Environmental Management: Oil and Gas Industry & Sustainable Goals

This essay delves into environmental management for sustainable development, focusing on the integration of sustainability with global growth, particularly within the oil and gas industry. It examines the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and their relevance to the sector, highlighting both the positive and negative impacts of oil and gas operations on various SDGs, including ecosystems, economies, and communities. The essay identifies key drivers for sustainable practices, analyzes the impact indicators of SDGs, and explores potential strategies for the oil and gas industry to align with these goals. It emphasizes the importance of corporate leadership, stakeholder engagement, and the integration of SDGs into core business processes, including policies, reporting, and risk assessment. The essay also underscores the need for research and development in sustainable technologies, alongside engagement with governments, communities, and stakeholders to foster trust and secure social licenses for operation. The essay emphasizes the interconnectedness of the SDGs, illustrating how actions in one area can significantly impact others and drive holistic progress towards environmental sustainability.

Running head: ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
Environmental Management for Sustainable Development
Name of the Student:
Name of the Author:
Author Note:

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Introduction:
The essay is a description on environmental management for sustainable
development. The essay focuses on the reconciliation of sustainability with the global growth
aspect. There is a discussion on the sustainable development goal and its impact on the oil
and the gas industry. The essay also identifies the drivers and identifies the impact
sustainable social goal indicators. There is also discussion target potential concept and
strategies in the context of the oil and gas industry.
Sustainable Development Goals and their Importance in Oil and Gas Industry
The United Nations General Assembly on September 25, 2015 ensured the adoption
of 2030 of an Agenda for the purpose of sustainable development that helps in establishing
the global consensus for the coming 15 years (Sachs 2012). There overall 17 Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs) that aims at addressing the most pressing economic,
environmental and social challenges of the world. The member states of the United Nations
uses the SDG for framing their development agendas. The private sectors recognize these
SDGs and undertake necessary steps for achieving them.
The goals focus on the expansion of on eight anti poverty goals that are an expansion
of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (Kuik and Verbruggen, 2012). There is
however a strong interrelation between the SDGs therefore, contribution to one of the SDG
has impact on others. Similar is the process followed by the progress of any one of the SDG.
Various actors have opportunity for contribution through the numerous entry points. The
interrelated nature of SDG therefore highlights the engagement of multi-stakeholder,
complementary and collaboration partnerships across the governments, private sector and
civil society (Hák, Janoušková and Moldan 2016).

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The operations and products of the oil and gas industry have negative and positive
impacts on wider areas covered by the SDGs that also include ecosystems, economies and
communities (Moldan, Janoušková and Hák 2012). The industry has also contributed to the
sustainable development in numerable ways. These include generation of direct and indirect
jobs, providing access to energy thereby enabling social development and economic activity,
contribution to substantial tax and other forms of revenue for the government. The industry
also contributes through development of advanced products and technologies by investing in
research and development. The industry also encourages entrepreneurship and local content
that primarily associates with the capacity of benefit building (World Health Organization,
2016). The oil and gas industry also contributes by investing in long terms economic and
social success of the communities where they operate and ensure the management of the
impacts of the operations through emphasis on health, safety, human rights and
environmental protection. However, the SDGs also put forward various sustainability
challenges for the industry
Identification of the Drivers
An Atlas discusses the links that exists between the oil and gas industry and the
SDGs. This also helps in shared understanding of how the gas and oil industry helps in
effectively supporting the achievement of SDGs (Holden, Linnerud and Banister 2017). The
Atlas also enables mapping of the existing contributions of industry and encourages the
companies in identification of the additional opportunities that helps the countries in
progressing towards the goals. The Atlas is also responsible for assisting the oil and gas
companies and their stakeholders in development of a shared understanding of the
management of the social and environmental challenges of the industry through the
maximization of the economic benefits (Bass and Dalal-Clayton 2012).

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However, for each SDG, the Atlas helps in providing an assessment of the subset of
targets that have relevance in the oil and gas industry (Hajer et.al 2015). However, Atlas do
not attempt in identifying and mapping the potential importance that every target has.
Therefore, it is up to the companies for assessing the importance of each target as they
attempt in prioritizing and integrating the SDGs into the company’s core business (Oyedepo
2012). Governments also have primary responsibility for the implementation of the SDGs.
Thus, business must proactively try to understand priorities of the host nations and thereby
help them in aligning to the priority of the SDGs that they feel can strongly contribute.
Thus, it is important for the oil and gas industry for identifying those SDGs that are
relevant to the priorities, impacts and activities of the company (Singh et.al 2012). The
industry must also engage with the stakeholders in particular the governments for
identification of overlapping strategies. Further, the oil and gas industry also enables
collaboration with the stakeholders for development of shared understanding of the role of
the company in supporting SDGs.
Identification of the Impact Indicators of SDGs
There is close interlinking between 17 SDGs with less frequent provision for
indivisibility. The opportunities that the company has for integrating SDGs into the core
business will have an impact on multiple goals (Dahl 2012). The achievement of individual
goal will have implications on other goals and the supporting conditions that relates to them.
Initiatives might cut across and have substantial impact on the environmental, economic and
social spheres. Some areas must integrate fully across SDGs for maximizing the possibility of
achievement. The relation of cross cutting issue to a goal might significantly differ but they
would have some degrees of similarity (Joung et.al 2013). The area of climate change is a
good example in this context. Thus, when this is included as standalone goal it will have

