ISO14001 and environmental legal compliance at Samancor …

IS014001 and Environmental Legal Compliance

at Samancor Chrome.

by

SUSANNA VISSER

Dissertation

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements

for the masters degree

in

BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

at the

THE UNIVERSITY OF WALES

July 2000

Declaration

Herewith I, Susanna Visser, declare that this research report in my own

unaided work. It is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the

masters degree in Business Administration at the University of Wales. It has

not been submitted before for any other degree or examination at any other

university.

Susanna Visser

This 12th day of August 2000

ii

Acknowledgements

I want to sincerely thank the following people:

Andrew Pampallis for his time, guidance and support whilst acting as my

supervisor for this dissertation.

Dries Visser for sharing his knowledge and experience with me.

Duard Barnard for triggering my interest in environmental legal compliance

enforced on organisations.

My husband, Hennie for encouraging and supporting me and my daughters

for their understanding and trust.

My father, Frans for proof reading my dissertation and my mother for her

support.

Johnny for his encouragement and proof reading of my dissertation.

My employer, Palmiet Ferrochrome for the opportunity to be involved in the

implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

My fellow members of Syndicate group C who supported and encouraged

me.

iii

Dedication

This dissertation is dedicated to my dad, Frans

Ferreira, who demonstrated to me how strong the

power of the mind can be. Through his experience I

learnt it is possible to beat all odds, if you have

enough will power and God on your side. This one is

for you Dad, just to say thank you!

iv

Table of Contents

Chapter and Title

Acknowledgements

Table of Contents

Table of Figures

Table of Tables

Acronyms

Glossary of Terms

Page No

ii

xii

xv

xvii

xviii

CHAPTER ONE 1

Introduction and Scope of Research 1

1.1 Background: 1

1.2 Aim 6

1.3 Objectives 6

1.4 Definitions 7 1.4.1 Environment 7 1.4.2 Environmental Liability 8 1.4.3 Environmental Management System (EMS) 8 1.4.4 Integrated Environmental Management System 9 1.4.5 Standards 9 1.4.6 Legislation 9 1.4.7 Environmental Management Programme 9

1.5 Value of the Research 10

1.6 Outline of the Research Report 10 1.6.1 Chapter One 10 1.6.2 Chapter Two 11 1.6.3 Chapter Three 11 1.6.4 Chapter Four 11 1.6.5 Chapter Five 12

Chapter and Title Page No

1.6.6 Chapter Six 12 1.6.7 Chapter Seven 12 1.6.8 Chapter Eight 13 1.6.9 Chapter Nine 13 1.6.10 Chapter Ten 13

CHAPTER TWO 15

Literature Review 15

2.1 Introduction 15

2.2 Literature Review 17

2.3 Research Approach and Design 18

2.4 Triangulation 19

2.5 Research Ethics 19

2.6 Sample Selection 20

2.7 Purposive sampling 21 2.7.1 Extreme case sampling 21 2.7.2 Heterogeneous or maximum variations sampling 21 2.7.3 Homogeneous sampling 22 2.7.4 Critical case sampling 22 2.7.5 Typical case sampling 22

2.8 Primary data - Questionnaires 23

2.9 Secondary data 24 2.9.1 Documentary data 24 2.9.2 Survey-based data 24 2.9.3 Multiple source data 25 2.9.4 Advantages and disadvantages of secondary data 25

2.10 Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research 25 2.10.1 Quantitative Research 26 2.10.2 Qualitative Research 27 2.10.3 The differences between quantitative and qualitative Research 31

2.11 Limitations 32

2.12 Summary: 33

vi


CHAPTER THREE 34

Background and History 34

3.1 Introduction 34

3.2 Billiton 34

3.3 Samancor 35

3.4 Palmiet Ferrochrome 37

CHAPTER FOUR 40

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) 40

4.1 Introduction 40

4.2 What is meant by environment? 40

4.3 Global Environmental backlashes 42 4.3.1 Acid Rain 43 4.3.2 Pollution 43 4.3.3 The Greenhouse effect 44 4.3.4 Deforestation 44 4.3.5 Ozone Depletion 44

4.4 Why Standards? 45

4.5 What is ISO? 48 4.5.1 "Consensus 52 4.5.2 Industry-wide 52 4.5.3 Voluntary 52

4.6 What is SABS ISO 14001 (1996)? 54

4.7 What is an Environmental Management Plan (EMP)? 58

4.8 Implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) 60 4.8.1 Initial review (figure 4.4) 60 4.8.2 Commitment and Policy (figure 4.4) 62 4.8.3 Planning (Figure 4.4) 63 4.8.4 Implementation and operation (figure 4.4) 65 4.8.5 Checking and corrective action (figure 4.4) 69 4.8.6 Management review 72

4.9 Continuous improvement with SABS ISO 14001 (1996) 72

4.10 General Environmental Principles 73 4.10.1 Custodianship 73

vii


4.10.2 Cradle to grave principle 74 4.10.3 Due process 74 4.10.4 Eco-efficiency principle 74 4.10.5 Increased transparency 75 4.10.6 Integrated Environmental System 75 4.10.7 Internalisation of externalities 76 4.10.8 Polluter pays principle 76 4.10.9 Sustainability principle 77

4.11 Sustainable Development 77

4.12 Sustainability 78 4.12.1 Environmental Sustainability 79 4.12.2 Social Sustainability 79 4.12.3 Economic Sustainability 79

CHAPTER FIVE 80

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and Management Decision Making 80

5.1 Introduction 80

5.2 Management decision making 80

5.3 What is environmental management? 83

5.4 Why use a system to address environmental issues? 86

5.5 Management with SABS ISO 14001 (1996) 87

CHAPTER SIX 88

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and Environmental Legal

Compliance 88

6.1 Introduction 88

6.2 The Industrial Environmental Forum 90

6.3 Environmental Liability 91

6.4 Environmental Law in South Africa 92

6.5 Legal basis for public participation 93

6.6 Environmental Legislation 93 6.6.1 The Constitution — Act 108 of 1996

94

6.6.2 The Environment Conservation Act — Act 73 of 1989

96

viii


6.6.3 White Paper on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa - Government Notice 1096 of 1998 97

6.6.4 Draft Environmental Management Bill 98 6.6.5 National Environmental Management Act — Act 107 of 1998 99

6.7 World-wide Environmental Actions 102 6.7.1 The Rio Declaration 102 6.7.2 The Basel Convention 105 6.7.3 The World Trade Organisation (WTO) 105 6.7.4 The Agreement on Trade, Development and Co-operation (1999).106

6.8 Legal review according to SABS ISO 14001 (1996) 106

CHAPTER SEVEN 109

The Need for and Benefits of an Environmental Management

System

7.1 Introduction 109

7.2 What type of environmental information do people need? 109

7.3 Survey analysis on ethical investments. 114

7.4 Benefits of an Environmental Management System 118

7.5 Benefits from an Eco-Management system 122 7.5.1 Cost Savings (wwwd, 1996) 122 7.5.2 Customer requirements (wwwd, 1996) 122 7.5.3 Corporate image (wwwd, 1996) 122 7.5.4 Legislation (wwwd, 1996) 123 7.5.5 Investment (wwwd, 1996) 123 7.5.6 Insurance (wwwd, 1996) 123 7.5.7 Marketing opportunities (wwwd, 1996) 123

7.6 Benefits linked to the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an integrated environmental management system 123

CHAPTER EIGHT 125

Management Response to Employee Participation 125


8.2 Environmental awareness 126

ix

Chapter and Title

Page No

CHAPTER NINE

132

The Impact of Liability, Accountability, Responsibility and

Authority 132


9.2 Why should roles, responsibility and authority be defined? 132

9.3 The RACI technique 135

9.4 The impact of liability 137

CHAPTER TEN 139

Research Findings 139


10.2 Questionnaire analysis 140 10.2.1 Objective No 1 140 10.2.2 Objective No. 2 144 10.2.3 Objective No. 3 145 10.2.4 Objective No. 4 146 10.2.5 Is there a need for the implementation of an environmental

management system? 147 10.2.6 Advantages and disadvantages of the implementation of an

environmental management system 148 10.2.7 Objective No. 5 150 10.2.8 Objective No. 6 151 10.2.9 The Aim of the Research 154 10.2.10Question No. 7 The financial, legal and social impacts for

Billiton and Samancor 155

10.3 Environmental reporting at Samancor 157

10.4 Recommendations 159

10.5 Conclusion 160

Bibliography 162

Appendix A 1

Table of Environmental Legislation 1


Appendix B 1

1S014001 Questionnaire 1

1S014001 Questionnaire Response No 1 4







xi

Table of Figures

Figure and Title Page No

CHAPTER ONE

Introduction and Scope of Research

Figure 1.1: The Integration of Government, Business and Society. 3

Figure 1.2: Pie chart presentation of an Integrated Strategic Business

Environment. 5

CHAPTER TWO

Literature Review

Figure 2.1: The different types of literature sources available. 18

CHAPTER THREE

Background and History

Figure 3.1: Chrome in Southern Africa. 37

Figure 3.2: Air view of Palmiet Ferrochrome. 39

CHAPTER FOUR

SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Figure 4.1: The Socio-biophysical model. 42

Figure 4.2: Pie chart depicting the portfolio of ISO 14000 Standards by

technical sector. 53

Figure 4.3: Environmental Management system model for SABS ISO

14001 (1996) 55

Figure 4.4: SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an environmental management

system 56

Figure 4.5: The Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle 57

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Figure 4.6: Environmental Management Systems 59

Figure 4.7: The Four Tier Documentation System of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) 67

CHAPTER FIVE

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and Management Decision Making

Figure 5.1: Management processes of an Environmental Manage-ment

System. 82

Figure 5.2: Dimensions of environmental management process. 85

CHAPTER SEVEN


System

Figure 7.1: Bar chart presentation of the importance of availability of

environmental related information. 110

Figure 7.2: Bar chart presentation on the importance of comparative

information and participation for employees. 112

Figure 7.3: Bar chart presentation of the importance of commitment to

social responsibility. 113

Figure 7.4: Bar Chart presentation of survey information 116

Figure 7.5: Bar chart presentation of positive responses 117

Figure 7.6: Benefits of the implementation of an environmental

management system. 120

CHAPTER EIGHT

Management Response to Employee Participation

Figure 8.1: Generic training and awareness model for environmental

management. 127

Figure 8.2: Elements of a training programme. 129


CHAPTER NINE


Authority

Figure 9.1: The cross-functional processes of Environmental

Management Systems 135

CHAPTER TEN

Research Findings

Figure 10.1: Bar chart presentation of research findings — Most

important components of SABS ISO 14001 (1996). 143

xiv

Table of Tables

Table and Title Page No

CHAPTER FOUR

SASS ISO 14001 (1996)

Table 4.1: List of ISO Standards dealing with Environmental Issues 51

CHAPTER SEVEN


System

Table 7.1: Survey research analysis — Relative importance of types of

information. 111

Table 7.2: Summary of the research results. 114

Table 7.3: Summary of survey responses. 115

Table 8.1: Types of environmental training. 130

CHAPTER NINE


Authority

Table 9.1: Typical responsibilities of the different levels in an

organisation. 134

Table 9.2: A typical RACI chart

136

CHAPTER TEN

Research Findings

Table 10.1: The link between the questionnaire and the aim and

objectives 140

xv

Table and Title Page No

Table 10.2: The most important components of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

141

Table 10.3: Advantages associated with the implementation of SABS ISO

14001 (1996). 148

Table 10.4: Disadvantages associated with the implementation of SABS

ISO 14001 (1996). 149

Table 10.5: Environmental expenditure at Samancor during 1996 158

xvi

Acronyms

BiE Business in the Environment

CONEPP Consultative National Environmental Management

Committee

CSIR Council for Scientific Industrial Research

EIA Environmental Impact Assessment

EMP Environmental Management Plan

EMS Environmental Management System

IEF Industrial Environmental Forum

IEMS Integrated Environmental Management System

ISO International Organisation of Standards

KPI's Key Performance Indicators

NEMA National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of

1998

NGO's Non-Governmental Organisations

OHS Act Occupational Health and Safety Act

QRCA Qualitative Research Consultants Association

RACI Responsibility, Accountability, Consultation and Inform

SABS South African Bureau of Standards

SACCQA South African Certification Committee for Quality

Auditors

SAGE Strategic Advisory Group on the Environment

SANAS South African National Accreditation System

SEMCO Samancor Environmental Management Committee

TC207 Technical Committee No 207

WCS World Conservation Strategy

WTO World Trade Organisation

xvii

Glossary of Terms

The following terms have been used in the text, most of them are specifically

related to environmental issues. The meanings of these terms as defined in

the White Paper on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa

(1998) are as follows:

Ambient Standards Define the maximum pollutant levels in water, air or

land/soil in order to ensure that these are fit to meet

user needs, and avoid unreasonable or significant

environmental impacts or health hazards.

Biodiversity Is the variability among living organisms from all

sources including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic

ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which the

are part; this includes diversity within and between all

species of a ecosystem.

Development A process for improving human well-being through a

reallocation of resources that involves modification of

the environment. It addresses the basic needs, equity

and the redistribution of wealth, and focus on the

quality of life rather than the quantity of economic

activity.

Due Process Following set or agreed procedures and processes in

environmental governance.

Ecosystem A dynamic complex of plant, animal and micro-

organism communities and their non-living

environment interacting as a fictional unit. The major

parts of an ecosystem are the producers (green plants),

the consumers (herbivores and carnivores), the

decomposers (fungi and bacteria), and the non-living

or abiotic component of dead organic matter and

xviii

nutrients in the soil and water. Ecosystem inputs

include solar energy, water, oxygen, carbon dioxide,

nitrogen and other elements and compounds. Outputs

include heat, water, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and

nutrient losses.

Environmental Is a systematic, documented, regular and objective

Audit evaluation to see how well an organisation or facility is

operating in terms of its Environmental Management

System (EMS), and its compliance with statutory

requirements and the organisation's environmental

policy.

Environmental A detailed study of the environmental consequences of

Impact Assessment a proposed course of action. An environmental

assessment or evaluation is a study of the

environmental effects of a decision, project,

undertaking or activity. It is most often used within an

Integrated Environmental Management (IEM),

planning process as a decision support tool to compare

different options.

Environmental Documented procedures drawn up as described in a

Management South African Bureau of Standards code of practice to

Systems implement the requirements of SABS ISO 14000

(1996). Operating, emergency, data collection, and

documentation procedures are set out, along with

procedures for training, the transfer of information and

all the elements of a complete management and quality

control system.

Environmental The ability of an activity to continue indefinitely, at

Sustainability current and projected levels, whilst maintaining or

substituting for social, cultural and natural resources

required to meet present and future needs.

xix

Externalities Economic activities that cause uncompensated

environmental loss or damage to others.

Globalisation Drives to create a single world market, mainly by large

corporations with global standards and economic

approaches by governments and promotes a single

global lifestyle.

Governance Setting of a policy to guide an activity and making

sure that the money, people and institutions to do the

work are in place. It also means making sure that

people are accountable for the work they do,

monitoring what happens and making new plans to

carry the work forward.

Green-house Are gasses in the earth's lower atmosphere, which

Gasses traps heat causing an increase in the earth's

temperature. These gasses include carbon dioxide,

methane, nitrous oxides and other synthetic chemicals.

Habitat The place characterised by its physical properties and

other life forms present, where an organism or a

community occurs.

Holism The term is derived from the Greek word `holos'

meaning complete, integrated. Holism is a worldview

that sees all things as interconnected and getting their

meaning mainly from their connections with other

things.

Integrated Is a code of practice ensuring that environmental

Environmental considerations are fully integrated into the

Management management of all activities in order to achieve a

desirable balance between conservation and

development.

Natural Resources Is any resource provided by the bio-physical

environment.

Sustainable

Development

Defined as development, which seeks to integrate

environmental, social and economic concerns, now

and in the future, and to keep within the carrying

capacity of the environment. The focus is on ensuring

that environmental sustainability, health and safety are

not compromised, and that natural and cultural

resource are not ended. Sustainable development must

ensure that the direction of investments, the orientation

of technolo091, f!rmqffnpflt§ ttIc institutional

mechanism work together towards Ow goal of pLe

sustainable use of environmental resources in a way

and at a rate that will meet the present and future

needs. Sustainable development requires that

particular attention be given to addressing the needs of

previously disadvantaged communities.

xxi

Chapter One Introduction and Scope of Research

1.1 Background:

"There has been an increased concern regarding environmental issues in the

international community during the last couple of decades. Whereas non-

governmental organisations have played an important role in drawing attention

to environmental impacts caused by industrial activities, governments and

international organisations have responded by promulgating increasingly

stringent legislation" (Hall, 1998:3).

As Hall emphasised in the above statement more pressure is placed on

international competing organisations to prove to the international community

that they are committed to positive environmental performance. This is

normally done through the implementation of an integrated environmental

management system, such as the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS)

ISO 14001 (1996) system, followed by third party certification.

A decision was made by the Billiton Board that all its subsidiaries would

implement an integrated, internationally accepted environmental management

system. To ensure that the same standard applies to all its operations it was

decided that all subsidiaries must implement the SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

environmental management system, coupled with third party certification.

Samancor, is a subsidiary of Billiton, who owns operations all over the world.

Thus individuals at each Samancor plant was tasked with SABS ISO 14001

(1996) implementation and certification. Five of the plants already received

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification and Palmiet Ferrochrome is currently in

the process of developing and implementing the SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

standard.

1

During the planning stages of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) implementation the

following questions was asked:

Why SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and not any of the other available

environmental management systems?

.=. How could the different environmental legislation's impact on the

organisation?

.> How could we ensure environmental legal compliance with the ever-

changing environmental laws?

Could SABS ISO 14001 (1996) guarantee environmental legal compliance?

In an attempt to find the answers to some of these questions, it was decided to

focus on SABS ISO 14001 (1996), as an integrated environmental management

system for the purpose of this dissertation. This would enhance the knowledge

base of the author, on SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

Through the promulgation of the Constitution, Act 108 of 1996 a totally

changed legal environment was introduced for industry in general. Not only is

it essential to know the letter of the law, but it is critical to understand the

context within which the legal provisions needs to be interpreted.

This is underscored by a recent judgement of a full bench of the Appeal Court

in which appears the following statement: "Our Constitution, by including

environmental rights as fundamental, justifiable human rights, by necessary

implication requires that environmental considerations be accorded appropriate

recognition and respect in the administrative processes in our country.

Together with the change in the ideological climate must also come a change in

our legal and administrative approach to environmental concerns" (Case no.

133/98).

The schematic presentation in figure 1.1 shows that Government, Business and

Society each plays a major role in the development of environmental

legislation, and has a responsibility towards each other to ensure environmental

2

Feedback as interested and affected parties

on implementation of legislation

Feedback as interested and affected parties

on implementation of legislation

Government (law regulations - rules the game)

TECHNIKON INITWATERSR)

LIBRARy

Society , Business

--,, (human rights) Labour (must comply -

Legislation)

•Environmental judgement -Freedom of information

performance standards are met. Government determines the rules of the game

by enforcing legislation and regulations. Business and society must comply

with the different laws. Due to the policy of "transparency" government

depends on business and society, as the interested and affected parties to

respond to legislation and provide them with feedback and possible

recommendations. Labour can be seen as the link between business and the

society. For approximately eight hours a day an individual is employed and as

such forms part of the business environment and for the rest of the day he is an

integral part of society (Barnard and Visser, 1999).

