Green Economy Standards: International Experience

Niccolò LombardiProject Manager, KnowlEdge Srl

Astana, 13/11/2013

Contents

1. Introduction

2. Organic Agriculture

3. Forestry

4. Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency

5. Tourism

6. Fisheries

7. Buildings8. Transport9. Manufacturing and

Green Supply Chains

10.Challenges11.Next Steps

1. Introduction

“A standard is a document that provides requirements, specifications, guidelines or characteristics that can be used consistently to ensure that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose”. International Organization for Standardization

Standards are unseen forces that ensure that things work properly.European Commission

1. Introduction

• A well-designed standardization framework can create rights and incentives that drive green economic activity, remove barriers to green investments, increase the confidence of investors and markets, and regulate the most harmful forms of unsustainable behaviour, either by creating minimum standards or prohibiting certain activities entirely.

• Standards inform consumers about products and production processes, and create or strengthen demand for sustainable products.

Why are standards important for the GE transition?

1. Introduction

Compliance with standards can be:

• Voluntary, e.g. one or more firms taking voluntary action themselves, usually consisting of nonbinding commitments to standards or principles.

• Mandated by Law, i.e. establishment of laws, regulations and standards as the formal enactment of targets, to ensure enforcement and compliance.

1. Introduction

• Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14001)

• Environmental Declarations (ISO 14025)

• Environmental Labelling (ISO 14020, ISO 14021, ISO 14024)

• Life Cycle Assessment (ISO 14040; ISO 14044)

NB: Although all ISO standards are developed as voluntary standards, many are eventually cited in legislation.

ISO 14000 Family of Standards

1. Introduction

.

Vision

Targets

Standards

Certification - Labelling

2. Organic Agriculture

.

GE Vision

•Food security•Poverty reduction

•Create rural jobs•Reduce pressure on the environment

EU Organic Farming IFOAM Standard

Fairtrade International

Key EU Organic Farming principles include, among others:• Wide crop rotation.• Limits on chemical synthetic pesticide and synthetic fertiliser

use.• Prohibition of the use of genetically modified organisms.• Taking advantage of on-site resources.• Choosing resistant plant and animal species.• Raising livestock in free-range, open-air systems.

2. Organic AgricultureOrganic market global revenues

• More than 80 percent of the producers are in developing countries and emerging markets.

• Demand is concentrated in North America and Europe.

Source: UNEP, 2013

2. Organic AgricultureBosnia and Herzegovina – Projected impact of organic certification

Source: UNEP

3. Forestry

. Forest Stewardship Council

Programme for the endorsement of Forest

Certification

GE Vision• Manage forestry sector as an asset • Eliminate deforestation

FSC Principles and requirements include, among others,• Carry out environmental impact assessments.• Respect of legal and customary rights of indigenous

people.• Maintain or enhance socio-economic well being of forest

workers.

Sustainable Forestry Initiative

3. Forestry

• Expansion of the market for certified wood, driven mostly by demand in US and EU.

• By May 2012, the global area of certified forest amounted to about 400 million hectares, approximately 10% of global forest area.

Certified forest area

Source: UNEP, 2013

4. Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency

GE Vision• Universal access to modern

energy services• Renewable energy penetration

• Emission reduction • Maximize energy efficiency

across sectors

ISO Standards: More than 150 related to

RE&EE

Volunatry Carbon Standard

• MEPS – Products meet set levels for energy performance before they can be sold to consumers.

• ISO Standards on processes involved throughout the supply chain of renewable energy (incl. bioenergy, solar, wind).

• ISO Carbon Footprint Standard: principles, requirements and guidelines for the quantification and communication of the carbon footprint of a product (CFP).

Minimnum Energy Performance

Standards

• ISO 50001:2011, Energy management systems: It is estimated that the standard can influence up to 60% of the world’s energy use. Benefits reported by, among others: Bentley, Coca-Cola, Delta Electronics in China, etc.

