Environmental Management Approach Research Articles

Revisiting green practices in the hotel industry: A comparison between mature and emerging destinations

Environmental issues are increasingly recognised as a significant concern for tourism industries worldwide. In this exploratory work, a model of environmental practices adoption and its impact on independent hotels is developed. Two different destinations are proposed and analysed: the mature market of Madrid in Spain and the emerging destinations of Santiago and Valparaiso in Chile. To test the model, a qualitative method based on case studies of 24 hotels—12 hotels for each country—was used. The findings show that environmental practices are implemented in both destinations and demonstrate the diverse impacts of this implementation, primarily in the financial and operational spheres. Differences are observed in the two countries regarding the proposed model, mainly in terms of barriers to implementing environmental practices, products used and processes related to clients and suppliers' responsibility. Therefore, this research implies that the hotels analysed are adopting an environmental management approach, although in different ways. The added value of this research is that it sheds light on the vision of sustainability in emerging and mature destinations and offers practical suggestions for hotel management regarding the implementation of various environmental practices and new environmental practices in hotel management.

Report on the Managing Impacts of Deep-seA reSource exploitation (MIDAS) workshop on environmental management of deep-sea mining

Recent years have seen an upsurge in interest in mining in the world’s deep oceans, in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Such mining activity has the potential to cause environmental impacts over large areas. As contractors plan to move from exploration to exploitation activities it is important to develop guidance to ensure that these activities are managed in a way that is as environmentally sustainable as possible. This paper presents the outcomes of an international workshop on environmental management for deep-sea mining (DSM). The workshop presented protocols for environmental management, which were tested using a comprehensive polymetallic nodule mining scenario developed with industry input. The workshop started by presenting a framework for environmental management of deep-sea mining, which introduced the use of a conceptual model as a method of storing and updating environmental data and the synthesis of that data throughout the project. The second session focused on the incorporation of the precautionary approach and adaptive management into the framework. Two discussion sessions were held to discuss Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in the context of the scenario: the first considered scoping and screening EIAs, while the second reviewed the full EIA assessment. Subsequent discussion focussed on environmental management at the regional scale. This concentrated on the Regional Environmental Assessment (REA) - including its purpose, the scale and scope, and practicalities - and the assignment of protected areas as an approach for regional environmental management. Use of a scenario as a basis for the evaluation of protocols on the environmental management of DSM was novel amongst workshops, facilitating focussed discussion despite the high uncertainty surrounding DSM activities. The results of these discussions are summarised in the paper.

Influence Analysis in Consensus Search — A Multi Criteria Group Decision Making Approach in Environmental Management

The environmental decision problems often are divisive, even in a technical realm, decision makers with strong personalities influence outcomes. The purpose of this study is to define and quantify the factors that affect the conservation objectives of a national natural park located in Colombia, South America adding the judgments of six decision makers with different knowledge (every decision maker is also a stakeholder representative). This paper uses a hybrid multiple criteria group decision-making model (MCDM), combining the social network analysis (SNA), analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and similarity measures to solve the consensus and anchoring problem among environmental decision makers. The SNA technique is used to build an influential network relation map among decision makers and to obtain their weights for applying a weighted AHP. Then, the final decision matrices for every decision maker are compared between them in order to identify the consensus level of the problem.

The Case for "Environment in All Policies": Lessons from the "Health in All Policies" Approach in Public Health.

Background:Both public health, and the health of the natural environment, are affected by policy decisions made across portfolios as diverse as finance, planning, transport, housing, education, and agriculture. A response to the interdependent character of public health has been the “health in all policies” (HiAP) approach.Objectives:With reference to parallels between health and environment, this paper argues that lessons from HiAP are useful for creating a new integrated environmental management approach termed “environment in all polices” (EiAP).Discussion:This paper covers the theoretical foundations of HiAP, which is based on an understanding that health is strongly socially determined. The paper then highlights how lessons learned from HiAP’s implementation in Finland, California, and South Australia might be applied to EiAP. It is too early to learn from evaluations of HiAP, but it is apparent that there is no single tool kit for its application. The properties that are likely to be necessary for an effective EiAP approach include a jurisdiction-specific approach, ongoing and strong leadership from a central agency, independent analysis, and a champion. We then apply these properties to Victoria (Australia) to demonstrate how EiAP might work.Conclusions:We encourage further exploration of the feasibility of EiAP as an approach that could make explicit the sometimes surprising environmental implications of a whole range of strategic policies.Citation:Browne GR, Rutherfurd ID. 2017. The case for “environment in all policies”: lessons from the “health in all policies” approach in public health. Environ Health Perspect 125:149–154; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP294

A three-step approach to minimise the impact of a mining site on vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) and to restore landscape connectivity.