ND

Figure 1.1: The Integration of Government, Business and Society. Source: Barnard and Visser (1999).

According to Connel (1996:1) there is now a concerted global effort to assess

the immediate status of the environment, after which policies and procedures

could be developed to ensure a balance between economic development and a

3

stable, healthy environment. The ultimate goal is to ensure sustainable

development of the environment, not only in one country but globally. Success

depends upon individuals changing their way of life, and organisations learning

to manage their enterprises with clear environmental objectives, and ultimately

on governments enforcing regulations wisely.

The preamble of the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA), Act

107 of 1998 clearly states that: "everyone has the right to have the environment

protected, for the benefit of present and future generations, through reasonable

legislative and other measures that prevent pollution and ecological

degradation; promote conservation; and secure ecologically sustainable

development and use of natural resources while promoting justifiable economic

and social development." Provision is made in section 31.1.b for disclosure of

information "every person is entitled to have access to information held by the

State and organs of state which relates to the implementation of this Act and

any other law affecting the environment, and to the state of the environment

and actual and future threats to the environment, including any emissions to

water, air or soil and the production, handling, transportation, treatment,

storage and disposal of hazardous waste and substances."

According to section 29 of the National Environmental Management Act, Act

107 of 1998, the law protects employees if they refuse to do environmentally

hazardous work and employers are not allowed to discriminate against them if

they "blow the whistle." Section 29, subsection (1) states: "Notwithstanding

the provisions of any other law, no person is civilly or criminally liable or may

be dismissed, disciplined, prejudiced or harassed on account of having refused

to perform any work if the person in good faith and reasonably believed at the

time of the refusal that the performance of the work would result in an

imminent and serious threat to the environment." Subsection 4 and 5 makes it

clear that "No person may advantage or promise to advantage any person for

not exercising his or her right in terms of subsection (1). No person may

threaten to take any action contemplated by subsection (1) against a person

4

because that person has exercised or intends to exercise his or her right in terms

of subsection (1)."

Furthermore the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998,

clearly states the duties of the employer in section 29.3.b as to "inform and

educate employees about the environmental risks of their work and the manner

in which their tasks must be performed in order to avoid causing significant

pollution or degradation of the environment."

Considering the above the challenge to any Manpower department is to

determine which response would be required to ensure legal compliance,

within good labour relations. The question is would the implementation of

SABS ISO 14001 (1996), which is an integrated environmental management

system, provide the required direction on how to manage this challenge?

Figure 1.2: Pie chart presentation of an Integrated Strategic Business Environment.

Source: Visser (a) 1999.

In figure 1.2 a pie chart is used to graphically present the different components

forming the strategic environment in which an organisation competes.

5

Complete integration of all these segments is required to achieve a competitive

edge in the global marketplace. No organisation can afford to neglect any part

of it (Visser (a), 1999)! For the purpose of this dissertation the focus would

mainly be on one segment only namely, the legal environment with emphasis

on environmental legislation.

1.2 Aim

The aim of the dissertation is to determine if the implementation of SABS ISO

14001 (1996), as an integrated environmental management system would

ensure environmental legal compliance in the Samancor group.

The different Samancor plants are not only pressurised to become SABS ISO

14001 (1996) certified by the parent company, Billiton, but also by its

customers seeing that most of Samancor's products are exported and sold on

the international market. As a result of these pressures the company is actively

engaged in a dynamic integrated environmental management plan, which deals

with all aspects of air, water, ground and solid waste pollution.

1.3 Objectives

1.3.1 To determine what SABS ISO 14001 (1996), as an integrated

management system comprise of.

1.3.2 To establish if there is a link between SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and

management decision making.

1.3.3 To determine how SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be used to ensure

legal compliance.

1.3.4 To determine if there is a need for the implementation of an

environmental management system and if any benefit could be derived

thereof.

1.3.5 To establish how management should respond to ensure employee

involvement. (Training, disclosure, participative decision making)

6

1.3.6 To research the impact of liability, authority, accountability and

responsibility.

1.4 Definitions

1.4.1 Environment

"Surroundings in which an organisation operates, including air, water, land,

natural resources, flora, fauna, humans, and their interrelation" SABS ISO

14001 (1996:1).

According to the National Environmental Management Act Act 107 of 1998

(NEMA), "Environment means the surroundings within which humans exist

and that are made up of

the land, water and atmosphere of the earth;

micro-organisms, plant and animal life;

any part or combination of (i) and (ii) and the interrelationships among

and between them;

and the physical, chemical, aesthetic and cultural properties of the

foregoing that influence human health and well-being."

The White Paper on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa

(1998:9) defines the environment as "the biosphere in which people and

organisms live. It consists of

renewable and non-renewable natural resources such as air, water (fresh

and marine), land and all forms of life;

natural ecosystems and habitats; and

ecosystems, habitats and spatial surroundings modified or constructed

by people, including urbanised areas, agricultural and rural landscapes,

places of cultural significance and the qualities that contribute to their

value.

7

People are part of the environment and are the centre of concern for its

sustainability. Culture, economic considerations, social systems, politics and

value systems determine the:

interaction between people and natural ecosystems and habitats;

use of natural resources; and

values and meanings that people attach to life forms, ecological

systems, physical and cultural landscapes and places."

The environment is defined "as the sum of the surrounding elements,

influences and situations, which affect the life, and habitats of individual

organisms, and a collection of organisms" Environmental Conservation Act,

Act No 73 of 1989.

Lastly the guideline document for strategic environmental assessment in South

Africa (CSIR, 1999:ii) defines the environment as "the external circumstances,

conditions and objects that affect the existence and development of an

individual, organism or group. These circumstances include biophysical,

social, economic, historical, cultural and political aspects."

1.4.2 Environmental Liability

According to De Villiers and Visser (2000:14) environmental liability is "A

legal obligation to make a future expenditure due to the past or ongoing

manufacture, use, release or threatened release of a particular substance, or

other activities that adversely affect the environment."

1.4.3 Environmental Management System (EMS)

"The part of the overall management system that includes organisational

structure, planning activities, responsibilities, practices, procedures, processes,

and resources for developing, implementing, achieving, reviewing, and

maintaining the environmental policy" SABS ISO 14001 (1996:2).

8

1.4.4 Integrated Environmental Management System

The guideline document for strategic environmental assessment in South

Africa (CSIR, 1999:iii) describes it as "a philosophy, which prescribes a code

of practice for ensuring that environmental considerations are fully integrated

into all stages of the development process in order to achieve a desirable

balance between conservation and development."

1.4.5 Standards

Was defined during the 29 th World Standards Day in 1998 to "provide the end-

user with a criterion for judgement, a measurement of quality, and a certain

guarantee of compatibility and interoperability" (Cornish, 1997:2).

International standards encourage an improved quality of life by contributing to

safety, human health, and the protection of the environment.

1.4.6 Legislation

Legislation could be seen, as a "prescriptive method of control, entailing set

levels of performance" (Thorne, 1996:2).

According to Barnard and Visser (1999:8) "legislation is a collection of

detailed, legally binding principles, processes and management structures

which originated where weaknesses or relative simplicity of the elementary

common law indicated a need for more sophistication."

1.4.7 Environmental Management Programme

The purpose of an Environmental Management Programme is to ensure that, in

implementing a new development, negative environmental impacts are

managed and monitored, that positive impacts are maximised and affected

areas are rehabilitated.

9

1.5 Value of the Research

Being an employee at one of the Samancor Plants tasked with the responsibility

of implementing an environmental management programme and obtaining

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification the question of environmental legal

compliance is one of major concern. Through this study an attempt would be

made to determine if the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be

used as a guarantee for legal compliance or if it might only be a misconception

that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification ensures sound environmental

principles in all endeavours of the organisation. The dissertation could be used

as a basis for discussions between the parent company Billiton and Samancor

to determine if SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification is the best route to follow

for all Samancor plants.

1.6 Outline of the Research Report

Organisations having to accept responsibility for the impact of their actions on

the environment are a fairly new concept in South Africa. Environmental

legislation is changing continuously and new legislation promulgated.

Therefore it would be futile to attempt this research study without continuous

literature review. A literature review had to be done on each one of the

objectives therefore they are addressed in different chapters. The topics

discussed in each chapter are as follows:

1.6.1 Chapter One

This chapter examines the background to the research question. The parent

company, Billiton, demanded that all of its subsidiaries will implement SABS

ISO 14001 (1996), as an integrated environmental management system, and

obtain third party certification. The challenge is to determine if the

implementation of this integrated environmental management system would

guarantee environmental legal compliance. The question is: would the

implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an integrated environmental

10

management system benefit the Samancor Plants? Defmitions of some

concepts are provided and the scope of the dissertation is determined, regarding

the aim and objectives.

1.6.2 Chapter Two

This section examines the different research methodologies and place emphasis

on the research process. The different steps that should be followed when

doing research are discussed. The difference between quantitative and

qualitative research methods is studied to allow for the determination of which

research method would ensure the most accurate results. After studying the

advantages and disadvantages of the different methods a decision was made to

use qualitative research. The different types of literature sources available are

discussed seeing that a combination of literature sources was used in doing the

research.

1.6.3 Chapter Three

This chapter provides the reader with background information on the parent

company, Billiton and the subsidiary, Samancor. It also takes a broad look at

Palmiet Ferrochrome, as this is where the development and implementation of

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is currently in progress.

1.6.4 Chapter Four

An overview of what is meant by 'environment' is done and some

environmental backlashes are discussed. The first objective is addressed

through this chapter. The purpose of this objective is to determine what SABS

ISO 14001 (1996), as an integrated environmental management system consists

of. The background to the International Organisation of Standards is discussed

with emphasis on the development of the series of environmental standards and

guidelines. SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is only one of these standards. Each step

11

in the implementation process of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is discussed and a

brief description of general environmental principles are provided.

1.6.5 Chapter Five

The second objective was to determine if a possible link between management

decision making and SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is evident. In chapter five an

attempt is made to determine what management decision making consists of

and what is meant with environmental management. The system approach to

environmental management is scrutinised and environmental management by

using SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is discussed.

1.6.6 Chapter Six

Due to the ever-changing nature of environmental legislation it is difficult for

organisations to ensure that their actions are always within the law. Therefore

it is essential to ensure that a system is in place, whereby an organisation

would be informed of new laws and changes in existing legislation.

The third objective was to determine how SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be

used to ensure environmental legal compliance in Samancor. Chapter six looks

at environmental law in South Africa and organisations' environmental

liability. Some of the laws, which might have a substantial impact on an

organisation, are discussed in more detail.

1.6.7 Chapter Seven

In this chapter, the fourth objective is addressed by doing a literature study to

determine if there is a need for the implementation of an environmental

management system and if any benefits could be derived from it. An analysis

of a survey done by the De Villiers and Visser (2000) forms the basis of this

chapter.

12

1.6.8 Chapter Eight

Seeing that the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998

makes provision for transparency and participation of all interested and

affected parties it is essential to ensure that the knowledge needed by

individuals is provided. The fifth objective was to determine how management

should respond to ensure employee involvement. It focuses on environmental

awareness and training.

1.6.9 Chapter Nine

In this chapter, the sixth objective is addressed, looking at the impact of

liability, authority, accountability and responsibility. The reasons why roles

and responsibilities should be defined and the RACI technique, of assigning

Responsibility, Accountability, whom to Consult and who to Inform are

discussed.

1.6.10Chapter Ten

The findings on the questionnaire send to respondents are analysed and

conclusions made in this chapter. A brief overview of Samancor's

involvement in environmental management since 1996 is provided.

Management recommendations will be provided.

13

Chapter Two

Literature Review

2.1 Introduction

According to the Collins English dictionary (1986:724) research is a

"systematic investigation to establish facts or collect information on a subject."

The emphasis lies with the word systematic, which could be translated as,

following a logical approach to find out things about the research topic.

Saunders et al., (1997:2) suggested that not only should "business and

management research provides findings, which advance knowledge, it also

needs to provide a procedure for solving managerial problems and addressing

business issues." All business and management research projects can be

classified according to their purpose and context into Academic Research or

Applied Research.

According to Saunders et al., (1997:3) the purpose of Academic Research is to

expand an individual's knowledge related to business processes and

management. Academic research should result in universal principles relating

to the process and its relationship to outcomes, and provide findings of

significance and value to society in general.

On the other hand Saunders et al., (1997:3) suggests that the purpose of applied

research are to improve the understanding of a particular business or

management problem, with emphasis on fmding a solution to the problem,

whilst obtaining new knowledge related to the problem. This would result in

fmding a solution of practical relevance and value to the managers in an

organisation.

14

The logic underlying research is that for each theory tested, the researcher must

determine a basic statement of acceptance or the study would progress into

infinitely. According to Shank (1996:4) "logic could be seen as the first step in

research, and different research methods use different logical methods". Van

Dijk (1995:1) once said, "research methodology is influenced by the

paradigmatic approach behind it".

A paradigm could be seen as an implicit, unvoiced and pervasive commitment

to a conceptual framework. As such research could be seen as a specific way

of observing and perceiving through the use of different research methods.

Research provides the tool to make sense out of what we observe. Meyers

(2000:1) suggested that a "paradigm provides philosophical, theoretical,

instrumental, and methodological foundations for conducting research and, in

addition, provide researchers with a platform to interpret the world."

According to her the "qualitative paradigm aims to understand the social world

from the viewpoint of respondents, through detailed descriptions of their

cognitive and symbolic actions."

Shanks (1996:4) listed the main difference between qualitative and quantitative

research as the fact that their methodologies are derived from different logical

procedures. According to Shanks (1996) quantitative research tends to focus

on discerning the probability of truth claims, using numbers as data to describe

events or establish relationships between events. While qualitative research

attempts to discover plausible meaning claims, by using words as data to

describe human experience or behaviour. The purpose of this chapter is to

discuss the research process, focussing on qualitative and quantitative methods

while studying their strengths and weaknesses. The qualitative method,

selected for this study will be discussed in detail and emphasis placed on the

protocol used for analysing the research findings.

In deciding on a research topic it became apparent that it would be better to

choose a topic, of interest and where a certain amount of knowledge and

15

experience are already available. Being newly employed in the environmental

field it would be advantageous to select a topic, which could enhance and

develop the knowledge base. For the purpose of this dissertation it was

decided to make use of a triangulation process combining qualitative research

methods with literature review. The sample population was purposively

selected and open-ended questions used in the questionnaires.

2.2 Literature Review

Before writing the research proposal environmental related literature was

reviewed. This enabled the generation and refinement of the research aim and

objectives and forms the basis of the literature discussed from chapter four

onwards.

According to Saunders et al., (1997:39) a critical literature review has a

number of different purposes such as:

The refinement of the research questions and objectives.

To highlight additional research possibilities, overlooked in the past.

To discover recommendations for future research and justification with the

current research questions and objectives.

To avoid repetition.

To determine current opinions in journals and newspapers, gaining insight

into the different aspects of the research questions and objectives.

To discover research methodologies and strategies that might be

appropriate to the current research objectives.

A critical review provides readers with background knowledge to the aim of

the research project and the objectives. Literature sources can be divided into

three main categories namely primary, secondary and tertiary sources. In

reality these categories often overlaps. As displayed in figure 2.1 primary

sources are reports, some central and local government publications, theses,

market research reports and unpublished manuscript sources. Secondary

16

T wriV,1r

Reports Theses

Conference reports

Market research imports

Some government publications Unpublished manuscript

sources

Newspapers

Books

Journals

Some government publications

Indexes

Abstracts -

Catalogues

Encydopeaas

Dictionaries

Bibliographies

Citation indexes

literature could be seen as books, journals and newspapers, whereas tertiary

sources are used as research tools and is things like indexes, abstracts,

catalogues and dictionaries.

Figure 2.1: The different types of literature sources available. Source: Saunders et al., (1997:43).

For the purpose of this study a combination of all three categories was used,

with the main focus on government publications, books and conference reports.

The Internet, which is classified as a secondary source, was used to obtain

additional information and visit the International Organisation of Standards

Head Office (wwwa, 2000). The Internet can provide a vast range of

information but it is essential to remember to test all information for validity

and reliability.

2.3 Research Approach and Design

The research approach being used provides the opportunity to take an informed

decision related to the research design. It enables a holistic approach to the

research covering the methods for data collection and analysis. Knowledge of

the different research methods allows for the elimination of methods not

applicable to the study being done and provides for the adaptation of methods

17

to ensure that all constraints are catered for. According to Bloland (1992:1) a

distinction can be made between two approaches to research design namely

Positivism and Phenomenology. The Positivism approach can be seen as

scientific research, whilst Phenomenology deals with the way people

experience social phenomena in the world in which they live (Saunders et al.,

1997:71-73).

It is essential to remember that research methods do not exist in isolation, the

researcher needs to adapt and even combine different methods to ensure that

the research findings are valid and reliable. As such it is applicable to make

use of a multi-method approach where not only quantitative and qualitative

methods are used but also primary and secondary data. The use of a multi-

method approach enables the researcher to follow a process of triangulation.

2.4 Triangulation

Saunders et al., (1997:80) said "triangulation refers to the use of different data

collection methods within one study in order to ensure that the data is telling

you what you think it is telling you." It is important to remember that the

results of the research will be affected by the method used. Triangulation

sources data from quantitative and qualitative research. In a sense it can be

seen as the convergence of the two types of data determining which parts of the

data fits together. Data triangulation requires the cross-checking of data from

different sources. For the purpose of this study the different documented ISO

14000 standards, environmental laws and questionnaires were used.

2.5 Research Ethics

Ethics can be seen as "the study of moral values of human conduct and the

conduct of the rules and principles that ought to govern it" Collins (1986:289).

From this a deduction can be made that ethics deals with the behaviour of the

researcher in relation to the rights of the respondents or individuals being

affected by the research. According to Saunders et al., (1997:109) one needs to

18

consider ethical issues throughout the research study and remain sensitive to

the impact the research might have on those involved in the study.

This study is organisation specific and involves individuals at a specific

management level dealing with socially sensitive information, as such it was

important to obtain permission for using the information from the organisation.

At the same time individual's rights to confidentiality must be respected and

they were all asked to specify if they want their identity to be kept confidential.

No names appear with the completed questionnaires in Appendix B and no

mention to specific plants or sections are made to ensure confidentiality.

2.6 Sample Selection

Before any form of research can be done it is essential to clearly define who

the population would be. After identifying the population the researcher can

select from a wide range of sampling techniques to determine who the

respondents should be. Saunders et al., (1997:125-139) stated that the

sampling process could be divided into different steps such as:

The identification of a suitable sampling frame based on the aim of the

research and the research objectives.

Deciding on a suitable sample size aiming at a high response rate to ensure

validity and reliability of research findings.

Selecting the most appropriate sampling technique.

Ensure that the sample collected is representative of the population.