• Manufacturing of renewable energy supply products according to international standards is an exanding sector in developing countries (e.g. solar-thermal manufacturers).

4. Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency

5. TourismGE Vision

• Energy and water efficiency• Conserve biodiversity

• Generate local income• Respect and value cultural

heritage

TourCertGlobal Sustainability Tourism Criteria

GSTC include, for example:• Energy and water efficienct infrastructure and management practices.• Employment of local residents and purchase of local goods, where

available.• Code of Conduct for activities in indigenous and local communities.• No captive wildlife is held, except for properly regulated activities.

European Ecotourism Labeling Standard

Blue Flag

5. Tourism

• Increase of certified tourism activities across countries.• 15 standards have been Recognized as aligned with the Global

Sustainable Tourism Criteria for hotels and tour operators (harmonization).

Blue Flag Certification

Source: UNEP, 2013

6. FisheriesGE VisionRebuild overfished and depleted fish population to reach sustainable yield.

Marine Stewardship Council

Friend of the Sea

MSC Principles include, among others:• Maintenance and re-establishment of healthy populations of targeted

species.• Maintenance of the integrity of ecosystems.• Minimize operational waste.• Use fishing gear and practices designed to avoid the capture of non-target

species.• Compliance with regulations (e.g. TAC, IUU, FOC etc.)

6. Fisheries

• 200 Certified fisheries.• Over 7 million metric tonnes of seafood (8% of total wild

capture harvest).• More than 19,500 seafood products.

MSC Certification

7. BuildingsGE Vision• Reduce carbon footprint • Improve access to water and basic sanitation through green buildings

LEED Green Buildings Certification

ISO Standards cover a wide range of issues related to the environment, e.g.:• Thermal insulation• Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems• Sustainable building materials

ISO Standards: More than 100 related to Buildings

7. Buildings

• The green building market is not isolated to one particular region, economic condition or culture (McGraw Hill, 2013)

Global Green Building Activity by Firm

8. TransportGE Vision• Expand public transport • Constantly improve resource efficiency

• EU Fuel efficiency standards• EU rules establishing fleet-average emissions targets

of 95g CO2 per kilometer for passenger cars and 175g CO2 per kilometer for light commercial vehicles

• US EPA 2016 Standards for light-duty vehicles• Other fuel and CO2 emissions standards at the

national level

8. Transport

• Fuel economy standards are becoming tighter worldwide.

Fuel Economy Standards for New Passenger Vehicles by Country

Source: ICCT, 2009

9. Manufacturing and Green Supply Chains

GE Vision• Life-cycle approaches that enable dematerialization• Resource efficiency in all stages of production

Key principles of ISO standards• The ISO 14001 standards guide companies through the

adoption of sustainable processes and technologies, e.g. for industrial waste and wastewater disposal, use of natural resources, CO2 emissions, energy use.

• The ISO 14040 standards give guidelines on the principles and conduct of LCA studies that provide an organization with information on how to reduce the overall environmental impact of its products and services.

ISO 14001 and 14040 Family of Standards, among others

Ecolabel and other certification schemes on green supply

chains

As of 2009, there were over 230,000 companies in 159 countries with ISO 14001 certified environmental management standards.

Source: UNEP, 2013

9. Manufacturing and Green Supply Chains

10. Challenges

• High upfront cost of compliance with standards and certification schemes, especially for small-scale producers/companies in developing countries.

• Use of standards as a protectionist measure, or to provide undue advantage to demestic providers.

• Lack of R&D capacity in developing countries.

11. Next steps• Harmonizing standards, or promoting their

equivalence across countries, e.g. product carbon footprint standards.

• Engaging developing countries in the international standard-setting process.

• Training and skill enhancement programmes.• Designing policies to provide financial

support and incentives to green businesses in developing countries.

• Quantifying economic benefits of environmental standards and certification schemes.

Thank you!

For more information you can find me at:

niccolo.lombardi@ke-

srl.com