undertaken which may have safety, health and environmental risks of varying degrees of significance. One of the weaknesses of the risk assessment process is that it is only as good as the knowledge, skills, training and experience of the teams involved in preparing the risk assessments. Lack of experience, training and task understanding can produce risk assessments of varying qualities and can lack critical content necessary to minimise and mitigate risks.

    An article called “Key Elements for Judging the Quality of a Risk Assessment”, written by Penelope Fenner-Crisp and Vicki Dellarco, appearing in Environmental Health Perspectives, Volume 124, Number 8, August 2016, summarises the key characteristics of a high quality risk assessment, albeit focussing mainly on those risk assessment related to human health impacts associated with exposure to chemicals. The authors do remark that their discussion and comments could equally apply to ecological risk assessment and to other stresses such as radiation, microbes, products of biotechnology, and categories such as environmental contaminants, medical devices, drugs, tobacco, consumer products, commodity chemicals, pesticides and food contaminants. It becomes clear, reading through the article, that there are many aspects of the authors’ conclusions and recommendations that could be carried over to task-based risk assessments and their evaluation.

    Apart from the valuable analytical content in the paper, a very practical tool included in the paper is Appendix 1 – Guide for Judging the Quality of an Assessment. The Guide consists of seven sections which prompt the assessor to test the assessment against statements under the various categories. The categories are:- Problem Formulation/Scoping and Planning; Systematic Review of the Literature; Hazard Assessment/Characterisation; Dose-Response Assessment/Characterisation; Exposure Assessment/Characterisation; Risk Characterisation; and Peer Review. This is a powerful guide for continuous improvement and although preparers of basic risk assessments may find it too complex, there is certainly plenty to gain by working through the categories and utilising the statements in different risk assessment processes.

  • REFLECTIONS ON LIFE – IS THINKING A DYING ART?

     “Thought makes every thing fit for use” – Emerson (1844)

     “If a man sits down to think, he is immediately asked if he has a headache” Emerson (1833)

     Does anyone think these days? No, I mean really THINK about things…. When facing an important decision, do we still ponder on the options and the pros and cons of each option, toy with the possibilities, do “what ifs”, review short, medium and long term consequences, reflect on who might or might not be affected, consider how we feel about the options….?

    Life is currently a blur of information pouring into our smart phones, email in-boxes, flooding in from our kids demanding answers “for school”,  spewing out of the TV from 24 hour news stations, overwhelming us in our newspapers (if we still read them), need I go on?

    When did you last sit down with a cup of coffee or a glass of red wine and have a good think? I’ll wager it may be a long time ago, if you can still remember it….

    Decision-making these days has become somewhat of an assembly line process with 3 page emails flowing in calling for answers and within 30 seconds of the email arriving, the writer is on the phone demanding to know if it’s been read yet. The pressure is on the make a quick decision, Now, now, NOW!

    When was the last time you sat down on the veranda with a meaty book and immersed yourself in the imagery gushing from the pages and watched, as an outsider, as your favourite character had to deal with the problems, not you? Did you picture in your mind, the settings in the book, the faces of the people, the thought processes they were going through?

    I believe that the “physical exercise” of thinking is imagination. In a child it is make-believe and that invisible, imaginary world of a child’s play and creation of scenes, sights, friends and places. In an adult, it is the imagery from the written word, the inspirations from memories and places. Like any muscle in the body, if the brain is not “exercised” by thought, imagination and stimulation of the senses, it dulls and declines.

    Reading helps stimulate the use of words and increasing one’s vocabulary helps to encourage wider use of words which helps to put meaning and expression to thought. Reading encourages imagination, imagination results in thought. Thought can result in expression. Expression stimulates sharing exchange and debate. Debate encourages communication. Communication is necessary to maintain social cohesion and support cooperative activities for the good of all.

    We need to exercise our thought processes by reading, not just reports, or feasibility studies or manuals, but also creative stories, essays, description, mysteries, puzzles and word pictures to remind us of the joy and stimulation of words and thought.

    Read this piece again and decide if you agree or disagree. Does it evoke any reaction? Does it make you want to reconsider the way you address your decision making? Whatever else, it probably made you think……

  • ICMM – Demonstrating Value – A Guide to Responsible Sourcing

    The guide, produced in 2015, examines the context and drivers for responsible sourcing and provides practical guidance and examples on approaches that companies can take to demonstrate that they are producing materials responsibly. Examples of drivers include: climate change, increasing social responsibility expectations of business, and more stringent environmental, health and safety standards and regulations.

    Using work undertaken by ICMM, the guide ensures that common sustainable development challenges are considered not only at the mine or metal production facility but throughout the whole value chain.

    This approach, termed materials stewardship, was built on the premise that companies have a shared responsibility for the materials that they produce. Demonstrating value focuses on the two complementary sides of the responsible sourcing debate – sustainable procurement and responsible supply.

    The guide is organised around four themes that can be summarised as: mapping the value chain, developing programmes and standards; engaging with stakeholders and contributing to knowledge. These topics are supported by case studies that illustrate how the approaches have been successfully applied to create business value and maximise the contribution of companies and materials.

    Although aimed at the mining industry, many of the practical suggestions are applicable to other sectors. ICMM’s ten sustainable development principles are particularly useful as high level policy guidelines.

    The Guide can be freely downloaded here on the ICMM website.