Sampling techniques can be divided into two broad categories namely

probability sampling and non-probability sampling. Selecting the most

appropriate sampling technique is of the utmost importance. According to

Saunders et al., (1997:142) "there are no rules", it depends on the type of

information required by the researcher. For the purpose of this survey non-

probability sampling was used. Non-probability sampling can be sub-divided

19

into quota, purposive, snowball, self-selection and convenience sampling. In

this instance purposive sampling was used (Saunders at al., 1997:143).

2.7 Purposive sampling

According to Saunders et al., (1997:145) "Purposive or judgmental sampling

enables you to use your judgement to select cases which will best enable you to

answer your research question(s) and meet your objectives." It is often used

when working with very small samples as in the case of this research study.

There are a limited amount of Samancor plants with mostly one experienced

individual being involved in the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

and as such would have the knowledge and experience required to provide

informed answers to the questions in the questionnaire. Therefore the sample

population was limited to ten possibilities from which seven responded. It is

essential to remember that small samples can not be used to generalise findings

to the total population.

According to Saunders et al., (1997:145) purposive sampling can . be divided

into sub-sections namely; extreme case, heterogeneous or maximum variations,

homogeneous, critical case and typical case sampling.

2.7.1 Extreme case sampling

Should be used in unusual or special cases with the understanding that the

outcomes will enable the researcher to learn the most and it will provide

relevant answers to the research questions whilst meeting the research

objectives (Saunders et al., 1997:145).

2.7.2 Heterogeneous or maximum variations sampling

This method enables the collection of data to be used for describing and

explaining key themes observed during the research. It is essential to

20

determine if any patterns or trends emerge which could be used to document

the uniqueness of the study (Saunders et al., 1997:146).

2.7.3 Homogeneous sampling

Homogeneous sampling focus on one particular sub-group where all the

samples share a commonality, allowing for in-depth studying of the group

(Saunders et al., 1997:145). Considering the importance of obtaining

respondents with relevant knowledge of the elements in the SABS ISO 14001

(1996) standard and experience on environmental matters this sampling

technique would be the most applicable to this research study.

2.7.4 Critical case sampling

Only critical cases are selected on the grounds that they can dramatise a point

or due to their importance. The focus is to understand what is happening in

each case to enable generalisation (Saunders et al., 1997:145).

2.7.5 Typical case sampling

Typical case sampling is used to provide an illustrative profile using a

representative case. It allows for the illustration of what is typical but not

definitive. Typical case sampling could be used to provide background to

readers (Saunders et al., 1997:145).

For the purpose of this study extreme case sampling was used to ensure that at

the end of the research study an enhanced knowledge base would exist and to

ensure that the answers obtained to the research questions are valid and

reliable.

21

2.8 Primary data - Questionnaires

The focus will be on the collecting of primary data via questionnaires. Collins

(1986:682) defines a questionnaire as "a set of questions on a form, submitted

to a number of people in order to collect statistical information." Various other

definitions exist, some see it as a survey where the person answering the

question records their own answers, and others include telephone and face to

face interview.

Saunders et al., (1997:243) includes all techniques of data collection in which a

respondent is asked to answer a predetermined list of questions.

Questionnaires could be seen as one of the most widely used data collection

methods. According to Saunders et al., (1997:244) it is essential to "ensure

that it will collect the precise data you require to answer your research

question(s) and achieve your objectives."

Questionnaires can be divided into different types, such as; self-administered

and interviewer-administered (Saunders et al., 1997:245). Self-administered

questionnaires are normally completed by the respondent and could be posted

or delivered and collected. Interviewer administered questionnaires are

completed by the interviewer on the basis of the respondent's answers, and

could be done via a telephone questionnaire or a structured interview. Due to

the geographies involved in assimilating the information required for this study

the questionnaire was sent to a sample of the population via electronic mail and

the respondents typed in their answer and send it back.

A variety of factors should be considered when drawing up your questionnaire.

According to Saunders et al., (1997:246) some of these factorS are:

.=' The importance of reaching a specific person.

The size of the sample required for the analysis, considering the likely

response rate.

22

The amount of questions needed to be asked to ensure the correct data is

collected.

The type of questions that must be asked to obtain the relevant information.

The characteristics of the respondent needed to collect the data from.

2.9 Secondary data

Secondary data could be used as a useful source to answer research questions

and include raw and published summaries. The Internet is a typical example of

fmding a vast amount of secondary data, allowing for national and international

comparisons.

Saunders et al., (1997:159) states that secondary data can include quantitative

and qualitative data, which could be used in explanatory and descriptive

research. Three main groups of secondary data exists, namely documentary

data, survey-based data and multiple source data (Saunders et al., 1997:160).

2.9.1 Documentary data

Includes written documents such as notices, correspondence, minutes of

meetings, shareholders reports, diaries, transcripts of speeches, books, journals,

magazine articles and newspapers.

This type of data could be analysed quantitatively and qualitatively.

Additionally the data could be used to triangulate research fmdings based on

other written data and primary data collected through interviews or

questionnaires, but could include non-written documents, such as tapes and

videos (Saunders et al., 1997:160).

2.9.2 Survey-based data

Survey based data normally deals with data collected by questionnaires and

according to Saunders et al., (1997:161) "which have already been analysed for

23

their original purpose." The data is made available as compiled tables for

secondary analysis. In chapter seven, survey analyses done by De Villiers and

Visser (2000) are used. Using the data from these surveys provided critical

information to enhance the conclusions made related to the research objectives.

2.9.3 Multiple source data

Could be based on documentary or survey data or a combination of the two.

The key factor is that the different data sets have been combined to form a new

and different data set to be used for analysis (Saunders et al., 1997:164).

2.9.4 Advantages and disadvantages of secondary data

According to Saunders et al., (1997) some of the advantages of secondary data

are that it is feasible to be used for longitudinal studies requiring fewer

resources. It could provide comparative and contextual data and result in

unforeseen discoveries being made.

On the negative side Saunders et al., (1997) reminds the researcher that the

data may have been collected for a specific purpose and might not meet the

needs of the current research. The aggregations and definitions might be

unsuitable and the initial purpose for collecting the data might affect how the

data was presented.

From this it is clear that even though it requires fewer resources the purpose for

which the data was initially collected could be different to the current study

and therefore might yield different results than intended.

2.10 Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research

Even though a difference exist between qualitative and quantitative research it

is sometimes difficult to distinguish between the two. According to Foley

(1999), this distinction is based on philosophical grounds — quantitative

24

methods are associated with empirical, positivist research — often said to be

inappropriate in relation to social research, qualitative research on the other

hand is associated with anti-positive philosophies, such as interpretivism,

ethnography and phenomenology.

Quantitative methods are oriented around a consciously selected subset of

variables ignoring other variables that might have an impact on the research

results. In contrast to this qualitative methods encompass specific contextual

knowledge to the full extent, and aim at generating theories from contextual

information (Foley, 199:1).

According to Babbie (1983:537) qualitative analysis could be defined as "the

non-numerical examination and interpretation of observations for the purpose

of discovering underlying meanings and patterns of relationships." He defines

quantitative research as "the numerical representation and manipulation of

observations for the purpose of describing and explaining the phenomena that

those observations reflects." Meyers (2000:2) criticise the value of qualitative

research, due to its reliability on small samples which according to her is

"believed to render it incapable of generalising conclusions." Tellez (2000:1)

suggest that quantitative researchers may "argue that numbers get us closer to

the truth than qualitative inquiry."

2.10.1Quantitative Research

Quantitative research depends on standardised questions to allow

generalisation, which means that answers are of necessity limited to pre-

determined categories. Normally information related to individual

circumstances is disregarded. According to Foley (1999:1-2) quantitative

research is objective and could be classified as a hard science. It is essential

that the literature review must be done in the early stages of the study.

Quantitative research tends to have a narrow and concise focus on normally

one reality and is used to test theory. It lends itself for precision and is

measurable, with a mechanistic approach suggesting that the sum of the parts

25

equal the whole. According to (wwwe, 1999:1) the measurement of

quantitative research must be objective, quantitative and statistically valid.

Foley (1999:1-2) states that quantitative research emphasises strategic matters

since it involves the explicit testing of hypotheses. It is used to report

statistical analysis and the basic element of the analysis is numbers. Reasoning

is logistic, deductive and normally deals with hypotheses. The main aim of

this type of research is to enable generalisation. The design could be

experimental, quasi-experimental, descriptive or correlational. The sample size

could vary between thirty to five hundred and even more, depending on the

population.

Quantitative methods attempt to find causes and relationships demonstrated

statistically, following a theoretical perspective. It employs deductive logic,

moving from the general to the specific or from theory to experience (Blo land,

1992:1).

2.10.2 Qualitative Research

According to Moser (1998:1) "the previously underestimated qualitative

research has become to a greater and greater degree a serious competitor to the

traditional analytical empiricism." The notion of "qualitative research"

conjures up a variety of responses. According to Grant (1999:1) some people

focus on the assumptions behind the method, including the value of

understanding behaviour of participants, and the importance of the context

within, which the research is done. Others focus on the methods being used,

such as interviews, participant and non-participant observations and document

analysis. A third group concentrates on the forms of qualitative research

available, like case studies, life history, ethnography and ethnomethodology.

During recent years, qualitative research gained in popularity due to the fact

that it collects qualitative data within naturalistic settings and can therefore

provide in depth information. According to Foley (1999:1-2) qualitative

26

methods rely on the written or spoken word or the observable behaviour of the

person being studied as the principal source of analysis. According to Bloland

(1992:1) the purpose of such research is to obtain a greater understanding of

the world as seen from the unique viewpoint of the individual being studied.

Qualitative researchers tend to believe in multiple realities instead of one

objective truth.

Multiple realities can be accessed through open-ended question interviews,

observations and written documents. Bloland (1992:1) implies that qualitative

research takes cognisance of and reflects upon the communicative aspect of

research. According to Guidestar Communications (wwwe, 1999:2) "the

nature of qualitative research is exploratory and open-ended."

Qualitative research entails a systematic, well-planned process, in order to be

able to analyse the collected data and draw verifiable conclusions from them.

Saunders et al., (1997:339) quotes Dey (1993:28) as saying that "the more

ambiguous and elastic our concepts, the less possible it is to quantify data in a

meaningful way" therefore qualitative research is required.

This type of research allows for the researcher to explore his research topic as

it exists in reality, to seek understanding through inductive analysis, moving

from specific observation to the more general (Bloland, 1992:2). Ensuring that

results are not just an impressionistic view of its meaning, a conceptual

framework must be created for the interpretation of qualitative data.

Qualitative methods lend themselves to discovering meanings and patterns.

Meyers (2000:2) suggested that the main aim of qualitative research is to

produce research that can "inform and enhance reader's understanding." She

states that the mission of qualitative research is "to discover meaning and

understanding, rather than to verify truth or predict outcomes."

27

According to Bloland (1992:2) qualitative research is tactical and the strategic

decisions required are usually very basic and could be addressed by answering

the following questions:

What does it mean to be in this setting?

Which people do need to be interviewed?

.* Which are the issues that must be covered?

What questions should be asked to the respondents?

What should be done, if the results obtained differ from the expectations?

The research method chosen to study a problem should be compatible with the

questions being asked, it should service the kind of knowledge being sought.

Qualitative research operates on realistic principles, researchers tend to operate

on the assumption that reality is governed by simple processes and that the

proper strategy of inquiry would be to get beneath the surface to fmd the

simple core of reality. Bloland suggested (1992:2) that when analysing

something complex it is vital to break it down into simpler components that

would enhance the discovery of reality. Any research method should open up

new perceptions, insights and directions of inquiry. Qualitative research

should not be used to test the veracity of a theory via a design process (wwwc,

1996). Instead it could be used to focus on observations as evidence of

ongoing processes and relations, by discovering new insights. Therefore it is

safe to say that qualitative research is following a holistic approach, with the

added benefit of "discovering underlying motivations, feelings, values,

attitudes and perceptions" (wwwc, 1996).

The analysis of qualitative data can be done, by making use of the following

steps (Saunders et al., 1997:340-348):

Categorising the data into groups or units.

Recognising the relationships between the different concepts.

.=%. Developing and testing hypotheses to reach conclusions.

28

Mason and Lind (1996:344) define a hypothesis as "A statement about the

value of a population parameter developed for the purpose of testing."

According to Wegner (1998:215-222) there is a standard five-step procedure

that must be followed during hypothesis testing.

These steps are:

,=. "Stepl: Formulating the hypothesis — the Null and Alternative hypothesis.

Step 2: Determine the area of acceptance.

Step 3: Compute the corresponding sample statistic.

Step 4: Compare the sample statistic to the area of acceptance.

Step 5: Draw conclusions.

When collecting qualitative data, analysis must be done during and after the

collection. These analyses enable the researcher to determine the direction of

the research and allow for relative flexibility, the recognition of themes,

patterns or relationships.

Different types of qualitative research exist namely:

4. Interviews — structured, semi-structured, informal and retrospective.

4, Participant observation — observer may or may not disclose his identity to

other participants.

4, Naturalistic observation — observe behaviours in their natural settings.

4. Case studies — in depth study of specific phenomena.

44 Simulations — fixed situations, directive is given and behaviour observed.

4, Ethnographic research — intensive on-going participant observation.

According to Foley (1999:1-2) qualitative data is normally subjective and

could be seen as "soft" science. The literature review could be done as the

study progresses. Qualitative research is used to develop a theory and deals

with multiple realities; it is organismic and reasons that the whole is greater

than the sum of the parts. The basic elements of this type of research are words

and ideas based on research questions, reasoning and describing meanings.

29

The sample size is not a concern, seeing that the researcher must ensure that

the population is "information rich".

Some of the most common uses for qualitative research as listed by the

Professionalism Committee of the Qualitative Research Consultants

Association (QRCA) in 1996 are (wwwc, 1996):

4:. "Investigating current product service / brand positioning.

4> Identification of strengths and weaknesses.

,4 Exploring alternative communication messages.

.4, Comprehending purchase decision dynamics.

.4 Brainstorming or idea generation.

4> Evaluating advertising or public relations campaigns.

4: Probing perceptions of current societal or public affairs issues.

Pre-survey, developing hypotheses to be quantified in a follow-up survey.

4, Post-survey, in-depth exploration of quantitative findings".

2.10.3The differences between quantitative and qualitative Research

Quantitative research is based on meanings derived from numbers, collecting

results in numerical and standardised data. On the other hand qualitative

research is based on meanings expressed through words, collecting results in

non-standardised data requiring the classification into categories (Saunders et

al., 1997:339).

For quantitative research analysis are conducted through the use of diagrams

and statistics, requiring a deductive hypothesis and precise definitions of

operational priorities. Qualitative research makes use of conceptualisation

resulting in inductive emergent hypothesis and emergent contextual variable

definitions (Saunders et al., 1997:339).

30

Quantitative research requires statistical methods to ensure validity. Random

samples are normally preferred, while the research plan is broken into specific

steps. Qualitative research could use triangulation of source data to determine

validity. Purposive samples are preferred and only a narrative description of

emergent procedures is required (Saunders et al., 1997:339).

In the case of using quantitative research control of extraneous variables must

be built into the design. It is essential to control procedural bias as part of the

design and conclude with a statistical summary of the results. Individual

elements of the research situation must be analysed. For qualitative research it

is essential to control extraneous variables during the analysis stage. The

researcher must control bias during the process and a narrative summary of

results is required. Qualitative research provides for a holistic analysis of the

research situation (Saunders et al., 1997:339).

2.11 Limitations

The limitations of qualitative research is that the findings are not statistically

projectable to the population under study (wwwc, 1996). Additional

limitations for the purpose of this study lies in the fact that Samancor Chrome

plants are geographically spread from Palmiet Ferrochrome in Krugersdorp, to

Tubatse Ferrochrome in Steelpoort.

The distance between the different plants place limitations on the degree to

which personal interviews can be done for the purpose of gathering

information for this dissertation. An attempt will be made to gather the

required information by means of electronic mail and telephone. In addition to

this the amount of people involved in the environment is very limited, thus

reducing the population substantially.

31

2.12 Summary

Evidently a lot of research was done during the literature review in chapter

two, the reason for this is to ensure that the method used is the most applicable

to this study. After doing the review it was concluded that a qualitative

approach should be followed. A triangulation process, combining the

qualitative research method with literature reviews and questionnaires seemed

to be the most appropriate.

Each objective was discussed by making use of literature and questionnaires

with essay type answers. The critical literature review provided background

knowledge and ensured that personal work experience could be substantiated.

Different environmental laws, the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) standard and other

environmental standards as well as guidelines were used.

Seeing that the population is limited to the number of Samancor Plants the

purposive sampling technique were used to ensure that respondents would have

the required knowledge and experience to enable them to answer the

questionnaire. This resulted in a homogeneous group, sharing as a

commonality; the fact that they are all involved with the implementation and

development of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) environmental management

system, at their specific plants.

Secondary data, in the form of a survey done by De Villiers and Visser (2000),

was used in chapter seven to substantiate if any benefits could be derived from

the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

32

Chapter Three

Background and History

3.1 Introduction

The aim of this dissertation is to determine if the implementation of the South

African Bureau of Standards, standard SABS ISO 14001 (1996) of 1996 as an

integrated environmental management system would ensure compliance with

environmental legislation at Samancor.

For the benefit of the reader it is important to provide some background

information on the organisation seeing that the focus is on Samancor.

Samancor forms part of Billiton and for that reason, information on Billiton

and Samancor will be provided. The Krugersdorp Ferrochrome plant, Palmiet

Ferrochrome, is currently involved in the implementation of SABS ISO 14001

(1996), and therefore information on Palmiet will be included.

3.2 Billiton

Billiton and Anglo American Corporation are the major stakeholders of

Samancor. While recognising the complexities of a business operating in

different environments across the globe, Billiton aspires to be regarded as a

good 'corporate citizen' wherever it conducts business. As such Billiton is

committed to the core values of civic society. Gilbertson (1999:2) Billiton's

chairman stated that "Billiton contributes through its business activities to the

sustainable development of society by striving to meet equitably the

developmental and environmental needs of both present and future generations.

Billiton will comply with all laws and regulations in each country where it

operates, and will apply the standards reflecting Billiton's aspiration to best

international practice."

33

Billiton is a leading United Kingdom based, natural resources company, with a

world class portfolio of mining and metals assets. It is listed on the London

stock exchange with secondary listings on the Paris and Johannesburg

Exchanges and forms part of the FTSE 100 index. The group comprises of

eight divisions namely; Aluminium, Titanium minerals, Steel and Ferroalloys,

Nickel, Coal, Base metals and Billiton marketing and trading. It is of major

importance that all its subsidiaries demonstrate its commitment to

environmentally safe practices. The best way to demonstrate this, according to

Billiton is, for all subsidiaries to be certified as SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

companies.

Being part of the FTSE 100 listed companies Billiton participates in the United

Kingdom based Business in the Environment (BiE) Index of Corporate

Environmental Engagement and Performance. Billiton's BiE Index

performance rating is considered to be one of the group's most important

measures of environmental management performance. The environmental

performance of all of the subsidiaries is considered when determining

Billiton's position.

