Integrated Reporting is a new but rapidly growing trend in business financial reporting.  More and more companies are realizing financial value from their non-financial activities.  They are finding ways to measure the value of their intangible assets and then integrating these values into one financial report.  

This is significant in that non-financial activities or intangible assets include things like Environmental, Health, Safety and Security, all of which contribute to a company's Corporate Sustainability Statement.  

As a world leader for nearly 20 years in Environmental, Health, Safety, and Security compliance management solutions, Citation Technologies is well positioned to assist a business engaged in the development of Corporate Sustainability statements and Integrated Reporting.

Introduction

Sustainability is a term that was introduced back in the 1980's, but recently has seen exponential growth as indicated by the term's use in periodicals. Charting a term's use in periodicals over time is a trustworthy indicator on the general direction of business trends. Over the past ten years, the use of the term Sustainability has doubled every two years.  Beginning at less than 20,000 noted citations in 2002, the use of the term has grown to over 200,000 citations in periodicals per year.  That equates to a doubling in its use every two years.

According to the Integrated Reporting Committee of South Africa, an integrated report tells the overall story of the organization. It is a report to stakeholders on the strategy, performance and activities of the organization in a manner that allows stakeholders to assess the ability of the business to create and sustain value, or the sustainability of the business.

An effective integrated report reflects an appreciation that the organization's ability to create and sustain value is based on financial, social, economic and yes, environmental, health, safety and security systems. Integrated reporting combines the most material elements of information currently reported in separate reporting strands in a coherent whole.

This series of articles over the next couple of months will identify some key concepts of integrated reporting. Other areas to explore will include how the data, content and tools available through Citation Technologies can be used to assist our clients with the non-financial components used in their sustainability statements and their one financial report.

Please feel free to engage in this discussion.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are working together to examine the possibility of utilizing potentially contaminated sites, such as brownfields, Superfund sites and former landfills or mining sites as locations for renewable energy production. 

The study is part of EPA’s RE-Powering America’s Land Initiative, which was launched in 2008 to encourage the development of renewable energy on contaminated land. 

There are 26 sites in 20 states that are being evaluated for the potential use of wind, solar, biomass or geothermal energy production.  Each site will be evaluated to determine the best renewable energy type for the site, potential energy generating capacity, economic feasibility and return on investment. 

Successful examples of renewable energy projects being constructed on contaminated sites are already in existence.  Over 20 projects have been completed and more are underway.  In 2010, a six megawatt solar array was built on a superfund site in Sacramento County, CA.  The solar array is being used to power the cleanup of the site. 

One possible site under evaluation is the West Haymarket brownfield site in Lincoln, NE.  Funds from the feasibility study are being used to look at the possibility of using the site to generate renewable wind energy.  The energy could be used to power a planned 16,000 seat arena and other civic, commercial and retail projects.  Using wind energy would make the $340 million redevelopment project more sustainable and reduce its carbon footprint.

Another site undergoing evaluation is the Round Grove Creek Landfill, part of the Municipal Farm Site that is owned by the city of Kansas City, MO.  The site offers just over 14 acres of clear, level land, located close to a public utility substation and power lines, making it an ideal site for solar energy production.  Another area of the Municipal Farm Site, the Western Portion, contains 19 acres of brownfield sites and 120 acres of vacant, clear and level land located close to power lines and railroad lines, making the site ideal for biopower development. 

The overall goal of these studies is to provide information on the best way to renew and revitalize the potentially contaminated sites while protecting public health and the environment and providing economic benefits to the communities around them, including the creation of jobs.  Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response says, “These studies are the first step to transforming these sites from eyesores today to community assets tomorrow.”

Mark Harbin has more than 20 years of experience in commercial and industrial environmental systems. With the Compliance Services Division of IHS and a Certified Environmental Auditor (CEA), he is actively involved in conducting onsite refrigerant management audits and assisting clients in meeting their operational and environmental goals.