Resource extraction projects generate a diversity of negative effects on the environment that are difficult to predict and mitigate. Consequently, adaptive management approaches have been advocated to develop effective responses to impacts that were not predicted. Mammal populations living in or around mine sites are frequently of management concern; yet, there is a dearth of published information on how to minimise the negative effects of different phases of mining operations on them. Here, we present the case study of a copper mine in the Chilean Altiplano, which caused roadkills of the protected vicuña (Vicugna vicugna). This issue led to a three-step solution being implemented: (1) the initial identification of the problem and implementation of an emergency response, (2) the scientific analysis for decision making and (3) the planning and informed implementation of responses for different future scenarios and timescales. The measures taken under each of these steps provide examples of environmental management approaches that make use of scientific information to develop integrated management responses. In brief, our case study showed how (1) the timescale and the necessity/urgency of the case were addressed, (2) the various stakeholders involved were taken into account and (3) changes were included into the physical, human and organisational elements of the company to achieve the stated objectives.

Exploration of Barriers in Achieving Proactive Environmental Strategies in a Natural Rubber Industry : A Case Study

As the evolving of environmental issues over time, the development of environmental management approaches in industries began to shift to the prevention of pollution to reduce environmental impact. However, in practice, many obstacles encountered during the environmental management change to be more proactive. This study aims to explore the barriers of achieving the proactive environmental strategy in a rubber processing industry. Used a case study approach in a natural rubber processing factory, the data was collected through interviews with experts and sources as well as observation in the field. This study shows main barriers that faced by the company consist of financial issue, human resources, communities’ pressure, technological change and communication with environmental experts. The results of this study suggest conducting cooperation with research institutions or environmental experts especially for skills that cannot be controlled by the manager or employees in the company.

Ecohydrology in Indonesia: Emerging challenges and its future pathways

The wealth of inland water resources and the endowed rich aquatic ecosystems in Indonesia are exposed to intertwined risk drivers, i.e. land use change related to the growing population and urbanization, and the adverse impacts of climate change. Recent advances in the wide range of applications of Ecohydrology aimed at sustainable use, reduction of risks and regulation of water and nutrient cycles from molecular to basin scale in Indonesia were developed and are presented. These vary from ecohydrological approach for the aquatic environmental management to obtain maximum benefit of the lake aquatic resources sustainably, through efforts to improve the aquatic carrying capacity, efforts to solve the water deficit due to land use change in the catchment area, and initial identification of several urban lakes in Jakarta Megacity area. An attempt to relate Ecohydrology and disaster risk reduction, especially the slowly approaching ecosystem disaster, is highlighted in view of addressing the emerging opportunities in Indonesia.

For an environmental risk management approach applied in Algerian ports: the case of Bethioua port (Algeria)

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the design of a process of environmental risks management including a managerial plan of prevention, risk management and intervention methods in accidents specifically in aboard merchant ships. For this, a new systemic model could be suggested in its practical aspect called environmental risk management spiral (ERMAS). This approach is based on analysing and assessment of different scenarios that affect the environment with taking into account the context of the case study. The outcome of this study consists on having a new systemic contextualising approach that can manage the environmental risks. In this paper, an application can be centralised on two important points: the definition of accident scenarios that can touch the maritime environment, and the adaptability of the ERMAS approach in this field in order to be generalised to other industrial fields. This new approach could be used in Algerian terminals as a tool of environmental risk management to facilitate the classification of all danger source events DSE.

For an environmental risk management approach applied in Algerian ports: the case of Bethioua port (Algeria)

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the design of a process of environmental risks management including a managerial plan of prevention, risk management and intervention methods in accidents specifically in aboard merchant ships. For this, a new systemic model could be suggested in its practical aspect called environmental risk management spiral (ERMAS). This approach is based on analysing and assessment of different scenarios that affect the environment with taking into account the context of the case study. The outcome of this study consists on having a new systemic contextualising approach that can manage the environmental risks. In this paper, an application can be centralised on two important points: the definition of accident scenarios that can touch the maritime environment, and the adaptability of the ERMAS approach in this field in order to be generalised to other industrial fields. This new approach could be used in Algerian terminals as a tool of environmental risk management to facilitate the classification of all danger source events DSE.