3.3 Samancor

With an annual production capacity of more than one million tons, Samancor is

the single largest producer of ferrochrome in the world as stated in the

Samancor Annual Report (1998:1). Samancor not only produces ferrochrome

but also manganese based alloys.

The ferrochrome plants are situated at Steelpoort, Middelburg, Witbank and

Krugersdorp as seen on the map in figure 3.1. These plants source their raw

materials from Samancor's chrome mines, which are situated in Mpumalanga,

Northwest and Northern Provinces, almost in a saucer shaped deposit

(Samancor Annual Report, 1996:1). Approximately eighty percent of the

world's economically mineable ore reserves are located here and Samancor

controls more than seventy percent of this reserves (Palmiet Ferrochrome -

34

Customer Introduction Brochure, 1997). The group's chrome mines have a

combined production capacity of approximately three hundred thousand tons of

saleable ore per month, some of which is exported directly (Palmiet

Ferrochrome - Customer Introduction Brochure, 1997).

The manganese plants, which are situated in Meyerton, Nelspruit and

Krugersdorp source their raw materials from the manganese mines in Hotazel.

Samancor has for many years been a major supplier of ferrochrome to the

stainless steel industry of the world. Through its one-third partnership in

Columbus Stainless, (a joint venture with Highveld Steel and Vanadium and

the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa), Samancor has

become one of the leading international producers (Hocking, 1992:15). When

fully operational Columbus will have a production capacity in excess of five

hundred thousand tons of stainless steel per annum (Samancor Annual Report,

1996:15).

The map, in figure 3.1 (Hocking 1992:15) shows regions where chrome

deposits can be found as well as the areas where ferrochrome is produced. In

laymen's terms ferrochrome is produced by melting chrome ore to form a slag

and then adding reductants to trigger a chemical reaction, after which the slag

and metal are tapped from the furnace as Hocking explained in his book "The

Chrome Connection" (Hocking, 1992:14).

Ferrochrome is used as a raw material in the production of stainless steel

(Hocking, 1992:13). It is wrong to think of stainless steel as a single

commodity. It should be seen as a large family of steel alloys, which is able to

resist corrosion, abrasion and heat. In fact more than two hundred types of

steel, classified into fifty-six groups exists (Hocking, 1992:13). All types of

stainless steel have a chromium content of at least ten percent and usually

rather more. For each application the different types of steel must be

considered and the delicate balance between strength, hardness, workability

and surface attractiveness needs to be determined. According to Hocking

35

500 200 100 eo 100

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(1992:13) "Stainless steel's secret is an invisible film of chromium-rich oxide

on its surface.'

Figure 3.1: Chrome in Southern Africa.

Source: Hocking, (1992:15).

3.4 Palmiet Ferrochrome

John Hahn of Technimetals had a dream of producing ferrochrome, Rand

Mines turned down his proposals but with John, failure merely encouraged him

36

to try something more ambitious. Hahn heard about a small company called,

`Palmiet Chrome Corporation' who was on the verge of bankruptcy (Hocking,

1992:50). They had a mine on the farm Palmietfontein in the Rustenburg

district, which was operational since 1930. The ore grade was relatively high

but extracting chrome was difficult due to the seams being faulted and

continuous flooding.

Technimetals took over the mine in January 1960 with the vision of

establishing a ferrochrome plant on the farm. Hahn meant to utilise ore already

stockpiled and to buy in further ore as required. Before the plant was built

Hahn heard that the old south gold reduction works at West Rand Cons was on

the point of closure and even though the mine would want to salvage valuable

machinery the buildings and steelwork would be left where they were

(Hocking, 1992:50-51). Hahn decided to convert the works into a ferroalloy

plant. Palmiet Ferrochrome, situated in Krugersdorp, was started in 1962 as a

producer of charge chrome and ferrosilicochrome (Hocking, 1992:54).

The first furnace was in place and ready for start-up by February 1963 it looked

like a bulky, vertical cylinder lined with refractory materials. Three tall

electrodes in a triangle was providing the required heat and three matching

tapholes in the shell wall near the bottom allowed for the tapping of the furnace

according to Hocking's research (1992:53). A second furnace, Furnace No 1,

was commissioned during 1964 for the production of low carbon ferrochrome

(Hocking, 1992:356).

According to the chronology in Hocking's book (1992:355) the following dates

were important in the history of Palmiet:

During 1966, General Mining bought Palmiet and upgraded No 2 Furnace

to 16 megawatts increasing Palmiet's output to twenty eight thousand

tonnes.

37

•:. In 1969, Rand Mines became the new owners and in 1971, RMB alloys, a

subsidiary of Rand Mines, merged with Southern Steel and Palmiet to form

Middelburg Steel and Alloys, a subsidiary of Barlow Rand.

In 1970, Furnace No 3 (9 megawatts) came into operation and in 1974,

Furnace No 1 was modified to become a submerged arc furnace (9

megawatts), producing charge chrome.

Due to market demand for charge chrome No 2 and 3 furnaces was

upgraded in 1977, to 20 megawatts.

The Palmiet Ferrochrome — Customer Introduction Brochure of 1997, claims

that Palmiet Ferrochrome became the first ferrochrome producer in the world

using a DC Plasma furnace (40-megawatt) for the production of ferrochrome in

1983. In October 1991, Samancor became the new owners of Middelburg

Steel and Alloys, and Palmiet.

Figure 3.2: Air view of Palmiet Ferrochrome.

38

At the heart of ferrochrome production lies a message, which inspired

generations.

"Make no little plans.

They have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be

realised.

Make big plans ... deep into the future.

Aim high in hope and work.

Have faith, remembering that a noble plan, once recorded, will never die, but

long after we are gone will still be a living thing."

Source: Hocking, 1992:328

39

Chapter Four SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

4.1 Introduction

The first objective is to determine what SABS ISO 14001 (1996) consists of

Before this could be done, it is important to determine what is meant by the

environment, what an environmental management plan is and why

organisations should ensure that they have one in place. The background to the

development of international standards will be discussed and the reasons why

these standards are required will be considered. After determining the different

components of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) standard the implementation

process in an organisation will be discussed. The information for this chapter

is collected from available literature, the Internet and personal experience.

4.2 What is meant by environment?

Ecosystems have inherent absorption or carrying capacities with definite

threshold levels to exposure or pollution. Current stressing of the global

system has resulted in acid rain, global warming, depletion of the ozone and

habitat destruction. On the other hand biologically diverse systems are

inherently more stable and therefore the need for conservation of biodiversity

is of utmost importance.

As the definition in section 1.4.1 states the environment consists of socio-

cultural structures and processes which includes:

Air, water and land;

,.; All forms of life;

All ecological processes and interactions; and

All physical infrastructures created by man.

40

Considering how the environment is defined by the National Environmental

Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, it becomes clear that the environment

includes; product safety, community safety and occupational health and safety.

South Africa legally adopted this extensive definition of the environment,

which is a complex system, challenging the traditional reductionist perspective

and focusing on a holistic, integrated approach. Considering the socio-

biophysical model as described by Nel et al., (2000:10) it is evident that all

aspects of the environment needs to be considered. A holistic approach means

that one needs to consider not only local, but also regional and global aspects

over a period of time.

The schematic presentation in figure 4.1 will provide a clear picture of all the

elements that forms part of an integrated approach, as per the Socio-

biophysical model. From this it is clear that not only the natural environment

but also technology, an individual's attitudes, values and perceptions needs to

be considered when looking at the environment. It is essential for an

organisation to consider its demographic profile. Furthermore the impact of

the media and an organisations relationship with all affected and interested

parties in the society, where it exists, must be considered at all times. Negative

publicity can have a major impact on the image of an organisation, not only in

the area but also regional and globally. It is of utmost importance that

management realise that there is a synergistic relationship between all the

elements and the cumulative impacts, needs to be controlled and managed.

"The socio-biophysical model is therefore, characterised by a multidimensional

interaction of a variety of elements. These elements are synergistically linked,

so that the interactive and functioning value of the unit is much more than the

sum of the individual elements" (Nel et al., 2000:11).

Nel et al., (2000:9) reminded that it is important to remember that "all systems

in this model are subject to unpredictable and sporadic changes resulting from

41

Public and private institutions. Media

and informal social relationships

external or internal variables. All the subsystems are linked and this may result

in continuous, cumulative and synergistic changes to the systems structure,

interrelationships and associations. New subsystem associations may develop

and disappear continuously."

Figure 4.1: The Socio-biophysical model. Source: Nel et al., (2000:10).

4.3 Global Environmental backlashes

The impact of human activities on the environment has now come back to

haunt us. There are various environmental backlashes that now poses a threat

to humans but at the same time has a detrimental effect on the environment

itself according to Nel et al., (2000:5). A short discussion on some of these

threats namely; acid rain, pollution, the greenhouse effect, deforestation and

ozone depletion follows. Focus will be mainly on the cause and effect on the

environment.

42

4.3.1 Acid Rain

Acid rain is formed when rainwater comes into contact with air pollutants such

as sulphur and nitrogen oxides and combine with these to form mild solutions

of sulphuric and nitric acids. Humans are responsible for approximately ninety

percent of these air pollutants by:

.=? The burning of fossil fuels.

The use of coal in the production of energy.

Fuel combustion in vehicles.

Due to air movement the acid rain does not only fall on the areas emitting the

pollution but can have an effect on land thousands of kilometres away. Acid

rain with a pH value below 5.1 may cause damage to buildings, statues, metals

and car fmishes. At the same time it can kill fish, micro-organisms in lakes

and streams, and aquatic plants. Acid rain can make trees more susceptible to

diseases, insects and droughts by weakening the trees. Fungi and mosses

thrives under acidic conditions. Acid rain pollutes topsoil with heavy metals

and harms vegetation by altering the protective layer on their leaves destroying

their nutrients (Nel et al., 2000:6).

4.3.2 Pollution

Pollution could be seen as the presence of any harmful or unpleasant substance

in air, water or soil, which could lead to environmental degradation. Forms of

environmental degradation include decertification, erosion, deforestation and a

reduction of biodiversity. Pollution may cause unpleasant smells and tastes,

reduces atmospheric visibility, property damage, corrosion of metals, decrease

tree and crop production, damage to animal and human health and even the

spread of infectious diseases (Nel et al., 2000:7).

According to element 3.13 of SABS ISO 14001 (1996:2) pollution is defined

as: "the use of processes, practices, materials or products that avoid, reduce or

43

control pollution, which may include recycling, treatment, process changes,

control mechanisms, efficient use of resources and material substitution."

4.3.3 The Greenhouse effect

A greenhouse effect occurs when heat gets trapped in the atmosphere near the

earth's surface. Water vapour, ozone, carbon dioxide and atmospheric gasses

absorb some of the heat; this is then reradiated back to the earth's surface. The

result of this is an increase in the average temperature of the lower atmosphere.

Greenhouse gasses forms an invisible layer around the earth, preventing

infrared radiation to escape, resulting in the earth being warmed up. This

unnatural rise of temperature is known as global warming. The four major

gasses involved in global warming are carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, ozone

and methane. If nothing is done to control global warming radical changes

caused by the greenhouse effect may result in climatic chaos (Nel et al.,

2000:8).

4.3.4 Deforestation

Deforestation entails the removing of trees from an area. Forests are cleared to

provide space for crop production, commercial logging, fuel wood gathering

and livestock grazing. Removing trees in a forest destroys the habitat of plants

and food supply of animals. It exposes the soil to drying by the sun and

erosion by rain. Forests are of the utmost importance seeing that they transfer

carbon dioxide (CO2) into oxygen (02) which humans are dependent on to stay

healthy and alive (Nel et al., 2000:9).

4.3.5 Ozone Depletion

Ozone (03) exist naturally in the lower atmosphere in minute quantities and are

brought down from the upper atmosphere by wind and climatic cycles. A hole

in the ozone means that there is a dramatic decrease in the level of ozone in a

given region of the globe. As a result of ozone depletion there is an increase in

44

the levels of ultra-violet (UV) rays reaching the earth. This creates danger to

mankind seeing that it can result in sunburn, skin cancer, eye damage and

damage to the immune system's ability to function properly. Ultimately,

increased ultra-violet rays could disturb the balance of life (Nel et al.,

2000:10).

4.4 Why Standards?

Barnard (1999:135) defines standards as "an object or quality or measure

serving as a basis or example or principle to which others conform or should

conform or by which the accuracy or quality of others is judged." According

to the ISO Head Quarters (wwwa, 2000) "standards are documented

agreements containing technical specifications or other precise criteria to be

used consistently as rules, guidelines, or definitions of characteristics, to ensure

that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose."

Barnard (1999:139) said that standards could be viewed from two perspectives

namely:

The impact of an activity on the environment; or

Its impact on the health and well being of people.

In the first instance standards related to resource management, such as

acceptable rehabilitation measures and the impact on resources such as water,

soil, animals and plants should be considered. The second perspective will

focus on the impact of activities or actions on people, such as the quality of

emissions into the air, and to protect human health (Barnard 1999:139).

According to Nel et al., (2000:2) standards provide a mechanism for managing

compliance to legislation and determine an organisation's obligations. He

suggested that standardisation could result in improved international trade for

an organisation seeing that the product quality and reliability is enhanced.

45

An international standard would ensure greater compatibility of goods and

services while simplification would improve usability and lead to cost

reduction (Barnard et al., 1999:2). Standards can be a central element in

developing a competitive enterprise while preserving the environment.

International demand for environmental acceptability of products, goods and

services could result in improved health, safety and environmental protection

(Barnard et al., 1999:3). Standards form the basis for auditing and

performance evaluation and in the case of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) it forms a

framework for a logical environmental management system.

It is essential to remember that standards cannot replace the need for decisions

concerning the level of excellence sought or the ethics behind those decisions.

Standards could be seen as the yardstick used to measure compliance.

Governments use environmental standards as the basis for government

regulation. O'Laoire (1996) said, "there is a growing tendency for the legal

authorities to look for an environmental management system as a tool for the

management of legal regulatory requirements."

Some environmental protection agencies are conducting their compliance

audits on the basis of such systems. There is also evidence that licensing

authorities may be more inclined to work in partnership with companies

implementing environmental management systems.

The adoption of internationally agreed and accepted approaches by

organisations to managing the environmental consequences of their actions will

enable organisations to demonstrate their awareness and ensure that they have

plans and systems in place to deal with the significant consequences of their

activities. This type of approach to environmental management includes

commitment to comply with legislation and any other requirements to which

the organisation subscribes, to continual improvement of the system to enhance

environmental performance and the prevention of pollution.

46

Barnard (1999:140) suggested that it is legally self-defeating to set a standard

that cannot be met, therefore standards should allow for realistic exceptions.

Exceptions should only be allowed, if the need is proved, subject to a condition

of continuous improvement until the ideal standard is reached (Barnard

1999:140).

Several environmental management standards have been developed with the

main objective to provide organisations with a framework for managing their

environmental issues. Some of these are:

.:. The European Community's Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS)

introduced by the European Union council regulation (No. 1836/93)

requiring implementation in all European Union Member States.

The United Kingdom's British Standard for Environmental Management

Systems (BS 7750).

The ISO 14000 range from the International Organisation of Standards.

The South African Bureau of Standards SABS 0251 Code of practice for

environmental management systems (Barnard et al., 1999).

These standards contain a number of elements, which form a long term,

sustainable strategy for developing an environmental management system.

Gibbons (1995) said, "standards, properly formulated and implemented, can

move us to invent. These standards could become a benchmark, a symbol of

excellence against which organisations measure their progress and motivate

change. In a global marketplace, standards provide a way of stimulating the

quest for excellence, including environmental excellence." Gibbons (1995)

suggested that standards should not be rigid but provide a flexible framework

that is capable of evolving with changing markets, technological and

institutional conditions.

47

4.5 What is ISO?

Before an attempt will be made to determine what SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

consists of it is important to determine what the abbreviation ISO stands for.

Most individuals believe that it is the International Standards Organisation, but

this is untrue. In fact it is the International Organisation of Standards (wwwa,

2000). This organisation consists of a world wide federation of national

standard bodies (ISO member bodies) who prepare international standards to

be applied equally in all member countries (Kerr and Husseini, 1998). ISO is

derived from the Greek word "isos" which means 'equal' (Kerr and Husseini,

1998).

According to the ISO Head Quarters (wwwa, 2000), each time a new

international standard is prepared all interested members, governments and

interested parties take part in the development phase by representation on the

committee responsible for the standard. A technical committee, made up from

experts in the specific area, is responsible for the drafting of an international

standard, then it is submitted to all member bodies for voting. At least seventy

five percent of all members casting a vote must approve the standard before it

may be published as an International Standard (wwwa, 2000).

Due to increased legislation and concern from interested parties, it became

essential for organisations to demonstrate sound environmental performance,

by minimising the impact of their activities, products or services on the

environment. Governments and organisations have adapted their

environmental policies to foster environmental protection. Environmental

audits and reviews alone are not enough to ensure legal compliance, to ensure

that they are effective they need to form part of a structured management

system and must be included as an integral part of all management activities.

The ISO 14000 series emerged primarily as a result of the General Agreement

on Trade and tariffs and the Rio summit as discussed under section 6.7.1.

48

According to Nel et al., (2000:5) "The International Organisation for

Standardisation (ISO) was petitioned to consider developing environmental

standards, which will be acceptable internationally." In 1991 ISO established a

Strategic Advisory Group on the Environment (SAGE) to start developing the

ISO 14000 series of standards, from which the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) were

derived. SAGE had to consider whether the standards would enhance an

organisation's ability to attain and measure environmental performance,

promote a common approach to environmental management and facilitate

lower trade barriers (Nel et al., 2000:6).

In 1992 a Technical Committee TC207 (Barnard et al., 1999) was established

and given the mandate to consider and produce final consensus standards for

environmental management. Nel et al., (2000:7) said that the TC207's

"mandate included a co-ordination and co-operation function with international

and regional governmental bodies."

TC207 consisted of six subcommittees namely (Barnard et al., 1999:8):

Environmental management Systems.

Environmental Auditing and Related Environmental Investiga-

tions.

Environmental Labelling.

Environmental Performance Evaluation.

Life-Cycle Assessment.

Terms and Definitions.

The Technical Committee had to ensure that the standards they developed

would provide organisations with guidelines and performance indicators, to be

used when doing an appraisal of the organisation's relative environmental

performance. These performance indicators should provide an organisation

with an objective, measurable, reliable and user-friendly system (Barnard et al.,

1999:9).

49

Cornish (1997) stated that "from a South African perspective it has been agreed

that the South African National Accreditation System (SANAS) will establish a

division to ensure that all certification organisations meet international

requirements." The South African Certification Committee for Quality

Auditors (SACCQA) is developing a registration scheme for auditors in the

environmental management field based on international criteria. Cornish

(1997) claims that the Department of Environmental Affairs proposed in 1989

that a concept of Integrated Environmental Management should be developed

to help organisations deal with the complexity of environmental legislation.

This concept was formalised and forms the basis of government's policy.

Cornish (1997) defines an integrated environmental management procedure as

"a philosophy which prescribes a code of practice for ensuring that

environmental considerations are fully integrated into all stages of the

development process in order to achieve a desirable balance between

conservation and development."