  • ICMM – Land Acquisition and Resettlement

    Land acquisition and resettlement is a sometime painful and emotionally charged component that often accompanies new development. Mining companies are frequently in the forefront of this component and it is for this reason that the ICMM released, in 2015, its publication, Land Acquisition and Resettlement, which outlines the lessons learned from a benchmarking study into 41 resettlement projects worldwide.

    The publication provides recommendations for managing the resettlement of local communities who have been displaced or whose livelihoods have been impacted due to the presence of mining. This includes ensuring adequate compensation and development opportunities. It recognises that there are no one-size-fits-all solutions for successful resettlement activities, but there are many useful lessons to learn from past experience.

    Resettlement remains a very challenging area for companies despite clear global standards around resettlement and land acquisition, notably that of the International Finance Corporation Performance Standard 5.

    The document is structured around 10 modules that cover planning, stakeholder engagement, compensation, livelihood restoration and monitoring impacts among other topics. The modules are based on material originally generated through research for a benchmarking report supported by ICMM members Gold Fields, Rio Tinto and Glencore.

    Some of the key challenges of resettlement include not commencing the planning early enough, or investing in enough human or financial resources to ensure impacts are assessed and mitigated, and that benefits are shared in a sustainable way. This can result in grievances from resettled and host communities that can have negative follow-on impacts including conflict between stakeholders and disruptions to operations. Projects that do invest in planning resettlement appropriately have been shown to gain the trust of local communities and develop collaborative relationships with governments.

  • Assessing Water Usage, Risk, Comparisons and Footprints

    Water is a strategic resource for most businesses. However, there is still a reluctance to take water management seriously, despite the fact that water availability has become a serious factor in business risk assessments.

    There are many different tools and techniques available to assist business managers and directors to understand and quantify that water risk. The Internet provides access to many of these tools, whose use needs to be considered carefully. Some are high level tools developed for policy makers and not relevant to the average businessperson. Others are very specific to, for example, a country or a business sector. As in most aspects of life, there is no “quick fix” or “universal solution”. The tools need to be examined, experimented with and, in some cases, adapted to site/area/sector/use specific needs and requirements.

    The WWF has prepared a comparison of some of the major accessible water tools  but as it was compared by the team who developed the WWF water risk filter, there is a disclaimer which suggests that the comparison may not be entirely objective!

    The CEO Water Mandate has assembled an extensive and varied list of water resource evaluation tools which cover a wide range of scenarios and situations. It takes time to work through these – be warned! Or you can follow the water stewardship toolbox and work through the suggestions put forward.

    Indicated below is an abbreviated list of water tools which may assist businesses that need to draw up an objective view of their water risks using a combination of quantitative and qualitative information. Please feel free to provide feedback as this article will be updated periodically with new information, as it becomes available.

    WBCSD Global Water Tool

    The World Business Council for Sustainable Development Global Water Tool (GWT) is a free, publicly available resource for identifying corporate water risks and opportunities which provides easy access to and analysis of critical data. It includes a workbook (data input, inventory by site, key reporting indicators, metrics calculations), a mapping function to plot sites with datasets, and Google Earth interface for spatial viewing.

    By comparing sites with the best available water, sanitation, population and biodiversity information on a country and watershed basis, including sub-basin data, the tool allows one to answer the following questions:

    • How many of your sites are in extremely water-scarce areas? Which sites are at greatest risk? How will that change in the future?
    • How much of your total production is generated from your most at risk sites?
    • How many of your employees live in countries that lack access to improved water and sanitation?
    • How many of your suppliers are in water scarce areas now and will be in 2025?

    GEMI “Connecting the Drops” Water Sustainability Tool

    The Global Environmental Management Initiative (GEMI) has developed an analytical process, the Water Sustainability Tool, to assist individual companies and other organizations to better understand what emerging water issues might mean for them, given their operations, needs, and circumstances. The tool is designed to help individual companies build a business water strategy. The tool encourages businesses to:

    • Conduct a systematic assessment of their relationship to water;
    • Identify specific opportunities and risks associated with this relationship;
    • Assess the business case for action;
    • Tailor a water strategy that addresses specific needs and circumstances of the organization; and
    • Ensure that water-related opportunities and risks are tracked and managed effectively into the future using a continual improvement framework.

    WWF Water Risk Filter

    The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Water Risk Filter tool helps companies and investors ask the right questions about water. It allows the user to assess risks and offers guidance on what to do in response. More than 2,500 organizations from 32 industry sectors have assessed facilities. Specific facilities or agricultural commodities can be viewed, each with an automated basin assessment and questionnaire to evaluate direct operations.

    CERES Aqua Gauge

    The Aqua Gauge offers a comprehensive Excel-based assessment tool for evaluating an existing water strategy or building one from the ground up. The Aqua Gauge helps companies:

    • Frame and assess options for managing water risk.
    • Prioritize and improve responses to water risk.
    • Communicate key water risk information to stakeholders.

    Global Water Footprint Assessment Standard

    The Water Footprint Assessment is a four-phase process that quantifies and maps green, blue and grey water footprints, assesses the sustainability, efficiency and equitability of water use and identifies which strategic actions should be prioritised in order to make a footprint sustainable.

    Indian Water Tool

    The India Water Tool is an online tool for companies and other users to understand their water-related risks and prioritize actions toward sustainable water management. It combines data from Indian government agencies and water stress indicators from WRI and the Columbia Water Centre.

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