Continuity is a big challenge for organizations today – especially when it comes to regulatory compliance. Owners and operators have obligations under the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts to ensure compliance – regardless of economic or other challenges. Yet more and more employees are being charged with “do more with less” and to “wear more hats.” People get spread too thin. Something’s got to give – right?

The “sine wave” up and down of environmental initiatives in organizations is related to many factors – employee turnover, reorganizations, consolidations, downsizing, acquisition, layoffs, budget cuts, etc. No matter what external factor upsets business as usual, environmental regulatory compliance initiatives (fragile things at best) will be negatively affected. From my experience as an environmental auditor, refrigerant compliance is a frequent victim of lack of continuity. Why?

It is the one area of the Clean Air Act Amendments that is most perplexing to environmental managers. Title VI along with Section 608 and 609 of the Clean Air Act Amendments is related to stratospheric ozone depleting CFC and HCFC refrigerants. These regulations are a morphed hybrid of the air conditioning industry and its jargon, and highly detailed air pollution rules. The end product is a mass of confusion for most owners and operators.

Environmental managers do not typically speak HVAC (heating, ventilation, air conditioning) jargon and can have difficulty matching what the AC techs have said or logged with what the rules say. Getting a clear answer is often dependent on understanding the language of that trade. This tends to make them hesitant to lead refrigerant compliance initiatives.

The other group, facility managers, is typically managing groups of personnel that are crisis driven – systems break down, need immediate attention and quick resolution – or major costs can be incurred. Often spread thin with too few people and limited budgets, facility managers are usually not the first to volunteer to launch refrigerant compliance initiatives – or sustain them. But they often do anyway! Why? Because they understand that it is necessary for the organization to cover itself and its people.

Ownership and upper management, however, may not understand the necessity (and fragility) of refrigerant compliance – it’s too far down the food chain in their organization. Environmental managers have the responsibility of informing management of their regulatory obligations, but if they do not have a clear understanding of the specific rules how can they explain them to management?

"Sustainability" is a term that gets attached to a lot of issues. Management needs to inject some sustainability into their refrigerant compliance programs to ensure they survive the constant change that is the norm these days.

Sustainability measures that management can implement to aid continuity include:

• Establish a refrigerant management team to include environmental, facilities, operations, and purchasing/contracting (more people involved helps build momentum)
• Assign a site refrigerant compliance manager to oversee compliance initiatives
• Assign a “wingman” – don’t put the whole program’s success in one person’s lap (they might win the lottery and then what?)
• Develop refrigerant compliance policies and work practices specific to your organization.
• Assign responsibilities related to job titles. The Team should revisit and revise these as reorganizations, mergers, consolidations and the like occur.
• Provide the resources necessary to initiate and sustain refrigerant compliance over time – regular training, auditing, electronic recordkeeping systems

Deep downside: Ownership needs to keep in mind that failure to act can be deemed negligent and criminal by regulators. Several cases exist where plant managers and facility managers have had to defend themselves when accused of criminal conduct. Civil fines are based on $37,500 per day, per each violation. Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) can end up costing millions of dollars with complete replacement of CFC/HCFC chillers and HVAC systems. One facility with sub-standard compliance can bring full EPA investigation and enforcement to the entire organization! Guess who gets downsized next?

This week's post was written by guest blogger Fu Lu, Senior Environmental Regulatory Specialist with ESD China Limited, an associate of Inogen Environmental Alliance.

Released by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) on September 17, 2010, and effective November 1, the Interim Measures on the Assessment and Review of Energy-Saving of Fixed Asset Investment Projects (the Measures) are designed to curb excessive increases in energy consumption and raise energy use efficiency across China.

According to the Measures, all new investment projects (including new construction, renovation and expansion projects) must undergo independent assessments and government reviews on whether they are energy-saving or not before being approved by regulators. Independent institutions will carry out the energy-saving assessments while government departments will take charge of the review work. Any fixed asset investment project that fails to meet the energy-saving requirements will be vetoed. Those projects that pass the energy-saving assessments and reviews will be subjected to strict supervision of their actual energy consumption.