Cornish suggested that this procedure should facilitate the collection and

distribution of information prior to decision-making, and include requirements

for compliance and implementation of an environmental management system.

According to Cornish (1997) Integrated Environmental Management is

primarily a planning and decision making tool aimed at the planning and

decision making process throughout the life cycle of an organisation's

processes, products or services.

Table 4.1 is a list of the environmental standards and guidelines developed by

the International Organisation of Standards. Looking at the table it becomes

clear that not only is an organisation supplied with a basic environmental

management system, but also with the tools to implement, evaluates and audits

the environmental management system. It is important to remember that the

standard is not a static, rigid system demanding everything in a specific format,

50

but rather an adaptable framework, which an organisation could change to fit

into its working environment.

Table 4.1: List of ISO Standards dealing with Environmental Issues

Standard

ISO 14000

Description

Guide to Environmental Management Principles, Systems

and Supporting Techniques.

ISO 14001 Environmental management systems - Specifications with

guidance for use

ISO 14004 Environmental management systems - General guidelines

on principles, systems and supporting techniques

ISO 14010 Guidelines for environment auditing - General principles

ISO 14011 Guideline for environment auditing — Audit procedures

auditing an environmental management systems

ISO 14012 Guidelines for environmental auditing — Qualification

criteria for environmental auditors.

ISO 14013/15 Guidelines for environmental assessment of sites and

organisations.

ISO 14020 Environmental labels and declarations — Basic principles

ISO 14021 Environmental labels and declarations — Self declaration

environment claims — terms and defmitions

ISO 14022 Environmental labels and declarations — Self declaration,

environmental claims — environmental labelling symbols

ISO 14023 Environmental labels and declarations — Self declaration

environmental claims testing and verification methodologies

ISO 14024 Environmental labels and declarations — Environmental

labelling type I — Guiding principles and procedures

ISO 14025 Environmental labels and declarations — Environmental

labelling type III — Guiding principles and procedures

ISO 14031/32 Environmental performance evaluation

ISO 14040/43 Life cycle assessments

ISO 14050 Terms and definitions

Source: Kerr and Husseini 1998.

51

According to the ISO Head Quarters (wwwa, 2000) SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

standards are developed according to the following principles:

"Consensus

The view of all interested and affected parties are taken into account:

manufacturers, vendors and users, consumer groups, testing laboratories,

governments, engineering professions and research organisations

Industry-wide

Global solutions to satisfy industries and customers world-wide.

Voluntary

International standardisation is market-driven and therefore based on voluntary

involvement of all interested in the market place."

ISO is involved in different areas of technology such as depicted in figure 4.2.

The pie chart used in figure 4.2 shows a portfolio analysis of international

standards, by technical sector and the percentage of standards developed for

each sector. From the pie chart it is clear that only 3.7 percent of all standards

developed by ISO concerns health, safety and environmental issues.

The main objective of international standards is to ensure that the same

principles are applied globally. The ISO 14000 series, guides organisations

wanting to improve their environmental performance and profile through better

management, ongoing evaluation and product-oriented enhancements. These

standards do not prescribe environmental performance targets, but instead they

provide organisations with the tools to assess and control the environmental

impact of their activities, products or services. The standards are designed to

be flexible enough to be used by any organisation of any size and in any type

of industry.

52

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ISO has a two-pronged approach to meeting the needs of business, industry,

governments, non-governmental organisations and consumers in the field of

the environment. On the one hand, it offers a wide-ranging portfolio of

standardised sampling, testing and analytical methods to deal with specific

environmental challenges. It has developed more than 350 international

standards for the monitoring of aspects of water, air and soil quality.

Nel et al., (2000:3-10) listed the following as the aims of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) standard:

Achieving third party certification, or second party recognition.

Improving the organisation's environmental management system.

Demonstrating that policies and expectations have been met.

Providing organisations with the ability to integrate environmental and

economic interests with business realities.

Increasing the effectiveness of environmental programmes and improved

environmental performance.

Ensuring that all operational processes are effective.

Achieving stated environmental objectives.

4.6 What is SABS ISO 14001 (1996)?

In the Code of Practice listed in SABS ISO 14001 (1996:v) the president of the

South African Bureau of Standards said that the purpose of international

standards are "to assist organisations to achieve environmental and economic

goals". . From this we can derive that the standards concerned with

environmental management are intended to provide management with the

elements for implementing an integrated system.

However these standards cannot be used to change the legal obligations for any

organisation or to create non-tariff trade barriers. In essence, SABS ISO 14001

(1996) is a management system, which requires that an organisation documents

54

.11 elani8 ea: CC co Lra,t'ti Y.4 11 tql(f)M

*I 111111 .8(tui view

I' _u

Imply, ' L1 (tat p

its intentions with regard to environmental management, and that it is able to

prove achievement of set goals.

The aim of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is to support environmental protection and

the prevention of pollution whilst keeping a balance with socio-economic

needs. The implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will initiate or

improve an organisation's environmental management system, allowing them

to demonstrate that their policies, objectives and expectations have been met.

It provides the organisation with the ability to balance and integrate economic

and environmental interests with business realities.

Implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an integrated environmental

management system will increase the effectiveness of an environmental

programme. Through the management review, internal and external audits the

overall performance of the system can be improved. Management can ensure

that all operational processes are effective and that the stated environmental

objectives are achieved.

Figure 4.3: Environmental Management system model for SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Source: SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

55

Continuous Improvement

Initial Review

Commitment and Policy

- — Planning

Environmental aspects Legal and other requirements Objectives ands targets Environmental management programme

Implementation and Operation Structure and responsibility Training, awareness and competence Communication Documentation and document control Operational control Emergency preparedness and response

ammoi1111Nia

Management Review

Checking and Corrective Action

Monitoring and measurement Non-conformanees, corrective & preventative action Records Audits

"A system of this kind enables an organisation to establish, and assess the

effectiveness of procedures, to set an environmental policy and objectives,

achieve conformance with them, and demonstrate such conformance to others"

as per the introduction to the SABS ISO 14001 (1996:v).

Financial benefits of implementing SABS ISO 14001 (1996) can be achieved

by a reduction in insurance premiums. At the same time the corporate image

and market share of the organisation is enhanced. Third party verification of

conformance to SABS ISO 14001 (1996) ensures continued access to critical

markets. Through the improved control the organisation is capable of reducing

their liability and risk and demonstrates due diligence. Seeing that investors

are increasingly focusing on green portfolios SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

certification may facilitate easier access to capital or even ensure a better resale

value of a company's assets.

Figure 4.4: SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an environmental management system

Source: Barnard et al., (1999)

56

CHECK Observe the effects of the change Analyse the data Pinpoint problems

DO Implementing Changes Collect Data to do a gap analysis

ACT Study the results Redesign systems to reflect learning Change standards Communicate it broadly Retrain

PLAN Understand gaps between customer's expectations and what you deliver Set priorities for closing gaps. Develop an action plan to close gaps

Figure 4.3 clearly shows that the international standard SABS ISO 14001

(1996) only contains the requirements, which may be objectively audited for

certification purposes. Each of the components in figure 4.3 is broken down

into sub-sections in figure 4.4. In section 4.8 each step of the implementation

of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is discussed in detail. Being an SABS ISO 14001

(1996) certified organisation could be seen as a means to assure interested and

affected parties that an appropriate environmental management system is in

place in an organisation.

Figure 4.5: The Plan-Do-Check-Act Cycle

Source: Barnard et al., (1999)

The SABS ISO 14001 (1996) system can also be seen as a plan-do-check-act

cycle as depicted in figure 4.5. Figure 4.5 is a description of the four main

components of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) implementation process. It goes

hand in hand with the typical management decision-making process. Firstly

there must be a planning phase during which the end status or desired status

must be identified and the gaps between the current and the desired status

determined. The plan must clearly state how the gaps should be eliminated.

57

Now follows the implementation phase during which the plans are put into

actions. After the plans has been implemented it is essential to evaluate or

check their effectiveness. Through this evaluation process the areas that needs

to be reviewed can be identified and this is the next phase. It is important to

remember that this is an ever-developing cycle. After reviewing the

implemented plans for effectiveness, new plans are developed and

implemented, checked and acted upon. Therefore this could be seen as a

process of continuous improvement.

4.7 What is an Environmental Management Plan (EMP)?

The organisation should establish an environmental management plan, which

addresses all its environmental objectives within the general planning of

activities. To be the most effective the environmental management plan should

be integrated into an organisation's strategic plans and should include

schedules, resources and responsibilities for achieving the organisation's

environmental objectives and targets.

Within the framework of the environmental management plan management

needs to identify specific actions dealing with individual processes, projects,

products, services, sites or facilities, and prioritise these in line with the

organisation's targets and objectives. For the environmental management plan

to be effective it should be dynamic and be revised regularly to reflect changes

in the organisational objectives and targets.

The flowchart in figure 4.6 clearly breaks down the different steps that forms

part of an environmental management system. The process starts with

management commitment (section 4.8.2), which must be evident in the policy

(section 4.8.2) of the organisation. The policy must provide clear reference to

the vision, strategy and objectives of the organisation.

58

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Then the process goes through the steps of planning (section 4.8.3),

implementation (section 4.8.4), checking or corrective action (section 4.8.5)

and through the management review (section 4.8.6) it is evaluated for

effectiveness and corrective and preventative actions are taken. Each of these

components will be discussed in more detail in this chapter as per the sections

referenced.

4.8 Implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Figure 4.3 shows that the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) consists

of different phases namely; initial review, commitment and policy, planning,

implementation and operation, checking and corrective action, management

review and continuous improvement. Before attempting to explain the process

in more detail it is essential to understand that SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

demands that a system must be developed, documented and implemented.

Figure 4.4 breaks each of these phases in sub-sections and figure 4.6 goes into

even more detail.

It is important to remember that during an audit, the auditor must be able to

find evidence in the form of records and registers related to the implementation

of the environmental management system. After implementation the system

must be maintained and continually be improved upon. Due to the fact that

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is an environmental management system,

management involvement is of utmost importance.

4.8.1 Initial review (figure 4.4)

According to Nel et al., (2000:2) this is done to determine the baseline or

current position of an organisation with regard to the environment. It is of the

utmost importance to clearly define the scope of the implementation project.

During the initial review the following issues need to be addressed amongst

others (Visser (e), 1999:2):

60

Identification of legislation and regulatory requirements.

Identification of environmental aspects of organisation's activities,

products or services to determine significant impacts and liabilities.

Evaluation of performance against internal criteria, external standards,

regulations, and codes of practice.

Existing policies and procedures dealing with purchasing and contractors.

Previous incidents of non-compliance and investigation reports.

Opportunities for competitive advantage.

Views of interested parties.

Other organisational activities that may enable or impede environmental

performance.

Possible incident and emergency situations.

In doing an initial review, it is important to make use of a map of the area,

business flowcharts, checklists, questionnaires, interviews, inspections and

measurements, records, reviews and benchmarking. By making use of these

tools, focus is maintained and it is easier to stay within the scope of the project.

It is impossible to do a gap analysis if the status quo is unknown. The initial

review enables management to find out what the current environmental

performance is and if current practices are adequate, effective and legal.

During this phase management needs to determine what their strengths,

weaknesses, opportunities and threats are, in other words they need to do a

SWOT analysis.

In doing a SWOT analysis it is important to identify existing arrangements,

management system elements, policies and other guidance arrangements, the

current environmental performance of the organisation and the current legal

compliance. From personal experience it is essential that a gap analysis must

be done to enable management to clearly define the gaps, and develop an

informed plan through which continuous improvement can be evaluated.

61

4.8.2 Commitment and Policy (figure 4.4)

SABS ISO 14001 (1996:2) defines an environmental policy as a: "Statement

by the organisation of its intentions and principles in relation to its overall

environmental performance which provides a framework for action and for

setting of its environmental objectives and targets."

4.8.2.1 Commitment

Element 4.2 of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) demands that "Top management shall

define the organisation's environmental policy and ensure that it:

is appropriate to the nature, scale and environmental impacts of its

activities, products or services;

includes a commitment to continual improvement and prevention of

pollution;

includes a commitment to comply with relevant environmental legislation

and regulations, and with other requirements to which the organisation

subscribes;

provides a framework for setting and reviewing environmental objectives

and targets;

is documented, implemented and maintained and communicated to all

employees, and

is available to the public."

Under this category a letter of commitment to environmental management is

required from the Executive Director and management (Barnard et al., 1999).

It is essential that an organisation's policy not only state top management

commitment but that this commitment is clearly demonstrated on a day to day

basis. It must be evident to employees that protection of the environment

receives top priority with management (Visser (e), 1999).

62

4.8.2.2 Policy

According to the ISO 14004 standard (1996:6) the role of a policy is to

establish a sense of direction and to be used to set parameters of action and

broad goals. An environmental policy should consider the following:

"the organisation's mission, vision, core values and beliefs;

requirements of and communication with interested parties;

continual improvement;

.4> prevention of pollution;

guiding principles;

co-ordination with other organisational policies;

specific local or regional conditions;

compliance with relevant environmental regulations, laws and other criteria

to which the organisation subscribes" (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:6).

4.8.3 Planning (Figure 4.4)

A plan must be in place to fulfil the environmental policy. Planning should

consider the following:

Environmental aspects.

Legal and other requirements.

Objectives and targets.

4.8.3.1 Environmental Aspects (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:7)

Establish and maintain a process of identification of environmental aspects of

an organisation's activities on the environment. Consider where appropriate;

emissions to air, releases to water, waste management, contamination of land

use of raw materials and natural resources and all other local environmental

issues, such as vegetation found in the specific location only; water streams,

rivers and dams. All these situations should be considered under normal

operating conditions, shutdown and start up conditions as well as reasonably

foreseeable emergency conditions.

63

The identification of aspects is an ongoing process to determine past, current

and potential impacts both positive and negative. At the same time potential

regulatory, legal and business exposure affecting the organisation must be

identified. A relationship between the aspects and impacts must be established.

4.8.3.2 Legal and other requirements (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:9)

All legislation and other requirements relating to the environmental impacts of

the organisation's activities, products and services must be identified and

complied with. It is of utmost importance to identify all applicable legislation

and ensure the organisation's compliance.

A legal register identifying each law and the clause and sub-clause which are

relevant to the organisation is of utmost importance to ensure environmental

legal compliance. It is essential to remember that law, especially

environmental law is an ever developing and therefore changing reality. A

system must be in place to ensure that the relevant individuals are aware of all

changes in legislation and the impact therefore on the organisation.

4.8.3.3 Objectives and Targets (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:11)

Objectives are the organisations broad overall goals for environmental

performance as identified in its environmental policy. It must be documented

and consideration given to legal and other requirements, significant

environmental aspects, available technology, financial, operational and

business requirements and the perceptions and views of all interested and

affected parties.

It is important that objectives and targets are consistent with the organisation's

environmental policy. When setting targets one must be specific and ensure

that targets are measurable and time frames are documented. Organisations

64

must make use of the best available technology whilst ensuring economic

viability and cost effectiveness.

It is essential to develop Key Performance Indicators (KPI's) to support,

review and amend the targets and objectives. To ensure a well-managed and

controlled system it is essential to clearly define who, what, why, where and

how things must be done. The identification of responsible persons, means and

time frames are of the utmost importance.

4.8.4 Implementation and operation (figure 4.4)

4.8.4.1 Structure and responsibility (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:14-15)

Element 4.4.1 of SABS ISO 14001 (1996:3) states that "Roles, responsibility

and authorities shall be defined, documented and communicated in order to

facilitate effective environmental management. Management shall provide

resources essential to the implementation and control of the environmental

management system. Resources include human resources and specialised

skills, technology and financial resources."

Resources are essential to the effective implementation of an environmental

management system. All personnel responsible for environmental

management must be identified with clear roles, responsibilities and authorities

assigned to them. These must be communicated properly to ensure effective

implementation of the environmental management system according to Nel et

al., (2000:10.2-25). Although environmental team leaders will be responsible

for the day to day running of the environmental management system, all staff

must be committed to the successful implementation of the environmental

management system.

A RACI chart (Table 9.2, section 9.3) indicating the individuals who have

responsibility, accountability, needs to be consulted or be informed is essential

65

in assigning clear roles and responsibilities. The RACI chart could be

combined with an organisational chart to ensure clear role definitions.

4.8.4.2 Training, awareness and competence (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:16-17)

Training needs must be identified and appropriate training courses sourced to

satisfy these needs. Procedures must be developed and maintained to ensure

awareness of the importance of conformance to environmental legislation and

requirements of SABS ISO 14001 (1996). SABS ISO 14001 (1996:3)

prescribes in element 4.4.2 that all "organisations shall identify training needs.

It shall require that all personnel whose work may create a significant impact

upon the environment, have received appropriate training."

Therefore all jobs, which might have a significant impact on the environment,

should be identified and the consequences of non-conformance to work

instructions highlighted to the relevant employee. Competence of responsible

persons and contractors must be determined and if lacking the required training

must be provided (SABS ISO 14001, 1996:3). Before this can be done the

required level of competence must be determined for all levels in the

organisation (Nel et al., 2000:11.2-28)

4.8.4.3 Communications (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:18)

Procedures must be developed to ensure internal and external communication.

Effective communication must indicate management commitment; deal with

concerns and questions from affected parties; increase awareness and make

environmental information available both internally and externally.

Environmental communication is a two-way process of exchanging

information on key environmental issues.

66

Desatibetbeenvironmental management system in acconlaire nth the stated envircmiental

policy, objectives and targets and the applicable standani

Describe the activities of balividut functica►d wits needed to inplemnit the

environmental management system donuts.

4.8.4.4 Documentation Control (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:19)

Emphasis is on the implementation of an environmental management system

and not on a complex documentation system. However, SABS ISO 14001

(1996:4) prescribes that documents must be kept and controlled in the

following manner; it must be easily accessible, regularly reviewed and

amended where applicable, the current versions must be available and obsolete

versions removed.

All documents must be properly identified and retained for a specific period

therefore it needs to be dated and the person responsible for a specific

document must be identified and documented (Barnard et al., 1999:14.2-9).

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) uses a four-tier documentation system, as depicted in

figure 4.7.

Figure 4.7: The Four Tier Documentation System of SABS ISO 14001 (1996). Source: Nel et al., (2000:47).

The four tiers can be described as follows:

The first tier consists of the policy and the manual which describes the

environmental management system according to SABS ISO 14001 (1996),

from which the objectives and targets are determined.

67

.:, The second tier addresses each element in SABS ISO 14001 (1996) with a

documented procedure specifying how the organisation will handle the

specific element.

The third tier consists of work instructions to describe the different

activities and emergency procedures.

.. Lastly the fourth tier consists of all additional documentation such as

minutes of meetings and records to prove the implementation of SABS ISO

14001 (1996). Evidence that the system is monitored and evaluated by the

organisation must be available.

According to Nel et al., (2000:15.5) the purpose of SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

four tier documentation system is to:

Prove planning steps;

Prove implementation;

Control and verification; and

.. Ensure consistency.

4.8.4.5 Operational Control (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:20)

The organisation should identify those operations and activities associated with

the possible impacts in line with its policy, objectives and targets. Procedures

must be developed to address such operations, considering design and

engineering, contractors, raw materials storage and handling, and transport

amongst others.