A clean fight: environmental management strategies to drive growth, efficiency and competition in CSG

During the past 12 months, operators in LNG–CSG have had little option but to purely focus on cost efficiencies to remain profitable after the oil price crash of 2014 (Macdonald-Smith, 2015). This is set to continue with oil hovering around the $40 per barrel price mark, and as more CSG projects transition into operations in the next five years, an alternative approach to operating must be explored to further promote competitiveness and long-term sustainability in this volatile market (Cassidy and Kosev, 2015). The purpose of this paper is to critically analyse an approach to CSG operations that considers environmental aspects as an effective alternative in addressing the range of operational challenges to improve economic outcomes for operators. Essentially, the approach highlights opportunities to improve yields and further reduce costs along the gas extraction/processing value chain while meeting the critical compliance checklist in CSG. This paper outlines the key hallmarks of an effective adaptive environmental management approach from well site to water treatment operations. It then turns to consider each of the key components that make up this approach, including the role of leadership, contracting strategies, asset management methodologies, treatment technologies, effective remediation and recovery management, and the benefits that efficient operations deliver to surrounding communities. This paper also examines key case studies that are delivering substantial savings for CSG operations in the Bowen and Surat basins. These case studies share a similar theme in their intention to generate and implement improvements in efficiency and value delivered by effective water and environmental management, each within their own context.

Effectiveness of EMS in Tunisian companies: framework and implementation process based on ISO 14001 standard

This paper reports environmental analysis results of food and tannery Tunisian companies to identify the features of environmental management system (EMS) that is implemented recently. EMS via ISO 14001 has become one of the principal tools used by companies to handle environmental aspects and impacts through their various complex activities interacted with environment. While several companies have implemented and maintained a formal EMS, it has related mainly to their benefits in short term without responding to the sustainable development recommendations and practices. This study focuses on the strong linkage between the EMS effectiveness of food–tannery Tunisian companies and sustainability. A proactive environmental management approach is proposed and adopts a qualitative and quantitative assessment for factor analysis. It provides a strategic EMS framework and principles for sustainability to evolve the future enterprises’ benefits that has a clear influence on environmental performance in long term.

Challenges in Coastal Spatial Data Infrastructure implementation: A review

The ability to cope with the complexity surrounding the coastal zone requires an integrated approach for sustainable socio-economic development and environmental management. The concept of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) was advanced in response to this. In line with the success story of spatial data infrastructure (SDI), initiatives are currently emerging to develop SDI for marine and coastal environment. The aim of this paper is to review emerging initiatives so as to identify the problems faced with implementation and discuss the way forward. The result may support stakeholders, policy makers, academia, and the government to leverage on the experience of others for a robust and sustainable policy and action plans on coastal management.

Monitoring to Learn, Learning to Monitor: A Critical Analysis of Opportunities for Indigenous Community‐Based Monitoring of Environmental Change in Australian Rangelands

AbstractIndigenous community‐based monitoring has been a central feature in many international attempts to improve monitoring of and local adaptation to environmental change. Despite offering much promise, Indigenous community‐based monitoring has been underutilised in natural resource management in Australia, particularly within the remote, semi‐arid rangelands. This paper discusses contextual social and environmental factors that may help to explain this apparent deficiency, before critically analysing key stakeholder perceptions of the roles for, and challenges of monitoring in the Alinytjara Wilurara Natural Resources Management region in the north‐west of South Australia. The analysis guides a discussion of responses to better integrate monitoring in general, and Indigenous community‐based monitoring in particular, into regional environmental management approaches. We argue that community‐based monitoring offers a range of benefits, including: better coordination between stakeholders; a heightened ability to detect and respond to climatic trends and impacts; the effective utilisation of Indigenous knowledge; employment opportunities for managing and monitoring natural resources; and improved learning and understanding of rangeland socio‐ecological systems. Identified opportunities for spatial and temporal community monitoring designed for the Alinytjara Wilurara region could be of value to other remote rangeland and Indigenous institutions charged with the difficult task of monitoring, learning from, and responding to environmental change.

Innovative Assessments for Selecting Offshore-Platform-Decommissioning Alternatives

