The International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) Integrated Reporting Framework: Toward Better Sustainability Reporting and (Way) Beyond

Rethinking corporate reporting to include new visions of value, “capitals,” and the role of stakeholder input     

北京生态岛焚烧处置系统点火仪式启动

2008年12月30日,北京生态岛焚烧处置系统点火仪式正式启动,由于这是目前全国规模最大、占地面积最多、标准最高、北京市第一例“生态岛”项目,环境保护部及北京市领导极为重视,环境保护部副部长周健、北京市副市长黄卫等领导出席了该项目的点火仪式。位于房山区窦店镇的生态岛项目,总占地面积约为8400m^2。作为一个集收运、储存、物化处理、     

基于能值的工业生产系统可持续性分析

在绝大多数工业生产系统的运行过程中,都会不可避免地产生一定量的污染物,它们会对环境造成一定的危害.本文针对目前在工业系统能值分析中对排放废物的环境影响考虑较少的情况,采用传统和改进的能值评价指标对考虑污染物排放前后的硫酸厂系统发展的可持续性进行了分析.分析结果显示,改进后的能值评价指标更能够反映工业生产系统的特点;考虑污染物能值影响后的系统的能值产出率没有变化,但系统的环境负载率升高,同时系统环境可持续发展性降低.     

Measuring Corporate Sustainability

Although sustainable development has been interpreted primarily as a national (or global) goal, there is increasing discussion of the 'sustainable city', the 'sustainable sector' and the 'sustainable business'. In this paper, the notion of corporate sustainability is explored and developed. We argue that one of the keys to understanding corporate sustainability is full cost accounting, that is, valuing pollution in corporate green accounts. Defining and measuring corporate sustainability is more than just an academic concern. Corporate entities are increasingly under pressure to demonstrate how they contribute to the national sustainability goals outlined by government. Hence, this paper seeks to provide practical advice on how businesses might adapt and improve current environmental accounting and reporting practice.     

Sustainability in Practice

Sweden has led the way in Europe in environmental protection, ecologically based technological innovation and social democracy. As new economic and ethnographic realities impact upon it, it faces challenges to its policies and practices long familiar elsewhere in Europe. We report on a study for the Swedish Research Councils in which we examined the national framework and political strategy for sustainable development, and how the strategy is being implemented in Sweden's three major cities and two case-study municipalities. History and tradition, cultural homogeneity and a strong and shared sense between sectors of 'the public good', emerged as very important. Until recently, these have obviated the need for formal links between the environmental, social and economic agendas. They now appear inadequately developed at all levels of governance. Tensions in policy are being played out at the level of the municipality, to which power is highly devolved, and Local Agenda 21, interpreted as project rather than process, seems unequal to the task of integration. We suggest what lessons may be drawn from the Swedish experience if issues of power and trust, leadership and participatory vs representative democracy are to be resolved.     

Local Sustainability Indicators

Local Environment has established a bit of a niche in local sustainability indicator studies. In 1997 it published the important debate between Jeb Brugman and Graham Pinfield, which highlighted that sustainability indicators and their role are contested issues (Vol. 2, Nos 1-3). In 1999 it produce a first special issue on the topic (Vol. 4, No. 2). As the editors identified, this special issue probed ‘deeper into aspects of indicator selection, methodology, theory and practice’. The papers presented there began to discuss a theme that is developed further in this special issue, that of the relationship between the objective and the subjective in indicator development and use. Our special issue brings together three full papers and a commentary presenting research and information from the USA, Sweden, France and Austria. In this editorial we are going to review the growth of interest in sustainability indicators and the changing way in which they are viewed and briefly comment on some recent indicator projects that we have been involved in.     

Community Sustainability Auditing

This paper presents a method for assessing a community's sustainability prospects at a point in time. It argues that an improved methodology is needed to support the development of local area indicators. The method presented is community sustainability auditing. The ethical, conservative, competitive and co-operative aspects of sustainability are emphasized.The method uses an indicator approach within a protocol loosely inspired by International Standards Organization procedures. This involves the development of a set of questions for audit purposes, definition of indicators, analysis of the indicators in the light of the questions and a report summarizing a community's sustainability prospects.     

湖北省区域可持续发展能力综合评价

从区域可持续发展的观点出发，根据湖北省具体区域特征，通过构建湖北省区域可持续发展指标体系和评估方法，得出湖北省12个地市人口、资源、环境、经济和社会5个系统的可持续发展指数以及区域综合可持续发展指数。从总体上看，湖北省区域可持续发展水平处于偏低水平，其中武汉市是唯一具有强可持续发展能力的城市，但优势地位不明显；其它城市可持续发展5个系统均存在发展不平衡状况，且城市特色不突出。     

Communicating About Bioenergy Sustainability

Defining and measuring sustainability of bioenergy systems are difficult because the systems are complex, the science is in early stages of development, and there is a need to generalize what are inherently context-specific enterprises. These challenges, and the fact that decisions are being made now, create a need for improved communications among scientists as well as between scientists and decision makers. In order for scientists to provide information that is useful to decision makers, they need to come to an agreement on how to measure and report potential risks and benefits of diverse energy alternatives in a way that allows decision makers to compare options. Scientists also need to develop approaches that contribute information about problems and opportunities relevant to policy and decision making. The need for clear communication is especially important at this time when there is a plethora of scientific papers and reports and it is difficult for the public or decision makers to assess the merits of each analysis. We propose three communication guidelines for scientists whose work can contribute to decision making: (1) relationships between the question and the analytical approach should be clearly defined and make common sense; (2) the information should be presented in a manner that non-scientists can understand; and (3) the implications of methods, assumptions, and limitations should be clear. The scientists’ job is to analyze information to build a better understanding of environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic aspects of the sustainability of energy alternatives. The scientific process requires transparency, debate, review, and collaboration across disciplines and time. This paper serves as an introduction to the papers in the special issue on “Sustainability of Bioenergy Systems: Cradle to Grave” because scientific communication is essential to developing more sustainable energy systems. Together these four papers provide a framework under which the effects of bioenergy can be assessed and compared to other energy alternatives to foster sustainability.     

福州市环境可持续性评价

本文选取2000-2007年福州市城区环境数据,采用压力-状态-响应指标体系,对福州市近8年的环境动态进行可持续性评价。压力因子包括人口、经济和能耗,状态因子包括大气环境、声环境和水环境,响应因子包括污染控制、环境建设和环境管理。结果表明,福州市环境可持续发展能力2000年较差,2001-2002年一般,2003-2007年较好。     

2000年全国环境保护相关产业基本情况调查正式启动

由国家环境保护总局负责组织、中国环境保护产业协会具体承担的、以全国31个省、自治区、直辖市为调查的基本单元的2000年全国环境保护相关产业：环境保护产品的生产、洁净产品的生产、环境保护服务业、资源综合利用、自然生态保护、环境贸易六个方面的基本情况调查启动情况介绍。