According to Barnard et al., (1999:15.9-10) conditions must be set for normal

activities and operations, abnormal conditions, accidents, control functions and

verification activities.

4.8.4.6 Emergency Preparedness and Response (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:20-21)

Procedures must be developed to identify potential emergency situations and

the required response documented, to minimise environmental impacts. These

68

procedures must be reviewed and revised as required, tested where possible

and practical, to ensure effective actions are taken.

It is essential to include procedures to control accidental emissions to the

atmosphere; accidental discharges into water; specific environment and

ecosystem effects from accidental releases and the consequences of abnormal

operating conditions; accidents and potential emergency situations (Barnard et

al., 1999:16.2-10).

4.8.5 Checking and corrective action (figure 4.4)

4.8.5.1 Monitoring and measurement (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:21)

Monitor and measure possible significant impacts regularly, record

environmental performance and operational controls and evaluate conformance

with objectives and targets. Monitoring equipment must be calibrated and

maintained and records of this should be retained.

Procedures must be developed for evaluating compliance with relevant

legislation and other SABS ISO 14001 (1996) standard requirements. It is

important to develop checklists as required and visually display these to

motivate employees and to provide them with the opportunity to participate in

the environmental management system (Barnard et al., 1999:17.2-15).

Element 4.4.7 of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996:4) states that an "organisation

shall establish and maintain documented procedures to monitor and measure,

on a regular basis, the key characteristics of its operations and activities that

can have a significant impact on the environment. This shall include the

recording of information to track performance, relevant operational controls,

and conformance with the organisation's procedures."

69

A minimum of three months of records must be available before the South

African Bureau of Standards or any other accreditation body could do a

certification audit.

4.8.5.2 Non-conformance and corrective and preventative action (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:22)

Procedures must be developed to define responsibility and authority for

handling and investigating non-conformances, taking action to minimise

impacts and to take initiative for corrective and preventative action. Such

action shall be appropriate to the magnitude of the problem. Amendments or

changes made to procedures as a result of corrective action must be recorded

and communicated to affected parties. According to Nel et al., (2000:18.6-14)

it is vital to verify the effectiveness of solutions at an appropriate period after

the implementation. Non-conformances identified during an audit must be

verified during follow-up audits and after solutions have been implemented.

4.8.5.3 Records (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:22)

Environmental records must be legible, identifiable and easily accessible.

Records must be kept to prove conformance to SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

requirements. The achievement and status of objectives and targets must be

recorded and monitored. Environmental reporting must be used as an

environmental management tool aimed at informing all stakeholders of the

business's environmental performance. Benefits that could be derived from

environmental reporting are that it allows for direct communication of

important information to external stakeholders, it demonstrates corporate

commitment to environmental protection and it could be used to illustrate the

translation of environmental commitment into specific objectives and actions.

70

4.8.5.4 Environmental Management Systems Audit (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:22)

An audit must be done on a twice a year basis and can only be conducted by an

external party which is accredited to certify your organisation as an SABS ISO

14001 (1996) company. According to SABS ISO 14011 (1996) an

environmental management system audit is "A systematic and documented

verification process of objectively obtaining and evaluating audit evidence to

determine whether an organisations environmental management system

conforms to the environmental management system criteria, and

communicating the results of this process to the client."

Furthermore SABS ISO 14011 (1996) describes the audit criteria for an

environmental management system as consisting of "Policies, practices,

procedures or requirements, such as those covered by SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

and, if applicable, any additional environmental management system

requirements against which the auditor compares collected audit evidence

about the organisations environmental management system." Nel et al.,

(2000:19.3-8) states that environmental audits could have significant coaching

and counselling value, it enables individuals and organisations to learn about

their environmental responsibilities and helps to determine the most effective

way to carry them out.

Environmental audits can be seen as a tool to set in motion a process of

continuous improvement and provides employees with a sounding board to

raise recurring problems. An audit provides the rationale to obtain the

resources to limit current liability and prevent future liability. An audit could

be seen as a test to determine consistency across the company in awareness of

and adherence to the company policy. Environmental audits help organisations

to assess improvement at a site over time and ensure that responsibility is

driven into all levels of the organisation.

71

4.8.6 Management review

Top management must review the environmental management system for

continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness. These reviews should be

documented and the minutes kept to be audited. During the review

management must address the need for changes required to the policy,

objectives, audit results, target achievements, and the concerns of interested

and affected parties. All observations, conclusions and recommendations must

be documented (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:23).

According to Nel et al., (2000:21.2-11) the objectives of a management review

is to:

Maintain continual improvement.

Maintain suitability of the environmental management system.

Maintain effectiveness of the environmental management system.

Maintain the adequacy of the environmental management system.

Evaluate the external changes and demands.

Identify the need for change.

4.8.6.1 Continual improvement (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:23)

The objective is to continually improve environmental performance. A form of

continual improvement would be to list those environmental aspects, which an

organisation has control and possible influence over, monitor and evaluate your

performance and set new targets and objectives to improve on achievements.

List also those aspects over which organisation has no control and influence.

The policy must state a commitment to continual improvement.

4.9 Continuous improvement with SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Continuous improvement of the environmental management system and by

default performance is one of the most, if not the most important pre-requisite

of SABS ISO 14001 (1996). SABS ISO 14001 (1996:1) defines continual

72

improvement as "a process of enhancing the environmental management

system to achieve improvements in overall environmental performance."

There are no specific performance criteria beyond commitment to conform to

the organisations policy statements, the objectives and targets set by

management, all applicable legislation (provincial and national). The

organisation must be capable of proving that serious attempts are made to

prevent pollution and that emergency plans are in place to handle any possible

contamination. The only technical performance requirement in SABS ISO

14001 (1996) is the prevention of pollution.

Environmental performance evaluation is a process to measure, analyse, assess,

report and communicate an organisation's environmental performance.

Environmental performance evaluation includes life cycle assessments and all

possible local, regional or global impacts an organisations activities might have

on the environment (see the socio-biophysical model in figure 4.1).

An environmental performance evaluation includes the identification and

prioritisation of policies, objectives and targets, whilst measuring, assessing

and analysing the environmental performance against them. Environmental

achievements can be demonstrated and the required resources allocated while

management ensures that environmental activities are aligned among all the

organisational units.

4.10 General Environmental Principles

4.10.1Custodianship

"The government acknowledges that it has a constitutional duty to protect the

environment for the benefit of current and future generations of South

Africans. Its responsibilities include the duty to act as custodian of the nation's

resources; to protect the public interest in, and to ensure equitable access to,

such resources and generally to ensure that all South Africans enjoy an

73

environment of acceptable quality. In assuming theses duties, the government

accepts the duties and responsibilities implied by the doctrine of the Public

trust, particularly regarding state owned land and natural resources and will

enact legislation to give effect to this principle" (White Paper on

Environmental Management Policy for South Africa, 1998:21).

4.10.2 Cradle to grave principle

"A commitment to responsible care should be made throughout the product,

project or service life cycle, from the reconnaissance and conceptual phases to

rehabilitation and after care" (Nel et al., 2000:14).

"Responsibility for the environmental and health and safety consequences of a

policy, programme, project, product, process, service or activity exists

throughout its life cycle. It starts with conceptualisation and planning and runs

through all stages of implementation to re-use, recycling and ultimate disposal

of products and waste or decommissioning of installations" (White Paper on

Environmental Management Policy for South Africa, 1998:21).

4.10.3 Due process

"Due process must be applied in all environmental management activities.

This includes adherence to the provisions in the Constitution dealing with just

administrative action and public participation in environmental governance"

(White Paper on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa,

1998:22).

4.10.4 Eco-efficiency principle

"The continuous improvement of goods and services while reducing

consumption and waste" (Nel et al., 2000:14).

74

4.10.5 Increased transparency

"Increased responsibility and increased pressure to disclose performance" (Nel

et al., 2000:14). Organisations must be prepared to have their environmental

policy, plan and actions scrutinised by all interested and affected parties.

4.10.6 Integrated Environmental Management System

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is known as an Integrated Environmental

Management (IEMS) system. According to the Department of Environmental

Affairs and Tourism (1992:5) the basic principles of an Integrated

Environmental Management Systems are:

Informed decision making;

Accountability for information on which decisions are taken;

Accountability for decisions taken;

The term environment must include biological, cultural, economic,

historical, physical, political, legal and social components;

An open, participatory approach must be followed in the planning of

proposals;

Interested and affected parties must be consulted;

Due consideration must be given to alternative options;

An attempt to mitigate negative impacts and enhance positive aspects of

proposals must be evident;

An attempt must be made to ensure that the 'social costs' of development

proposals (those borne by society) be outweighed by the 'social benefits'

(benefits to the society as a result of development);

Democratic regard for individual rights and obligations must be

demonstrated;

Compliance to the above principles during all stages of the planning,

implementation and decommissioning of proposals, (cradle to grave

principle) must be evident; and

75

The opportunity for the public and specialist input in the decision-making

process must be provided.

4.10.7 Internalisation of externalities

"Where appropriate economic resource measures should be employed to

internalise external environmental costs as part of the exploitation and

production costs. The market price of a commodity, goods or services should

reflect environmental costs, threats, risks and potential liabilities" (Nel et al.,

2000:14).

4.10.8 Polluter pays principle

"The polluter should bear the full costs of any damage caused to the

environment" (Section 22A of the Water Act, Act 54 of 1956).

"Those responsible for environmental damage must pay the repair costs both to

the environment and human health, and the costs of preventive measures to

reduce or prevent further pollution and environmental damage" (White Paper

on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa, 1998:20).

According to the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998

section 2 "The participation of all interested and affected parties in

environmental governance must be promoted, and all people must have the

opportunity to develop the understanding, skills and capacity necessary for

achieving equitable and effective participation, and participation by vulnerable

and disadvantaged persons must be ensured. Decisions must take into account

the interests, needs and values of all interested and affected parties, and this

includes recognising all forms of knowledge, including traditional and ordinary

knowledge".

76

4.10.9 Sustainability principle

"Development that meets the need of current stakeholders, without

compromising the ability of future stakeholders to meet their own" Nel et al.,

(2000) referenced the Brundtland Report of 1987.

4.11 Sustainable Development

According to Connel (1996) the World Conservation Strategy (WCS) of 1980

uses the term sustainable development to define development, which meets the

needs of the present generations without compromising the ability of future

generations to meet their own needs. Net et al., (2000) states that in 1987 the

World Commission of Environment and Development (the Brundtland

Commission) accepted the concept of sustainable development as a basis for

environmental management. It was incorporated in South African legislation

through section 2 of the Environmental Conservation Act, Act 73 of 1989,

stating that "the concept of sustainable development is accepted as the guiding

principle for environmental management."

Nel et al., (2000:37) suggested two possible definitions for sustainable

development namely:

"Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising

the ability of future generations to meet their own needs" and

"Development which improves people's quality of life, within the carrying

capacities of the earth's support system."

Sustainable development entails the integration of environmental

considerations into the decision-making process to ensure the maximisation of

profits while limiting environmental impacts. Respect of ecological integrity,

efficient use of natural, social and manufactured resources, use of the

participatory approach and commitment to environmental stewardship by all

levels of decision makers, forms the core principles of sustainable

development.

77

To ensure sustainable development all factors that might have an impact on the

environment will be taken into account before a developer is granted authority

to carry on with the intended development. By implementing a Strategic

Environmental Assessment system (CSIR, 1999:5) an organisation ensures

continuous involvement of all interested and affected parties thereby creating a

continuous learning process.

"Through the implementation of an integrated and sustainability-led Strategic

Environmental Assessment, objectives for sustainability are defined and

strategies to achieve them are implemented and monitored. These objectives

and strategies are updated continually as more information about development

processes and their impact on the environment is obtained" (CSIR, 1999:5).

4.12 Sustainability

Seeing that sustainability receives a lot of attention in all business and

environmental discussions it is important to explore the sustainability principle.

Sustainability implies the maintenance of environmental assets. "It should not

be seen as a fixed state of harmony, but as a process of change in which the

exploitation of resources, the direction of investments, the orientation of

technological development and institutional changes are made consistent with

future as well as present needs" Barnard (1999:57).

The concept of sustainable development is broken down into three dimensions

namely environmental sustainability, social sustainability and economic

sustainability by the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of

1998. In section 23 it states that "development must be socially,

environmentally and economically sustainable."

78

4.12.1Environmental Sustainability

Refers to lifestyle changes or adjustments leading to the maintenance of natural

capital while meeting human needs. Environmental sustainability focuses on

the natural resource base and place emphasis on the importance of placing

limitations to which extend it could be exploited (Nel et al., 2000:46).

4.12.2 Social Sustainability

Refers to the moral capital of a particular society and can be enhanced through

the participation of the community. This dimension of sustainability will differ

from society to society due to the difference in culture, values and norms. The

attainment of social sustainability is interdependent on environmental and

economic sustainability and involves mutual understanding among community

members, cultural identity, diversity, solidarity, brotherhood, honesty and the

law (Nel et al., 2000:46).

4.12.3 Economic Sustainability

Economic sustainability is aimed at bridging the gap between the rich and the

poor. Economists used to ignore the environment seeing that it could not be

priced, they seemed to believe in the ingenuity of humanity to develop

technology for the exploitation or substitution of scarce resources. Economic

sustainability should consider environmental constraints to ensure that through

economic development the natural resources are used efficiently. It is essential

to proceed with caution when faced with uncertainty and to place emphasis on

equitable distribution of costs and benefits (Nel et al., 2000:46).

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Chapter Five

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and Management Decision Making

5.1 Introduction

Over the years the focus on the protection of the environment changed, from

cleaning up the mess and correcting environmental degradation after the

cessation of business activities, to the management of environmental impacts.

The second objective set for this research survey is to determine if there is a

link between SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and management decision making.

To execute an activity, management demands that the steps required must be

organised in an orderly and efficient progression. The environment has now

become an integral part of an organisation's business plan and as such needs to

be managed. The growing need for guidelines, principles and processes to

facilitate the management of the environment resulted in the creation of new

concepts such as, sustainability in development and rehabilitation. Principles

such as, identification, quantification and use of alternative solutions during

environmental planning were borrowed from other disciplines, such as business

management and adapted for environmental purposes (Visser (b), 2000).

5.2 Management decision making

According to Barnard (1999:198), in the past the management of

environmental matters was seen as an aspect separate from general

management and development. Barnard (1999:199) said that it was not

"understood that an overarching management system was required to address

environmental protection in an orderly, systematic and integrated basis. Such a

management system has two components: a structure designed to decide in

80

principle on the best resource or land-use option and a structure to ensure that

the environmentally acceptable detailed management of the preferred used

option is environmentally acceptable."

Management is a practical process executed for the professional administration

of a public or private undertaking. The process of management requires the

individual to conceptualise the proposed actions and to set procedures and

guideline documents for these actions. The decision-maker should evaluate the

proposal and determine which guidelines, standards or principles will the

organisation be measured against. The different role players should be

identified and responsibility, authority and liability must be assigned to each of

them (Barnard et al., 1999:6).

Even though environmental management is a new concept a management

strategy must be developed for it. According to Barnard (1999:196) the basis

of such a management strategy should be "an attempt to create a project that,

through good planning and design, is less likely to cause environmental

degradation." It is essential to remember that environmental management

requires managers to develop new skills and to look for new solutions in a

multi-disciplinary field. Environmental managers need to have a sound

knowledge of environmental law to allow them to integrate legislation into the

matrix of their daily environmental involvement. Through the integration of a

specialised environmental management structure, into the total management

structure of the organisation adequate environmental control is ensured.

Barnard (1999:197) stated that "environmental legislation increasingly reflects

the reality that good long-term business planning and management usually

equals good environmental planning and management." It is essential that

management develops a system to effectively deal with extended corporate and

life-cycle liability (Barnard, 1999:197).

According to Nel et al., (2000) the processes listed in figure 5.1 deals with

management processes, which is of particular importance if management wants

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to deliver stakeholders value. Nel et al., (2000:38) suggested that "the key to

success is to find ways to manage these work processes smarter, faster and

cheaper."

Figure 5.1: Management processes of an Environmental Management System.

Source: Nel et al., (2000:9).

Environmental management decision making could be seen as a step-by-step

process independent of the department be it production, administration, human

resources or marketing. These steps are linked to each other and forms a

never-ending circle when the end of the cycle is reached it starts all over again.

All disciplines of an organisation can have an impact on the environment and

should therefore consider environmental issues in any decisions being made.

The cycle consists of making an assessment of the situation by assessing the

risks, identifying the related issues and understanding the requirements. The

next step is planning during which management must ensure that the

requirements are available, the policy direction is communicated and sold to

the employees, performance standards are set and the required permits and

approvals are obtained. The following step is the implementation phase, which

82

are dependent on the thoroughness of the planning phase for its success.

During the implementation phase it is essential that all risks be managed and

compliance to environmental legislation are ensured. Unwanted impacts must

be reduced if it can not be prevented completely and an emergency plan must

be available in the case of an accidental impact. After implementing the plan

management must review its success by measuring performance against the set

standards and communicating its performance to all interested and affected

parties. The cycle now starts with an assessment of the success of the plan

leading to improved plans which need to be implemented and reviewed.

An environmental management system must be supported by the provision of

training and placing emphasis on making employees aware of their

environmental responsibilities. The required documentation and records must

be available at all times to ensure that the system can be audited.

5.3 What is environmental management?

The defmition in SABS ISO 14001 (1996) (1996:2) states that an

environmental management system "is a management structure that allows an

organisation to assess and control the environmental impact of its activities,

products or services." Any environmental management process needs to

consider the time factor. Management must determine if the processes used by

the organisation in the past or any of their prior activities could have had an

impact on the environment, if they find this to be true they need to take

responsibility for these impacts and undertake remedial actions.

The concept of the 'sins of the fathers' was derived from this seeing that not

only, is management responsible for current activities but also for everything

that happened in the past that could have a detrimental effect on the

environment. One cannot turn ones back on the past seeing that legislation

makes you responsible for all aspects of your process not just from a specific

83

moment in time but right from the conceptual stage, whether it is a week,

decade or century ago.

A study has to be done to determine what the impact of current practices is and

all future projects or plans must consider environmental issues. As part of the

management process it is essential that a clear mission and policy is available

and environmental objectives be linked to the policy and mission.

Management needs to determine what the function of environmental

management should be in the organisation. Nel et al., (2000:12) suggested that

they ask themselves the following questions when deciding this:

How does environmental management fit into the organisational structure?

Who does it report to?

How does it relate to the line functions?

How does it influence decision-making?

When considering the environment it is important to consider the biophysical,

economical, social, political, legal, institutional and technological aspects not

only from a local but also a regional, national and global perspective.

Management must consider the environment during all stages of the product

life cycle; design and construction, operation and decommissioning.

Management tools that could be used are:

Environmental impact assessments.

Terrain evaluation.

Landscape assessment.

Risk assessment.

Ecological evaluation.

Environmental audits.

Control reports.

84

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Figure 5.2: Dimensions of environmental management process. Source: Nel et al., (2000:17).