According to the Measures, projects with an annual energy consumption of over 3,000 tons of coal equivalent must submit an energy-saving assessment report to government regulators. Projects with an annual energy consumption between 1,000 tons and 3,000 tons of coal equivalent will have to submit an energy-saving assessment form. Projects that consume less than 1,000 tons of coal equivalent annually will only have to submit a government energy-saving registration form. Both the assessment report and assessment form must be completed by independent institutions and reviewed by government regulators, while the registration form can be filled out by the project owner and does not need to go through a government regulator’s review.

Before the Measures took effect, there were no such compulsory restrictions on the country's new fixed asset investment projects. The implementation of the new Measures will ensure only projects that pass the energy-saving assessment and review can be approved for construction. This will restrain excessive increases in energy consumption for all new investment projects and thus help China achieve the new target of 16% reduction of per unit GDP energy consumption during 2011 - 2015.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is rolling out a new plan this year to promote the use of green infrastructure. 

They will focus on cities and towns, and plan to work with the private sector to encourage the use of green infrastructure to manage stormwater runoff.

According to the EPA’s website, green infrastructure is “an approach to wet weather management that is cost-effective, sustainable, and environmentally friendly.”  Sounds like a win-win-win situation!

The website goes on to elaborate that, “Green Infrastructure management approaches and technologies infiltrate, evapotranspire, capture and reuse stormwater to maintain or restore natural hydrologies.” 

Green infrastructure can exist on many scales, and indeed works best when applied at multiple scales. 

From a building with a green roof to the preservation or restoration of floodplains and wetlands – all of these things help to reduce the amount of water that enters a city’s sewer system, thereby reducing the amount of wastewater processed at treatment plants, which ultimately results in lower operating costs, and subsequently lower cost to taxpayers. 

From the perspective of private entities, green infrastructure just makes sense, especially if you are constructing new buildings (though it is just as easy to incorporate green infrastructure into existing structures). 

Green roofs can reduce energy costs by 10-15 percent by providing increased insulation, resulting in lower heating and cooling costs.  Permeable paving materials used in parking lots or even walkways can help control localized flooding during rains as well as helping to filter the water and keep it from entering sewer systems. 

If a green roof isn’t an option, consider a rain harvesting system for your roof.  The amount of rainwater that can be collected from one storm can be substantial, and can be used to water surrounding landscapes, thereby reducing your water bill. 

Planting trees increases the aesthetic value of a property in addition to resulting in energy savings from shading and windblocking.

It seems likely that building codes will start to reflect the movement towards green infrastructure at some point in the future.  Why not get a jump on the game and start now?   

By Phil Osterholt

Amidst a sea of snotty professional athletes (who probably think sustainability means driving a luxury sedan twice a week rather than a tricked-out, over-sized SUV) it's refreshing every two years when the Olympic Games occur and remind us just how "good" the world of sports, and the world in general, can be.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is an organization that has earned the respect of the world. And like the straight-A student who just haaaaadto put in more community service hours than everyone else, the IOC reminded us of its integrity during the 9th World Conference on Sport and the Environment last week in Doha, Qatar.

Oh, that question you're asking yourself, "What in the heck is the World Conference on Sport and the Environment?" needs to be replaced. "Why in the heck ..." is better suited. The answer: "The IOC does this to lead by example."

There was no international agency that tapped the IOC on the shoulder and said, "Eh-hem, to comply with XYZ regulations, you shall participate in a biennial meeting to establish progressive means in which the world of sports may demonstrate sustainability."

Well, let's not be too Polyanna about this. It’s probably not completely “just because,” as there are other "business" reasons for the IOC doing this sort of thing, mainly to maintain that sterling reputation and to generate some ink from time to time (happy to oblige).

In general though, it appears that this type of conference is essentially put on to benefit mankind.