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implications across all 17 SDGs and therefore addressing it is a matter of consideration while
approaching each of the goals.
Thus, 17 goals identified as the impact SDGs indicators indicates the first goal as no
poverty while the second goal represented by zero hunger (Shepherd 2015). The third
indicates good health and well-being whereas quality of education represented by the fourth
goal. The fifth goal represents gender equality and clean water and sanitation in represented
by the sixth goal. The seventh goal represents affordable and clean energy whereas decent
work and economic growth represented by the eighth goal. There is a ninth goal that
represents infrastructure, innovation and industry whereas the reduced inequalities
represented by the tenth goal. The eleventh however represents the sustainable communities
and the cities and the responsible production and consumption represented by the twelfth goal
(Pogge and Sengupta 2015). However, the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth goal
represented by climate action, life existing below water and the life existing on land
respectively. The sixteenth goal represents justice, peace and strong institutions while the
seventeenth goal represents the means for revitalizing and implementing the global
partnership for a sustainable development.
If one looks closely then one will be able to find that change of climate might
disproportionately affect the most vulnerable and the poor thereby undermining efforts for
ending poverty, the first goal of sustainable development, helping in achievement of gender
equality, the fifth goal and reduction of inequality within and amongst countries, the tenth
goal.
The change of climate also threatens the food industry, the second goal of sustainable
development and increases the stress of the water resources, the sixth goal. There climate
change will also damage diversity and alter the ecosystems which are the fourteenth and

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fifteenth goal of sustainable development. There may also be a change in the distribution
patterns of the infectious disease that also affects the global health, the third goal. The
changes in the other goals threaten security and peace, the sixteenth goal. However, the
climate change ensure progress in other SDGs through promotion of improved energy
efficiency, encouragement in developing the carbon capture and storage and also stimulates
investment in the cleaner burning of the natural gas alongside technologies and renewable
energies, the seventh goal of sustainable development. This can lead to opening up of newer
economic opportunities, the eighth goal. Thus, transparency helps in cutting across many
SDGs which when integrated help in achieving goals.
The transparency of the sector enhanced through publication of government contracts,
revenues and owner names that are associated with country’s reserves for oil and gas (Hsu
and Zomer 2016). To attain success there have been transparency efforts such as Extractive
Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) that focuses on united working of the governments,
companies and civil society for the fulfillment of the seventeenth goal of sustainable
development. Transparency also helps in fighting corruption, the sixteenth goal that in turn
helps in widening inequality, the tenth goal. They then get linked to higher levels of poverty,
the first goal of sustainable development, child mortality rates, the third goal, increased
gender inequality, the fifth goal and lower graduation rates, the fourth goal. However,
corruption can also create an additional obstacle in accessing food, the second goal of
sustainable development and getting clean water access for the poorest citizens, the sixth
goal. Further, corruption also leads to frequent diversion of resources, increase in political
instability and ensure deterring foreign investment that in turn inhibits development of
infrastructure, the ninth and the eleventh goal of sustainable development and leads to the
creation of work environment that is dangerous, thereby inhibiting the eight goal of
sustainable development. This also helps in distortion of the market.

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The interlinked nature of the SDGs thus ensured that even when an activity centered
on particular area of focus then it could make substantial contribution on the success of
multiple goals.
Theories and Concept Target Potential Strategies
The breadth of sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) puts forward that for ensuring
sustainability on a long-term basis the engagement of an industry should extend beyond the
corporate philanthropy and social investments. This will require in strong corporate
leadership in addition to wide employee involvement.
Each goal in the Atlas represents opportunities and ways for integrating the SDG
contribution into the core business of the company. Integration refers to the shared
understanding of all the stakeholders of how creation of value takes place by the SDGs and
their subsequent alignment with the business goals of the company (Rumelt 2012.). SDGs
also puts forward an opportunity for the industry in demonstrating the good practices that has
already contributed in one or several goals. Through integration with the SDGs, an industry
will enable the companies to support the social license for operation thereby enhancing global
recognition. However, the Oil and Gas companies can ensure SDGs in their business
practices by making them a part of the corporate systems, processes and policies. However,
these include:
i. Policies, Standards and Management Systems of the company: The company
management and governance systems, strategies and standards that specifically address
health and safety, environment, compliance, anti- bribery, gender, procurement and supply
systems chosen for setting goals and monitoring progress towards the integration of the SDGs
into the business. With time, the industry has made use of the lessons learned across all the

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geographies for developing a good practice and thereby introduced practices and standards
that might go beyond the regulatory requirements (Nilsson, Griggs and Visbeck 2016).
ii. Ensure Reporting: Thus for enhancing the understanding of the stakeholders
regarding the contributions of the company towards the SDGs, companies can report and map
on their sustainability disclosures.
iii. Identifying difference in diligence: The impact on SDGs depends on the type of
projects and its impacts. Identification of the social, environmental and economic baselines of
the local area and the impacts of such operations will help in informing engagement,
mitigation measures and contribution.
iv. Accessing opportunities and risk: It is necessary for assessing risk for the
identifying and prediction of the potential risks and suitable implementation of preventive
measures. Thus, the industry can incorporate SDGs in the risk assessment procedures of the
company.
v. Engagement and dialogue with governments, communities and stakeholders: The
for engagement and consultation with the stakeholders including the indigenous people , local
communities, national and local governments and the civil society are important for the
establishment and maintenance of trust, understanding the perspectives and the concerns and
in maintaining and securing the social license of the company for operation.
vi. Ensuring Research and Development: This is because technology believed to be a
step toward achievement of SDGs.
Conclusion:
The essay ends with a discussion on the theories and concept of target potential
strategies of sustainable developmental goals (SDGs) in the light of the oil and gas industry.

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There is also discussion on the identification of the drivers of the sustainable development
goals. The essay also helps in identifying the impact indicators of SDGs. One can also get an
overview of SDGs and their role in the oil and gas industry.

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