The rubic cube in figure 5.2 shows the different dimensions needed for an

environmental management process as mentioned. Achieving environmental

management system objectives makes the organisation less vulnerable to

command and control regulations. According to SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

there are six key elements to an environmental management system namely:

m* An environmental policy - in which the intentions of an organisation and

their commitment to environmental performance is stated.

Planning - during which the organisation analyses the impact their

operations have on the environment.

.=%. Implementation and operation - where the organisation develops and

implements processes that will help them achieve environmental targets

and objectives.

Checking and corrective action - monitoring and measuring environmental

indicators to ensure environmental performance standards are met.

Management review - during which the environmental management system

is reviewed to ensure its suitability, adequacy and effectiveness.

85

Continual improvement as described by the ISO 14000 series.

5.4 Why use a system to address environmental issues?

According to Nel et al., (2000:11) the main aim of management systems is to

pull potential disparate systems into a single, integrated and functional one. If

many ill-defined systems exist in an organisation; functions, responsibilities

and accountabilities are more likely to be lost, neglected, ignored or

externalised. Auditing and certification of a system provides confidence that

issues are consistently addressed (Nel et al., 2000:13). This ensures that the

status of the organisation's compliance to the SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

standard is reviewed and adjusted. By doing this environmental management

performance is ensured in terms of a well-balanced and controlled system.

The minimum requirement for SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification is legal

compliance, as such SABS ISO 14001 (1996) allows for an organisation to

meet its environmental obligations. SABS ISO 14001 (1996) ensures that a

reliable consistent process is implemented through which environmental

obligations are identified and met in a responsible and consistent way (Nel et

al., 2000).

An organisation cannot continue successfully if its norms and operating

procedures are not in line with the norms of the society it operates in. Society

now has the right to demand information on an organisation's environmental

performance, therefore it is important for organisations to provide

environmental reports. An environmental management system enables an

organisation to assimilate the required information for environmental reports.

It is essential to remember that the designing of an environmental management

system is not enough to ensure that an organisation successfully controls and

improve its environmental performance, unless all the individuals involved in

the organisation participate.

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Participation involves:

Commitment to improving the environmental performance of the

organisation, both currently and in the future;

Taking responsibility for managing particular aspects of the organisation's

environmental impacts in conjunction with having the power to carry out

these responsibilities; and

Gaining the right training to enable effective participation.

5.5 Management with SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

The different processes involved in environmental management systems have

as its main objective deliverance of stakeholder value. In SABS ISO 14004

(1996:14) it is stated that to enable effective management of environmental

concerns the environmental management system elements should be designed

or revised to ensure that they are effectively aligned and integrated with

management system elements.

Management system elements which can benefit from integration are; the

organisation's policies, resource allocation, operational controls and

documentation, information and support systems, training and development of

all levels of employees, an improved organisation and accountability structure,

reward and appraisal systems, measuring and monitoring systems and

improved communication and reporting. It is essential for management to

determine how the environmental management system must be integrated into

the overall business management process and decide on a process for balancing

and resolving conflicts between environmental and other business objectives

and priorities (see figure 5.1).

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Chapter Six

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) and Environmental Legal Compliance

6.1 Introduction

The third objective of this research study is to determine how SABS ISO

14001 (1996) could be used to ensure environmental legal compliance. Before

an attempt can be made to determine how, it is important to look at what the

law consists of. According to Thome' (1996:2) legislation is a "prescriptive

method of control and entails set levels of performance." He suggests that

individual organisation needs to demonstrate responsible care by considering

the environment in all stages of an organisation's life cycle. The basis of law is

that it resolves around people and is essential to provide order to the

relationships between people.

The promulgation of different laws and regulations are aimed at addressing the

needs of people, and to provide them with rules in which to act. According to

Barnard and Visser (1999:8) "legislation is a collection of detailed, legally

binding principles, processes and management structures which originated

where weaknesses or relative simplicity of the elementary common law

indicated a need for more sophistication." Barnard and Visser (1999:3) states

"Law is not just an abstract set of rules imposed on society but is an integral

part of that society, deeply rooted in the social and economic order in which it

functions and embodying traditional value-systems which confer meaning and

purpose upon the given society." TECHNIKON WITWATERSRAND

LIBRARY

Thorne (1996:2) describes legislation as a prescriptive method of control,

entailing set levels of performance. Due to environmental legislation, pressure

is placed on organisations to take the environment into account during all

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stages of an organisation's life cycle. Organisations are required to

demonstrate that their environmental responsibility and commitment is

internationally acceptable if they want to compete on the global market.

According to Barnard and Visser (1999:5) it is essential to remember that

legislation is constantly changing to accommodate the needs resulting from

changes in values, priorities, threats and circumstances.

Barnard and Visser (1999:6) said, "Legislation comprises of the laws,

ordinances, rules and regulations passed by elected political representatives

acting as legislative authorities at the different levels of government." Visser

(b) (2000:1) said that the South African legal system is divided into different

fields, with the two main divisions Public law and Private law. According to

Visser (b) (2000:1) Public law rules the relationship between individuals and

the state while Private law rules the relationship between individuals or

institutions. In Private law the state has little or no influence. Public law and

Private law can be divided into different branches, such as Criminal,

Constitutional, Administrative, and Formal law. Other divisions such as

Common law, Customary law and Case law also exist and Environmental law

has developed into another division over the years (Barnard and Visser,

1999:10-15).

Visser (b) (2000:7) claimed that the enhanced role of the Provinces in

promulgation and enforcement of environmental legislation is of importance to

the private sector. "Provinces can now make their own laws and regulations as

long as it is not in conflict with central government legislation" Visser (b)

(2000:7). Central government can delegate power to provinces and allow them

to exercise authority, and provides them with supervisory functions over local

authorities. The provinces are now obliged to introduce systems which would

ensure the proper design of new projects, the management, monitoring and

policing of existing projects and their decommissioning and closure (Visser

(b), 2000:8). Pressure by international bodies and an increase in environmental

awareness have little value, if environmental protection principles are not

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captured in national legislation and government does not enforce these laws.

The promulgation of several pieces of environmental legislation has imposed

new obligations on organisations and extended their exposure to potential

liability.

6.2 The Industrial Environmental Forum

The Industrial Environmental Forum (IEF) was developed by a dedicated

group of South Africa's industrial and business leaders. It represents a broad

spectrum of South African business and industry. Samancor is a member of

the IEF. The challenge to industry is that "it must continue to grow while

making the appropriate strategic adjustments to ensure long-term economic and

environmental sustainability" (IEF, 1999:1). Most members of the IEF are

business leaders, committed to the implementation of sound environmental

practices in their everyday operations. They focus on continuous

improvement, self-regulation and openness about their environmental

performance (IEF, 1999:2). The role of the Industrial Environmental Forum is

to create awareness and enhance environmental performance. According to the

IEF Report (IEF 1999:3) this is accomplished by:

"Raising an awareness of environmental management issues and best

practice within the business community.

Helping members develop appropriate policies, systems and programmes.

Developing management tools and skills.

Sharing experiences, problems and opportunities across industries.

Representing the environmental concerns of business.

Encouraging business participation in environmental policy and legislation

formulation to ensure cost-effective and achievable environmental

standards.

Monitoring local and international trends.

Promoting South African business internationally.

Supporting training, workshops and seminars for members.

90

Organising and providing input to national and regional conferences and

symposia.

Attracting investment and partnership opportunities."

According to De Villiers and Visser (2000) the University of Pretoria did a

survey on environmental reporting in South Africa. They assessed five

hundred and fourteen of the top South African organisation's, annual reports

for the year 1997. Thirteen of these organisations listed in the top 50 were

members of the IEF. Four of the thirteen companies were listed within the top

ten namely; Ingwe Coal Corporation, Samancor, Anglo American Coal

Corporation and AECI. The focus for this research study is Samancor and as

such it is important to take cognisance of this achievement.

6.3 Environmental Liability

"The main thrust of environmental law is to manage the relationship between

humankind and the earth" (Barnard and Visser, 1999:14). According to the

definition used by De Villiers and Visser (2000:14) environmental law is "A

legal obligation to make a future expenditure due to the past or ongoing

manufacture, use, release or threatened release of a particular substance, or

other activities that adversely affect the environment." De Villiers and Visser

(2000) mentioned that the AC130 Accountancy standard defines liability as a

legal obligation, which derives from a contract, legislation or other operation of

law. According to De Villiers and Visser (2000) the AC130 Accountancy

standard states that legal obligation goes hand in hand with constructive

obligation, which "arises where an enterprise has by past policies indicated to

other parties that it will accept certain responsibilities and as a result has

created a valid expectation on the part of those parties that it will discharge its

responsibilities."

Different types of liability exists such as compliance, remediation and

compensation obligations, which could be linked to punitive and natural

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resources damages. The trend is for environmental management systems to

produce environmental data but due to the fact that no monetary value is linked

to the data organisations do not have a clear picture of their environmental

costs. Through the adoption of accounting principles that requires auditors to

look at organisations environmental performance when doing financial audits a

drastic change could be expected in this respect (De Villiers and Visser, 2000).

Recognition of an organisation's responsibility to the environment

automatically requires the company to comply with legislation (Visser (b),

2000).

Even though SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is a system approach to managing

environmental issues and not a performance-based document it allows for

organisations to demonstrate their commitment and environmental

performance. Such assurance could be an acceptable tool to satisfy legislators

and regulators that an organisation is aware of, and concerned about its

environmental responsibilities (Visser (b) 2000).

6.4 Environmental Law in South Africa

The change in government in 1994 brought with it renewed pressure for more

stringent environmental legislation and the addressing of environmental equity.

Environmental laws can however not be seen as a separate division due to its

complexity and interrelationship with public and private law. The different

legal requirements only add to the complexity of environmental law. South

Africa formally ratified the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change as a developing country on 12 August 1997, demonstrating its

commitment to environmental protection to the rest of the world (Visser (b),

2000). Considering the three levels of government, the Constitution,

departmental policies and international treaties it is evident that compliance can

be very difficult especially if the implications of the different requirements are

not very well understood by management. It is essential for an organisation to

92

formulate the requirements applicable to them into practical and

comprehensible terms (Barnard and Visser, 1999).

6.5 Legal basis for public participation

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, states in

section 24 (f) that "the participation of all interested and affected parties in

environmental governance must be promoted, and all people must have the

opportunity to develop the understanding, skills and capacity necessary for

achieving equitable and effective participation, and participation by vulnerable

and disadvantaged persons must be insured." Public involvement was made

compulsory during the preparation of environmental impact reports, scoping

reports and environmental impact assessments. They should be involved in the

evaluation of projects holistically. The Development Facilitation Act, Act 67

of 1995, requires that "members of communities affected by land development

should actively participate in the process of land development."

6.6 Environmental Legislation

Even though the Constitution clearly states how the environment should be

managed, it is still essential to have a policy on environmental management.

Through the policy, principles, strategic goals, objectives and the regulatory

approaches, government demonstrates to organisations how government will

partake in managing the environment.

According to element 4.3.2 in SABS ISO 14001 (1996:3) "the organisation

shall establish and maintain a procedure to identify and have access to legal

and other requirements to which the organisation subscribes, that are applicable

to the environmental aspects of its activities, products or services." As the

discussion under section 4.8 of this dissertation states that for SABS ISO

14001 (1996) an organisation needs to define all aspects in the work

environment and determine what the impact could be on the environment.

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For the benefit of the reader a table of environmental laws, which needs to be

considered by an organisation to determine if it is applicable on the specific

organisation were included in Appendix A.

6.6.1 The Constitution — Act 108 of 1996

The Constitution, Act 108 of 1996, can be seen as the supreme source of law in

South Africa, it provides a baseline for environmental regulation. All

government policies and laws must be drafted in accordance with the

provisions made in the Constitution (Hall, 1998:3).

To determine the basic principle of South African environmental law, it is

important to look at environmental rights contained in the Constitution, Act

108 of 1996. The basic environmental components of the law will be

summarised. Environmental rights are listed under the Bill of Rights in section

24 of the Constitution, Act 107 of 1996, as follows:

"Everyone has the right —

to an environment that is not harmful to their health and well-being: and

to have the environment protected, for the benefit of present and future

generations: through reasonable legislative and other measures that —

prevent pollution and ecological degradation;

promote conservation; and

secure ecologically sustainable development and use of natural

resources while promoting justifiable economic and social

development."

According to Visser (b) (2000:1) with the promulgation of the Constitution a

duty was placed on all government institutions to enforce policy and legal

requirements in terms of section 24 of the Bill of Rights. The rights in section

24 is not only fundamental rights or human rights but it places an obligation on

government to protect and preserve the environment, to promote conservation

and to secure sustainable development that is economically and socially

justifiable.

94

For the purpose of this dissertation, three of the rights, contained in the Bill of

Rights will be highlighted, namely:

The environmental right;

The right to access of information in section 32; and

The "locus standi" clause in section 38.

According to Hall (2000:3) the environmental right imposes an obligation on

government to pass legislation to give effect to this right. Government must

conduct its activities in such a way that it does not violate this right. Thus

government must ensure that no law passed by them violates or is contrary to

the individuals environmental rights. Government needs to ensure that all laws

passed are compatible with an individual's rights and should not grant permits

that could lead to organisations infringing environmental rights.

Hall (1998:4) states that "the access to information clause provides for

potential litigants to obtain information" related to any organisations

environmental performance. Section 32 allows access to any information held

by government or held by any other person which is required for the exercise

of protection of any rights.

The main value of section 32 is that it allows access to all available research

and detailed information required substantiating demands for improved

environmental performance. This information could be used against the

organisation in a court of law. From this it is clear that organisations must

make decisions, regulations, policies or any other kind of information,

available to anyone for the protection of their rights.

According to Hall (1998:4) "One of the most significant obstacles that

prevented individuals from acting in the interest of the environment was that

they lacked 'locus standi', or the legal standing, to approach the courts." This

obstacle has been removed and anyone acting in their own interest; on behalf

95

of another person, in public interest; in the interest of a group, or an association

acting in the interest of its members may now initiate legal proceedings to

uphold environmental rights (Hall, 1998:4).

According to Visser (b) (2000:3) under section 38 of the Constitution, Act 108

of 1996, legal action can be taken to protect the right of people to a decent

environment and to compel the state authorities to make appropriate legislation

for the protection of the environment and to enforce compliance. If one reads

section 24 and section 38 together it is evident that any person or organisation

may enforce the rights contained in chapter 2 of the Bill of Rights irrespective

of whether that person or organisation is adversely affected by the alleged

infringement of rights.

Section 39 requires that the values of an open and democratic society must be

promoted and international and foreign law considered when interpreting the

Bill of Rights.

6.6.2 The Environment Conservation Act — Act 73 of 1989

The act contains provisions, which are of great importance to the application

and enforcement of environmental law in South Africa. In fact the

Environment Conservation Act, Act 73 of 1989, could be seen as providing

overarching legislation, and establishing general principles applicable to

development in general. Section 2 of the Environment Conservation Act, Act

73 of 1989, implies that all responsible government institutions should apply

appropriate measures to ensure the protection of ecological sensitive and

unique areas.

The Environment Conservation Act, Act 73 of 1989 in section 21 identifies

activities, which may have a detrimental effect on the environment, and all

activities listed are banned. Section 26 provides the regulations regarding

environmental impact reports, which must be submitted to government. All

three spheres of government, namely national, provincial and local

96

government, are involved with the approval of environmental impact

assessments submitted by organisations.

Section 31 a, gives equal and extensive environmental control powers to the

Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, provincial governments and

local governments regarding all development projects. The Environment

Conservation Act, Act 73 of 1989, established the need for sustainable

development, holistic evaluation of projects, the need to internalise external

costs, the requirement of the judicious use of land, the prevention of

environmentally sensitive areas, and the application of conservation principles

in all land-use planning.

The challenge for organisations is to determine how to manage their

responsibility to the environment while minimising their exposure to liability.

An organisation will have to assess the environmental management tools they

are using to determine whether environmental legal liability is adequately

integrated within the system.

6.6.3 White Paper on Environmental Management Policy for South Africa - Government Notice 1096 of 1998

According to Hall (1998:4) the White Paper on Environmental Management

policy for South Africa (1998) "sets out government's vision of an integrated

and holistic environmental management system aimed at achieving sustainable

development" allowing for society to exist in harmony with its environment.

According to Visser (b) (2000:6) its aim is to "unite the people of South Africa

in working together towards a society where all people will have an acceptable

environment to allow them to live in spiritual, cultural and physical harmony

with their natural surroundings."

97

Visser (b) (2000:6) suggested that we could only achieve this through " a new

model or paradigm of sustainable development based on integrated and co-

ordinated environmental management that addresses:

People's quality of life and their daily living and working environments.

Equitable access to land and natural resources.

The integration of economic development, social justice and environment

sustainability.

More efficient use of energy resources.

The sustainable use of social, cultural and natural resources.

Public participation in environmental governance" (Visser (b), 2000:6).

The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism has been designated as

the lead agent for environmental management and therefore is responsible for

the development of a strategy and legislation, co-ordinating, enforcing

provincial environmental obligations, monitoring and auditing. The White

Paper on Environmental Management policy for South Africa (1998) contains

principles for environmental management, including cradle to grave

responsibility, environmental justice, polluter pays and custodianship (see

section 4.10). These principles will form the basis on which decisions are

made and legislation is drafted (Hall, 1998:4).

6.6.4 Draft Environmental Management Bill

The draft bill contains principles for environmental management and even

though it has not been promulgated it is important for management to take note

of what possible future effects it might have. The main components of this Bill

are (Visser (b), 2000:6-7):

The bill will apply throughout South Africa and organisations will have to

prove sustainable development.

Environmental management must be an integrated system with equitable

access to environmental resources, benefits and services.

98

The bill clearly stipulates responsibility for the environment, health and

safety consequences of a policy, programme, product or service through its

entire life cycle.

The participation of all interested and affected parties in environmental

governance is encouraged.

The bill demands that the full social and environmental impacts of

activities, including the disadvantages and benefits must be considered,

evaluated and assessed.

Decisions must be taken in an open and transparent manner and access to

information provided according to law.

The right of workers to refuse work that is harmful to human health or the

environment must be respected.

Inter-governmental co-ordination should resolve actual or potential

conflicts of interest between government departments.

Environmental justice shall be pursued.

6.6.5 National Environmental Management Act — Act 107 of 1998 (NEMA)

The White Paper on Environmental Management identified the need for the

legislative reform of environmental law. According to Hall (2000:2) three key

deficiencies in environmental legislation was identified namely:

"Fragmentation of environmental law;

lack of co-ordination of environmental law which falls within the

jurisdiction of numerous government departments, at all levels of

government; and

the need to give effect to the provisions of the Constitution, Act No. 108 of

1996 in general and the environmental right in particular."

One of the national environmental management principles in chapter 1 of the

National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, states that:

"Environmental management must place people and their needs at the forefront

of its concern, and serve their physical, psychological, developmental, cultural

99

and social interests equitably. Development must be socially, environmentally

and economically sustainable. Sustainable development requires the

consideration of all relevant factors including that the disturbance of the

ecosystems and loss of biological diversity are avoided, or, where they cannot

be altogether avoided, are minimised and remedied." The National

Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, could be seen as the

beginning of this reform.