The roots of the World Conference on Sport and the Environment are based in the 1992 "Earth Summit" held by the United Nations. The meeting prompted the IOC to consider the environment in its actions, and in 1994, the IOC made "the environment" the third pillar of the Olympic Movement while creating a branch of the organization to handle environmental issues. The IOC then teamed with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to host the first biennial World Conference on Sport and the Environment in 1995 in Switzerland.

And where has the IOC gotten to now? Let's look at the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver, for which the Olympic Village went on to be honored with a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum rating...

Reduce: they warmed buildings using heat generated from raw sewage, lowering the need for traditional energy sources.

Re-use: they utilized wood from trees that had been killed by pine beetles in construction of the Richmond Olympic Oval [picture above], and collected rainwater from roofs to flush the toilets.

Recycle: they turned the venue into a community center upon completion of the Games.

Again, these were not things they had to, but things they wanted to do. When the eyes of the world are upon you, that's the right thing to do.

So whose eyes are on you? You’re following your EHS regulations and playing by the rules, but what little things could you, or your company, do to take it to the next level?

Maybe your company can reduce its paper output by converting its utility bills to paperless, or by offering direct deposit (it's not just abut the paper with direct deposit, but also eliminating employee's superfulous trips to their respective financial institutions).

Those are itsy bitsy teeny tiny things, and are "tired" thoughts at this point. In other words, those aren't "leadership" actions, but "follow-the-herd" actions. That’s not to say that the little things help change our world too, but leadership is about doing something huge.

And if "just because" doesn't float your boat ... try making an innovative change in the right direction, and see what it does for your "image."

And, again, think about whose eyes are on you.

If you’d like to increase the number of those who know of your good deeds, feel free to brag about something you've already done by leaving a comment below. It’s not just bragging, it’s sharing ideas so others can follow.

German Federal Environment Minister Norbert Röttgen announced on July 29 that offshore wind power companies can rely on government guarantees to finance 10 wind energy mega-projects in the North and Baltic seas.

The projects involve the development of 10,000 MW of offshore wind farm capacity within the next 10 years, and 25,000 MW in the next 20 years.

The German government is finalizing its energy plans for the next 40 years. Röttgen believes that Germany can reach nearly 100% renewable energy by 2050, with wind power providing approximately 50% of that power.

For Europe as a whole, offshore wind power growth is robust. In 2010, Europe’s offshore wind farm installation has proliferated, with more MW installed in the first half of 2010 than in the same period of 2009.

On July 3, 2010, President Obama announced the offer of a conditional commitment to Solana, Arizona-based Abengoa Solar Inc. for a $1.45 Billion loan guarantee to finance the construction and start-up of a concentrating solar power generating facility. The facility will utilize parabolic solar trough technology and a 6-hour energy storage system, which will add 250 MW of capactiy to the electrical grid.

Named the Solana Project, the facility will be located near Gila Bend, Arizona. It will supply about 70,000 homes with power and reduce overall CO₂ emissions by 475,000 tons per year. Abengoa Solar has signed a 30-year power purchase agreement with APS, the state’s largest electric utility, to sell the energy.

Solar trough systems use parabolic mirrors that focus the sun’s energy at up to 60 times its normal intensity onto a receiver pipe filled with a fluid, usually synthetic oil. The fluid becomes heated to over 700°F and is pumped through a heat exchanger to produce steam. Electricity is then produced with a conventional steam turbine. The Solana facility will also inlcude 6 hours of molten salt thermal energy storage, which will dispatch energy during cloudy periods and evening hours.

The project will create over 1,600 construction jobs with an additional 85 permanent jobs, and is expected to attract hundreds more in indirect employment. Two assembly plants will be constructed on the Solana Project site, as well as a factory in Surprise, AZ to supply the company’s need of over 900,000 mirrors.

Regarding the Solana Project, Energy Secretary Steven Chu stated, “Supporting this type of innovative renewable energy project is part of our commitment to creating a clean energy future while significantly reducing green house gases.”