Deborah J. Shields

Green labels and sustainability reporting: overview of the building products supply chain in Italy

Purpose – This paper aims to contribute to the understanding of corporate sustainability reporting strategies and communication tools that are increasingly being adopted to foster green market outlets, with focus on the building materials supply chain.Design/methodology/approach – The suitability, feasibility, appropriateness, effectiveness, completeness and redundancy of some of the most common sustainability reporting tools such as Sustainability Reporting (SR), Sustainable Development Indicators (SDI) and Green labels based on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) were investigated.Findings – Focusing on the present Italian situation and with emphasis on ornamental stones, ceramic tiles, cement and concrete producers, the interest and the response in the building materials supply chain are highlighted, pointing out strengths, weaknesses and future perspectives.Practical implications – Green communication tools discussed in the paper can also be used to protect local markets against the unfair competition by thos...

Sustainable Development Criteria and Indicators for the Assessment of Rare Earth Element Mining Projects

Abstract Rare earth elements (REEs) are recognized globally as being strategic and critical minerals. Therefore, assessment of the sustainability of REE mining projects is of particular interest to many stakeholders. Currently, there is a lack of information regarding the assessment of REE mining projects from a sustainability point of view. The best method to assess REE mining projects is to use measurable qualitative and/or quantitative indicators. Rare earth element mining projects are characterized by specific particularities as well as the potential presence of radiation. Thus, there is a need for a set of REE-specific criteria and indicators to supplement Global Reporting Initiative–based indicators. This chapter identifies existing indicator sets and lays out the importance of effective communication in estimating a mines contribution to sustainable development and gaining the social license to operate. Then, 31 criteria and indicators are proposed to support a decision on the sustainability of REE mining projects. The proposed and selected criteria and indicators can be used by stakeholders and assist decision and policy makers, and can also be used to estimate baseline conditions for social, economic, environmental, geopolitical, and technological aspects for REE development.

Incorporating sustainability in engineering education: Adapting current practices to mining and petroleum engineering education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the ongoing shift in sustainable engineering and the approaches used by universities for engineering students. At the United Nations Earth Summit, in Rio de Janeiro, in 1992, participating nations agreed to work together to achieve the goal of sustainable development. Twenty years on, great progress has been made, but many challenges remain and overcoming them and ensuring a sustainable future will require the knowledge, skills and input of engineering professionals. Ethics and costs have long been part of engineering, but broader understanding is now needed because the skill set those engineers will need has grown dramatically. Design/methodology/approach – In this paper, the authors describe the ongoing shift to sustainable engineering and discuss a variety of approaches that universities are currently using to introduce engineering students and practitioners to sustainability principles and practice and how those can be utilized in mining and petroleum...

Sustainability versus Sustainable Development: The Case of Shale Gas

There is an ongoing dialogue in society about the place of energy resources in sustainability. One aspect of that discussion focuses on resource sustainability, the ability of governments and industry to ensure continued supply of needed resources. A related topic centers on the economic benefits and costs of fossil fuel production. Concerns about negative impacts on environmental social sustainability drive other parts of this conversation, and often lead to opposition to fossil fuel production and use. This paper uses the example of shale gas to argue that concentration on single sustainability aspects is inappropriate. Rather, development and production of these resources needs to be considered in the context of sustainable development, which necessitates integrating environmental and development strategies so as to satisfy current and future human needs. Integrated Sustainability Assessment (ISA) is proposed as a way to analyse the net contributions of a shale gas play to economic, environmental, social and resource sustainability. The latter topic is considered and variables that could be used in an ISA are proposed. Understanding, quantifying and communicating the nature and magnitude of the net contribution of shale gas to society will be a challenging, but essential, task in the process of responding to opposition in an open and constructive manner, one which ISAs can support.

The effect of policy choices on mineral availability

During the late 1980s and early 1990s almost 100 nations introduced new or revised existing, mineral policies and laws. We are now in another period of revision, particularly in the Eastern European nations. National mineral policies in these countries are being, or recently have been, reconsidered for several reasons. First, policies from the prior political era were not consistent with market driven economic policies. Second, they did not reflect the regulatory framework or policy directives of the new, integrating Europe. Finally, old policies did not address the concerns, issues and needs of societies today, primary among these being the desire for a sustainable future. In this paper we argue that each country’s mix of imported and domestically produced minerals should be economically profitable, socially acceptable, and in compliance with sustainable development principles. In this paper we focus on the ongoing revision of mineral policies in Eastern European countries transitioning to market-driven economies. We first review basic policy concepts, placing emphasis on the purpose and scope of mineral policies. We then briefly describe EU positions on sustainability, and economic and mineral policy. This is followed by a general review of the mineral policies and management situation in the transition economies of Eastern Europe. We conclude that of number of the current policies have the potential to limit the availability of minerals to countries in this region rather than ensuring their supply. We also identify several policy trends that are inconsistent with sustainability principles. Kratka vsebina Koncem osemdesetih in v za~etku devetdesetih let prej{njega stoletja je skoraj 100 dr‘av spremenilo, obnovilo svoje politike in zakonodajo na podro~ju rudarstva. V za~etku novega tiso~letja smo, predvsem v Vzhodni Evropi, ponovno v fazi prenove. Nacionalne rudarske politike so bile obnovljene zaradi razli~nih razlogov. Prvi~, politike izpred devetdesetih, niso bile primerljive s politikami tr‘nega gospodarstva, drugi~, politike niso ustrezale zakonodajnem okviru integrirane Evrope, kon~no stare politike niso upo{tevale skrbi, potreb in odprtih vpra{anj dana{nje dru‘be, predvsem ‘elje po prihodnosti temelje~i na na~elih trajnostnega razvoja. V ~lanku smo se osredoto~ili na potekajo~o revizijo rudarskih politik v Vzhodni Evropi v prehodnem obdobju, na poti k tr‘nem gospodarstvu. Prvo smo pregledali temeljne koncepte politik, s posebnim ozirom na namen in podro~je delovanja rudarskih politik. Potem na kratko opi{emo stali{~a Evropske Unije v zvezi s trajnostnim razvojem, gospodarsko in rudarsko politiko. Temu sledi splo{en pregled rudarskih politik in gospodarjenja z mineralnimi surovinami v gospodarstvih Vzhodne Evrope. Zaklju~ujemo z ugotovitvijo, da {tevilne rudarske politike vsebujejo usmeritve, ki lahko na regionalni ali dr‘avni ravni bolj omejujejo dostopnost do mineralnih surovin kot oskrbo z njimi. Poleg tega tudi ugotavljamo, da {tevilni trendi rudarskih politik niso skladni z na~eli trajnostnega razvoja.