Cameron Burton, Senior Consultant – Projects and Sustainability Stadegy and Brad Lawson, Commercial Manager / Senior Consultant – Projects and Sustainability
Have you ever considered that your business might not be able to continue to operate due to a non-compliance with your resource consent? Perhaps this already sits on your corporate risk register in the operational or reputational damage section? What consideration has been given to the effect of future adverse events?
The requirements of your business to comply with consent compliance conditions within a timeframe can easily be overlooked. Resource consent implementation is an investigation of the key activities and timeframes throughout your consent, which could be for example: ‘Three years after the granting of consent the consent holder shall…’, or
‘twice a year upon the commencement of rainfall after a 96-hour dry period, samples shall be taken of stormwater discharged from the site’.
Once these types of consent conditions are ascertained, they are categorised and implemented into a planning schedule of critical activities for your business to ensure no likelihood of missing a critical timeframe can occur. Environmental Management Plans (of varying types) are often required as a consent condition but may also be used proactively as a best practice methodology.
These are frequently needed if your organisation wants to obtain accreditation such as ISO14001, Toitū EnviroMark, B Corp, BioGro or might just be part of your sustainability goals or strategies. These can also be valuable as a remediation and integrity technique to show continual improvement after you’ve perhaps had an environmental event occur. Along a similar line is Solid Waste Minimisation Planning (SWMP). SWMP is its own specialist area and is often an area where a massive reduction in your environmental footprint can take place. Analysing (read ‘dumpster diving’) is one technique to ascertain where savings (both monetary and environmental) can be made fast. Origin and destination assessments and meeting with suppliers to gain and give an understanding of targets and the restraints of the supply chain are another.
Disaster Waste Management Planning (DWMP) for your business should now be a vital part of your environmental considerations. Without a DWMP, companies can be subject to lengthened downtime and health and safety risks if not proactively assessed in advance. The planning of where raw product, damaged stock, ruined plant & equipment and out-of-spec product could go when there is an adverse event, it is important not to only pre-plan but also have a committed partner to muck in when things get wobbly. All these things are best considered at the start of a project and can be best structured by developing a Sustainability Strategy. What this will look like and focus on will be different for each business but can also outline the long-term opportunities for your business to comply with many of the initiatives now passed into law. Not all will be applicable, but some of those include:
■ Emissions Reduction Plan
■ Zero Carbon Act
■ Emissions Trading scheme (NZ ETS)
■ National Adaptation Plan
■ New Zealand Waste strategy (Te rautaki para)
In many cases, these requirements provide opportunities for your business to become more resilient, have better environmental outcomes and future proof your operation. There are win-win opportunities that proactive companies are now taking advantage of. It makes commercial sense to prioritise. Considering environmental and sustainability strategy is also a requirement for financing. Companies can secure lower interest rate lending from all the major banks for environmental or sustainability initiatives and as part of the feasibility assessment of any project, a plan needs to be put in place.
We have relationships with all the major banks and regularly meet with them to discuss matters relating to sustainability, compliance and how best to assist their clients. We are proud members of the Sustainable Business Network of New Zealand.
Stradegy specialises in urban and environmental planning. We bring direction, stability and confidence to resource management processes through thinking strategically and working constructively with all parties. www.stradegy.co.nz