Summary Hard substrates associated with offshore oil and gas platforms can contribute to the productivity of marine ecosystems, thereby generating local and regional economic benefits. These benefits form the basis for incorporating the platform into a rigs-to-reefs program when it is retired or for selecting some other type of removal option. There are many options for reefing platforms, each differing in environmental impact associated with dismantling and transport of the platform structure (deck, jacket, and other subsea structures). The use of science-based decision making in exploring platform-removal options can be beneficial for all stakeholders in the context of regulatory environment, complex ecosystem, and human interactions across multiple scales. Accommodating these complexities in a decisionmaking process is the foundation of an ecosystem-based-management (EBM) approach. EBM is an environmental-management approach that recognizes the full array of interactions within an ecosystem, including humans, rather than considering single issues, species, or ecosystem services in isolation (Christensen et al. 1996; McLeod et al. 2005; Altman et al. 2011). The focus of this study is on one of Shell's former deepwater assets in the Gulf of Mexico. The fixed-jacket platform has been in operation for more than 35 years and extends to more than 1,000 ft of water depth off the coast of Louisiana. Few studies have been published on the ecology of marine life inhabiting deepwater platforms such as these. To begin to understand the specific contribution of this platform as an artificial reef, a stratified (across depth down the platform) study was performed by use of routinely collected remotely-operated-vessel (ROV) video footage to assess fish and sessile biotic communities. The ROV study revealed clear depth-related patterns of visually conspicuous epibiota (surface-dwelling organisms such as Lophelia pertusa) and numerous species of reef and pelagic fishes. These data were used to construct a matrix to rank the ecosystem services of several decommissioning alternatives, including complete removal of the deck and jacket; removal of the deck, topping the jacket 85 ft below the waterline, and leaving the remainder in place; and removal of the deck and transfer of the entire jacket to a rigs-to-reef location. This portion of the assessment provided a strategic framework for identifying and evaluating sensitive ecosystem services in association with both human and environmental drivers to provide realistic (actionable) guidance in the selection of these decommissioning options. The preliminary ranking illustrated that a high level of ecosystem services could be maintained by decommissioning alternatives that leave the jacket in place or transfer the jacket elsewhere as part of a rigs-to-reefs program.

Leading product-related environmental performance indicators: a selection guide and database

Ecodesign is a proactive environmental management and improvement approach employed in the product development process, which aims to minimize the environmental impacts caused during a product's life cycle and thus improve its environmental performance. The establishment of measurable environmental performance indicators for the product development process is often cited as a successful factor for effective ecodesign implementation, since it enables setting targets and monitoring achievements towards the accomplishment of environmental ambitions. However, companies still face difficulties in the selection and application of environmental performance indicators – a more structured approach is still lacking. This paper presents the efforts made to identify and systematize existing leading product-related environmental performance indicators, based on a systematic literature review, and to develop a guide to support the selection of these indicators by manufacturing companies. From the review, 261 environmental performance indicators were identified and systematized in a digital database. The database supports the application of the environmental performance indicators guide, which proposes a five-step approach to support the selection of indicators. Based on improvement opportunities identified from a case study for theory-testing in Denmark, an improved version of the guide was developed and subsequently applied in a case study in Brazil. The results from both evaluations indicate that the guide supported the studied companies in the selection of environmental performance indicators in the context of ecodesign implementation. This paper presents the results of the literature review, the systematization of environmental performance indicators and the support guide.

Larvicidal activity of leaf extracts and seselin from Clausena anisata (Rutaceae) against Aedes aegypti

The Aedes aegypti mosquito is a vector of various diseases in both humans and livestock. Mosquito control focuses on reducing the longevity as well as the population of mosquitoes to lessen their damage on human and animal health. It entails several strategies such as environmental management, insecticide treatments, and molecular entomological approaches. Environmental management centres on elimination of breeding sites, however mosquitoes can breed in sites that cannot be eliminated. Resultantly, focus is turned onto mosquito larvae control. The objective of this study was to evaluate the larvicidal activity of extracts and compounds from Clausena anisata against A. aegypti. The World Health Organization guidelines for testing of mosquito larvicides were used. The acetone, dichloromethane and hexane crude leaf extracts were evaluated in a preliminary screening for larvicidal activity at the concentrations of 12.5, 25, 50, 100 and 200ppm. Batches of 25 third-instar larvae were transferred into cups each containing test solutions and larval mortality was recorded 24h and 48h after exposure. Acetone was used as the solvent control whilst permethrin was used as a positive control. Only the n-hexane extract caused mortality at the tested concentrations, thus it was further tested at 40, 60, 80, 100, and 120ppm and had LC50 values of 68.30 and 59.65ppm after 24h and 48h respectively. A stored hexane extract, of 2months, was also evaluated under simulated field conditions to establish stability of extract. It caused about 90% mortality when tested at 100ppm. The n-hexane extract was subjected to open column chromatography on silica gel to isolate the active compound. The isolated compound was identified as the pyranocoumarin, seselin. Dose dependent mortality was observed in the larvae exposed to seselin. The LC50 values at 24 and 48h were 13.90 and 9.96ppm respectively. Results obtained from this study indicate a potential of the incorporation of C. anisata extracts into the control of mosquito populations.

