The UN Global Compact principles on the environment asks businesses to:

Principle 7         support a precautionary approach to environmental challenges;

Principle 8         undertake initiatives to promote greater environmental responsibility; and

Principle 9         encourage the development and diffusion of environmentally friendly technologies.

The environment section of the Global Compact Self Assessment Tool enables your company to assess its environmental performance against international standards, conventions and agreements, and provides inspiration for continuous improvement. This section should preferably be used together with the management section of the tool, which evaluates the extent to which issues covered by the UN Global Compact principles are anchored in the company strategy and integrated in decisions and management systems.

The environment section covers the following topics:

Precautionary Approach (Principle 7)

Precautionary approach

Emergency response

Responsibility and Performance (Principle 8)

Energy consumption and climate change

Water and waste water

Waste management

Air emissions

Noise, odour, light and vibrations

Chemicals and other dangerous substances

Biodiversity

Natural resources

Environmentally Friendly Technologies (Principle 9)

Environmentally Friendly Technologies

This section covers a broad range of issues relevant for the majority of businesses. However, not all the environmental issues covered will be relevant for all businesses depending on e.g. company operations and activities, and should therefore be answered as “not applicable”. There may also be issues that you may feel are not covered in sufficient detail or are missing. Feel free to add additional questions and/or indicators, relevant for your specific operations and activities.