A geomorphological approach for enhancing environmental management and conservation of landforms as protected nature objects in the Upper Daugava spillway valley

<p class="R-AbstractKeywords"><span lang="EN-GB">This paper describes the application of geomorphological approach for environmental management and conservation of landforms. Specifically, we discuss the contribution of geomorphological field survey and adapted matrix methodology (in combination with understanding of geology) to identification, study and evaluation of those abiotic nature elements which represent geological and geomorphological heritage. We describe a case study carried out in that part of the protected landscape area “Augšdaugava” which encompasses the Upper Daugava spillway valley. The study programme reported in this paper was realized to perform inventory of landforms and geological features for recognition of objects of particular interest in terms of including them in the list of protected nature monuments. After the field reconnaissance and survey of such objects in situ, the assessment based on several criteria like scientific, aesthetic and paleogeographic value, type, rareness, integrity and representativeness was performed. Obtained data is sufficient to make a well-founded selection of the abiotic nature elements and components of geodiversity, including geological and geomorphological features, e.g. particular landforms as protected nature objects, and to substantiate the need for their conservation. Hence, the output of performed study can be used for enhancing environmental management and conservation of nature diversity and values in this region.</span></p>

Exploring role of environmental proactivity in financial performance of manufacturing enterprises: a structural modelling approach

In the backdrop of overwhelming concern for greenhouse gas emission, global warming and overall environmental degradation, many manufacturing enterprises are now integrating their manufacturing philosophy with proactive environmental management approach. It is uppermost in the minds of many whether such environmental proactive approach will also help to improve financial performance of the manufacturing enterprises. This study explores this pertinent issue in the context of manufacturing enterprises of two democratic countries from the east and the west, India and UK respectively. Data collected through a questionnaire validated by invited experts distributed among manufacturing enterprises of India and UK were used to construct the structural model for testing the relationship between environmental proactivity and financial performance. The fitness and robustness of the structural model can be considered adequate. The results indicate positive correlation of environmental proactivity with financial performance, manufacturing based operational performance and non-manufacturing based operational performance. Model equations derived from structural analysis, however, reveal much stronger positive correlation of financial performance with manufacturing based operational practices than with the non-manufacturing based operational practices. The novelty of this research work lies in its managerial implications. It is suggested from the research that the manufacturing enterprises of India and UK should focus more on the manufacturing based operational practices than non-manufacturing based operational practices in order to improve environmental and as well as financial performance.

Ecosystem services assessments in local municipal decision making in South Africa: justification for the use of a business-based approach

The ecosystem services (ES) concept is being increasingly incorporated into environmental policy formulation and management approaches. The Corporate Ecosystem Services Review (ESR) is a framework used to assess the dependence and impact that a business has on ES. The success of the corporate experience of ES assessment provides an opportunity for adaption for local authority decision making. In this paper, the ESR tool was adapted to the South African setting at a local government level, and tested at two sites in the Msunduzi Municipality, KwaZulu-Natal. In testing the tool and gathering feedback from key stakeholders, it was found that there are both opportunities and challenges to this approach. Overall, however, it provides an opportunity for the systematic inclusion of ES assessment into existing regulatory frameworks for land-use planning and Integrated Environmental Management, whether in a strategic application, at a broader spatial (municipal) scale or in a specific locale within the municipality.

Integrating environmental management into supply chains

Purpose– The need to integrate environmental management into supply chains has been recognized recently. Yet, there is a lack of theoretical ground and conceptual framework guiding such efforts to leverage resources and capabilities across supply chain partners. Grounded on stakeholder and resource orchestration theories, the purpose of this paper is to map the emerging practices, develops a theoretical framework, and proposes future research for understanding an emerging best-practice called “green supply chain integration” (GSCI).Design/methodology/approach– A systematic literature review of 142 academic articles is conducted to ensure the process of framework development is auditable and repeatable. The article selection criteria are aligned with the review question ensuring that related theories and practices are identified and evaluated.Findings– The paper illustrates how stakeholder and resource orchestration theories can be used to explain an integrative approach of environmental management in supply chains. The paper identifies four GSCI practices – internal, supplier, customer, and stakeholder GSCI. A theoretical framework and proposition also provide for new directions of research.Research limitations/implications– The results of this paper are drawn from an extensive review of the existing literature and novel practices that have not been revealed and could have been missed. The emerging practices and theoretical framework can be used for further empirical investigation.Originality/value– This paper integrates theoretical concepts and empirical findings from the disparate literature and identifies four emerging practices of environmental management by developing a theoretical framework and proposition for future research.