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, provides for

co-operative environmental governance by establishing principles for decision

making on matters affecting the environment, institutions that will promote co-

operative governance and procedures for co-ordinating environmental

functions exercised by government departments. Co-operative environmental

agreements imply that the Minister, municipalities and any person or

community can enter into an agreement to promote compliance to the National

Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998.

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998 is underpinned

by a set of principles, such as "polluter pays", "environmental justice", and

"waste minimisation", (see section 4.10) which could be used as a framework

for environmental management and decision making.

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, requires that

activities requiring authorisation or permission by law and those, which may

have a significant impact on the environment, must be considered, investigated,

and assessed prior to their implementation. The National Environmental

Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, has expanded liability in respect of

environmental matters substantially by including a chapter on compliance

enforcement and protection. It encompasses all forms of environmental

pollution, and contains sections on the control of emergency incidents, access

to information, recovery of costs and damages for rehabilitating the

environment and the protection of whistleblowers.

100

In terms of the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998,

employees can reveal information about serious threats to the environment,

resulting from their employers activities to statutory bodies and the media.

They are protected under legislation from dismissal and any disciplinary action

or prejudices emanating from the employer. Management needs to remember

that employees in general are becoming more aware of environmental

protection. Considering this awareness, management can no longer hide

environmental damages within the organisation's walls. In the event of a

conscientious employee reporting any environmental impacts to management,

it would be in the best interest of the organisation to address these concerns. In

the event of an employee not being satisfied with management response, the

information could be supplied to statutory authorities or the media with

impunity.

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, follows a

holistic approach as can be seen in section 24 b "environmental management

must be integrated, acknowledging that all elements of the environment are

linked and interrelated, and it must take into account the effects of decisions on

all aspects of the environment and all people in the environment by pursuing

the selection of the best practicable environmental option."

Emphasis is placed on a holistic approach, considering individual processes,

with their interrelationships and possible interactions or impacts on other

processes. Legislation requires from the developer to determine in advance if

his project might have a negative impact on the environment. Section (o) of

chapter 1 of the National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998,

states that "The environment is held in public trust for the people, the

beneficial use of environmental resources must serve the public interest and the

environment must be protected as the people's common heritage."

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Liability is extended through the National Environmental Management Act,

Act 107 of 1998 as is evident by the statement in chapter 7 "duty of care and

remediation of environmental damage" whereby liability is placed with the

responsible person(s) or organisation. This allows government officials to

rehabilitate land or do remedial work on polluted or degraded land recovering

the cost incurred from the individual or organisation, who caused the damage.

Liability is further extended through the introduction of life-cycle assessment

and cradle to grave responsibility as discussed under section 4.10.2.

According to these principles a person never loses the responsibility for its

actions. Life-cycle responsibility defines that the policies, programmes and

actions of organisations over the past century render them liable for the

environmental consequences. According to Barnard (1999:170) "liability

could extend to the actions undertaken for exploitation of minerals, building of

roads, and establishment of steel works, amongst others.

6.7 World-wide Environmental Actions

6.7.1 The Rio Declaration

From 3-14 June 1992 all governments came together in Rio de Janeiro to agree

on an agenda for the protection of the environment and its development during

the twenty first century. The goal of the Rio Declaration is to "establish a new

and equitable global partnership through the creation of new levels of co-

operation among States, key sectors of societies and people, working towards

international agreements which respect the interests of all and protect the

integrity of the global environmental and developmental system, recognising

the integral and interdependent nature of the Earth, our home" (SABS ISO

14004, 1996:25).

A blueprint called, Agenda 21 was drafted on how future development should

take place to ensure economic, social and environmental sustainability (Nel et

al., 2000:75). A document named "Caring for the Earth" is one of the most

102

important outcomes of this conference. This document stipulates what all

nations should do to stop the destruction of the earth, in order to ensure a future

for our children (Net et al., 2000:75).

It was decided at the Rio Declaration that even though governments have the

right to exploit natural resources in order to develop, they need to remember

that environmental protection forms an integral part of development (Net et al.,

2000:75). It was decided that through co-operation between countries

unsustainable practices should be eliminated. In Rio the need for public

participation was realised in conjunction with the need to implement

environmental legislation. Legislation regarding liability and compensation for

victims of pollution were implemented (Net et al., 2000:7). The adoption of

the precautionary approach, as part of the Rio Declaration has significant

impacts on environmental legislation. The precautionary approach states that if

you are not sure if something could have an impact on the environment it is

essential to take precautionary steps (Nel et al., 2000:8).

According to Nel et al., (2000:7-8) the following issues were addressed

through the Rio Declaration:

"Humans are at the centre of sustainable development.

.4) States have the right to exploit resources.

.4) The right to development must be sustainable.

Environmental protection forms an integral part of development.

.4) Eradicating poverty.

.4) Priority to developing countries.

Co-operation between states.

Elimination of unsustainable practices.

Strengthen capacity building.

Public participation.

Environmental legislation.

Open economic system.

Legislation regarding liability and compensation for victims of pollution.

103

Transboundary movement of substances or activities that degrades the

environment.

Adoption of precautionary approach.

Internationalisation of environmental costs.

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) as national instrument.

Inter-state notification of disasters.

Information transfer, re transboundary effects.

Role of women and the youth.

Role of indigenous people.

.:. Natural resources of oppressed people.

Rules governing the impacts of warfare.

==' Peace, development and environmental protection are indivisible.

=i) Resolution of environmental disputes."

Any organisation needs to ensure that the knowledge about environmental

legislation, environmental legal performance requirements and management

practices demanded by environmental law forms part of the organisation's

skills base. Ignorance of or indifference to the business implications of

environmental law could have serious repercussions.

It is essential to remember that environmental risk and liability leads to legal

risk and liability and as such can have a major impact on an organisation's

bottom line. Foreign trading, investing or funding agencies increasingly

demands sound environmental management practices, including compliance

with local environmental legal requirements before going into a business deal

with local organisations.

Visser (b) (2000:12) states that "environmental management forms part of the

strategic management system of all companies and organisations, involving

political, legal, technological, business, economic, social, cultural, historical,

natural and international aspects. Therefore it should be treated with the same

104

respect, care and diligence by management as those relating to financial,

quality, risk and manpower management."

6.7.2 The Basel Convention

During the third conference of the Basel Convention, the parties agreed to

amend the Convention by banning the export of hazardous waste from

countries, which are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation

and Development to developing countries. During February 1998 the fourth

Conference of Parties of the Basel Convention was held in Malaysia (Visser

(b), 2000). The focus of the fourth conference was on the control of

transboundary movements of hazardous waste and their disposal, emphasis was

placed on the need to ensure that waste is disposed of as close to the source as

possible (Visser (b), 2000).

6.7.3 The World Trade Organisation (WTO)

In 1994 Trade Ministers decided to develop a work programme on trade, which

would include the environment. A World Trade Organisation (WTO)

Committee on Trade and the Environment was established. According to Hall

(2000:3) this resulted in the preamble to the WTO agreement including

references to the objective of sustainable development. WTO members are

entitled to place national environmental objectives ahead of its obligation not

to create trade restrictions or impose discriminatory trade measures and

governments are allowed to implement precautionary measures to protect

human, animal and plant life (Hall, 2000:3).

The ISO Head Quarters (wwwa, 2000) states that they are in the process of

building a strategic partnership with the WTO "with the common goal of

promoting a free and fair global trading system." The political agreements

reached within this framework, requires underpinning by technical agreements

and ISO is being recognised to provide special technical support.

105

6.7.4 The Agreement on Trade, Development and Co-operation (1999).

Article 38 of the Agreement on Trade, Development and Co-operation between

South Africa and the European Community contains a broad commitment to

pursuing environmental issues. Article 38 states that

∎ "the parties will co-operate to pursue sustainable development and promote

the protection of the environment through, prevention of its deterioration

and the control of pollution;

the parties agree to improve the quality of the environment and work

together to combat global environmental problems;

special attention will be given to the development of capacity in

environmental management;

priorities will be assessed and the impact of past practices on the South

African environment addressed where possible; and

areas of co-operation will include urban development, the management of

wastes and dangerous chemicals, water quality control, the control of

pollution from industrial and other sources, water catchment management

and issues regarding the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions."

One of the objectives of this agreement is to back the efforts of South Africa to

restructure and modernise industry, under condition, which ensure

environmental protection, sustainable development and economic

empowerment (Hall, 2000:4). Hall (2000) suggested that organisations should

take the incorporation of environmental issues into their business activities

seriously if they wish to be competitive in the global economy.

6.8 Legal review according to SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

According to SABS ISO 14001 (1996:3) element 4.3.2 "The organisation shall

establish and maintain a procedure to identify and have access to legal and

other requirements to which the organisation subscribes, that are applicable to

the environmental aspects of its activities, products or services."

106

When an organisation does a legal review it is important to identify all legal

requirements in the Constitution, National legislation, National policies enacted

in law, Provincial legislation, Local authority by-laws and International laws

ratified in any host country the organisation might be doing business with

(Barnard et al., 1999:48). It is important to take note that permits,

authorisations, regulations, directives and degrees, common law and case law

can all have an impact on an organisation and as such the organisation must

comply to these as well (Barnard et al., 1999:49). In element 4.5.1 of SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) it is demanded that the organisation's performance against

legal requirements must be checked.

To maintain regulatory compliance SABS ISO 14004 (1996:10) states that "an

organisation should identify and understand regulatory requirements applicable

to its activities, products or services." It is essential to remember that

regulations can be in several forms such as those specific to the activity, to the

organisation's products or services, to the type of industry, general

environmental laws and, permits and licences.

According to Nel et al., (2000:52) a generic certification body such as the

South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) interpretation will be "compliance

to all relevant legislated and other requirements, National, Provincial and

Local, is a minimum requirement for certification" to the SABS ISO 14001

(1996) standard. Nel (2000:53) declares that exceptions are only possible if the

authorities have been informed of the non-compliance in writing, a corrective

action programme is in place and evidence is available that the authorities have

approved the corrective actions.

A paradigm shift is required to move from an enforcement-driven, compliance-

based environmental system to a performance-driven and management base

system. The basis for environment protection must move from clean-up and

107

control to anticipation and avoidance, this can be accomplished through the


According to Foreman (2000:1) the legal activities required by SABS ISO

14001 (1996) are:

"Make a policy commitment to comply with environmental law.

Identify and provide access to the laws, regulations and voluntary codes

relevant to your organisation's impacts and risks to the environment.

Interpret and apply these laws, regulations and codes to your organisation.

Evaluate and record your level of compliance with the laws, regulations

and codes."

Foreman (2000:2) lists the three most common pitfalls in achieving legal

compliance in an SABS ISO 14001 (1996) system as:

Top management, not being aware of the organisation's environmental

legal liabilities.

A list of laws is available at the organisation, but there is no clear

interpretation of how these laws apply to the specific activities of the

organisation.

Inadequate procedures to taking corrective actions if a law is broken and

which preventative steps should be taken to ensure that the law is not

broken in the future.

108

Chapter Seven

The Need for and Benefits of an Environmental Management System

7.1 Introduction

The fourth objective of this research study is to determine if there exist a need

for the implementation of environmental management systems, and if so could

any benefits be derived from the implementation of an environmental

management system. The need for the implementation of an environmental

management system could be as a result of legal requirements, or due to social

demand or even customer demand.

De Villiers and Visser (2000) quotes a study done by the University of Pretoria

to establish if there is a need for the implementation of an environmental

management system and where the driving force for this is vested. For the

purpose of this research study the survey will be used to determine if the

implementation of an environmental management system is essential to

organisations.

7.2 What type of environmental information do people need?

The University of Pretoria did a study at a multinational organisation to

determine what type of information people is interested in receiving. The

survey divided the organisation in four groups namely:

Stakeholders,

Financial Services,

Employees and National Governmental Organisations (NGO's), and

Interested and Affected parties.

109

Individuals were asked to list the information they would like to receive

according to importance.

Table 7.1 is a summary of the research findings and according to these, the

survey showed that at all levels environmental records are gaining importance

and as a result environmental performance is becoming a critical issue for

organisations. The questionnaire included a Likert scale asking individuals to

indicate the degree of their agreement or disagreement with specific

statements. According to Hawkins et al., (1995:626) to enable analyses of a

Likert scale, for each response category a numerical value must be assigned.

In this instance a seven-point numerical value was used, where zero is low in

importance and seven is high in importance.

Figure 7.1: Bar chart presentation of the importance of availability of environmental related information.

Source: De Villiers and Visser, (2000).

110

Table 7.1: Survey research analysis — Relative importance of types of information.

Financial Services & Stakeholders

Business strategy

Employees NCO"s

EnVironntental Record Employees Health and

Safety records

Price of product Management

development

Employees Health and

Safety records

Hedging policy Environmental Record Environmental

representation on Board

Balance sheet Liquidity of stock Business strategy

Management

development

Research &

Development

expenditure

Number of outside

Directors on the board

Liquidity of stock Political risks Management

development

Environmental Record

Representatives of

Environment and

Labour on the Board of

Directors

Representative of

Labour on Board of

Directors

Employee's Health &

Safety records. Relative risk of job

Research &

Development

Expenditure

Number of outside

Directors on the Board

P/E Ratio

Technical analysis of

stock


111

The bar chart used in figure 7.1 is a graphical presentation on how important

the four groups' rated the availability of information related to an

organisation's commitment to:

sustainable development,

,=. the provision of environmental management system benchmarks,

the conducting of environmental management systems audits by a third

party,

the estimation of environmental expenditure and

.:: possible closure reclamation costs.

From the bar chart in figure 7.1 it is clear that there is an increased demand

from employees and Non-Government Organisations (NGO's) to be provided

with information on environmental management system benchmarks and audits

and they link this to sustainable development.

Figure 7.2: Bar chart presentation on the importance of comparative information and participation for employees.

Source: De Villiers and Visser, (2000)

112

The bar chart in figure 7.2 will demonstrate that employees not only see their

own organisation's information as important but want to know how they

compare with other organisations. They want to participate in the setting of

goals and objectives and see these as highly important.

The perception exists that the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is

something that is forced down on employees by management. Surprisingly the

research found that in this organisation it is the employees and the NGO's, who

rate the meeting of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) requirements as important. This

might be due to the awareness training provided by the organisation to their

employees and the society they operate in. The survey did not determine the

level of awareness training provided but if the conclusion is accurate it could

be seen as a plus point for the organisation.

Figure 7.3: Bar chart presentation of the importance of commitment to social responsibility.


The bar chart in figure 7.3 provides the reader with a graphical presentation of

how the four sample groups rated the importance of commitment to social

responsibility, the meeting of SABS ISO 14001 (1996), providing details of

113

environmental plans and providing information on pending legislation. From

this it is quit clear that employees want to participate and depends on

management to provide them with relevant information.

7.3 Survey analysis on ethical investments.

Table 7.2: Summary of the research results.

Portfolio Auditors Directors

Managers Average Average

Average

Environmental Disclosure

More voluntary disclosure 4.0 4.2 4.0

More compulsory disclosure 3.3 3.5 4.1

Part of annual statements 3.6 3.9 4.2

More financial environmental

information 3.9 3.8 4.1

More non-financial

environmental information 3.8 3.9 4.2

Specific Disclosure

Overview of environmental

risks/impacts 4.1 4.1 4.5

Environmental policy 4.0 4.3 4.0

Measurable targets 3.7 3.7 4.0

Performance on targets 3.8 3.7 3.9

Environmental costs 3.6 3.7 4.0

Environmental audit 3.4 3.2 4.0


A survey done in 1995, by the University of Pretoria's Accounting

Department, requested Fund Managers of Unit Trusts to complete a

questionnaire on ethical investing. The questionnaire was sent to Auditors,

114

Directors and Portfolio Managers, in an attempt to determine if they would

want environmental information to form part of annual fmancial statements,

and if the availability of this information would influence them in investment

decision making.

A scale of 3 to 5 was used, where 3 would indicate no preference and 5 would

indicate that everyone answered "strongly agreed". Table 7.2 provides the

average weight for the three groups and the bar chart in figure 7.5 is a graphical

presentation of these results. Ninety percent of the sample population

responded that they would like to have environmental issues reported as part of

the annual reports. While seventy-five percent admitted that the availability of

environmental information would influence their investment decisions.

Table 7.3: Summary of survey responses.

Auditors Directors Portfolio

NI anagers 4 )A. Positive '1/4 Positive

"A. Positive

Environmental Disclosure More volunt. disclosure 78 89 84

More com ulso disclosure 57 58 90

Part of annual statements 70 84 89

More financial environmental information

78 74 79

More non-financial

environmental information 74 89 89

Specific Disclosure Overview of environmental

risks/im . acts 87 89 100

Environmental • olicy 87 95 84

Measurable targets 74 63 74

Performance on targets 78 68 74

Environmental costs 74 74 79

Environmental audit 57 37 84


115

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Table 7.3 and the bar chart in figure 7.5 presents the same information but as

the percentage of individuals who responded positively to the questionnaire.

From this study the conclusion could be drawn that environmental performance

of an organisation can play a major role in the availability of financing

opportunities. Organisations might find that their annual reports would have to

provide environmental information in the not too distant future. To enable

organisations to provide environmental fmancial statements an environmental

accounting system must be in place and would preferably be linked to the

organisations fmancial system and environmental management system.

Figure 7.5: Bar chart presentation of positive responses Source: De Villiers and Visser, (2000).

117

7.4 Benefits of an Environmental Management System

According to Chalzistergou (1998:14) a study by KPMG (a world-renown,

consulting agency) to trace the development of environmental management

systems in South Africa highlighted some of the benefits, problems and trends

for future development. Organisations in the process of implementing an

environmental management system were targeted and out of one hundred and

twelve organisations seventy two percent responded. Organisations see

improved public relations as one of the benefits of an environmental

management system, seeing that it leads to improved environmental

performance by organisations and hence an improved environment.

Financial benefits of implementing SABS ISO 14001 (1996) can be achieved

by a reduction in insurance premiums. Nel et al., (2000:6) suggested that at the

same time the corporate image and market share of the organisation is

enhanced. Third party verification of conformance to SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

ensures continued access to critical markets. Through the improved control the

organisation is capable of reducing their liability and risk and demonstrates due

diligence. Seeing that investors are increasingly focusing on green portfolios

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification may facilitate easier access to capital or

even ensure a better resale value of a company's assets (Barnard et al., 1999:7).

Benefits that could be derived from environmental reporting are; that it allows

for direct communication of important information to external stakeholders, it

demonstrates corporate commitment to environmental protection and it could

be used to illustrate the translation of environmental commitment into specific

objectives and actions. A window of opportunity is now being opened for the

production of environmentally linked products. Making use of an activity

based costing system it is possible to improve management and cost control,

which could result in cost savings (De Villiers and Visser, 2000).

118

In addition to the above the implementation of a sound environmental

management system could benefit the organisation by meeting the approval of

politically minded organisations and the avoidance of trade barriers. Internal

management methods can be improved and possible risks and liabilities can be

reduced. The demonstration of commitment to take responsible care for the

environment can improve relations with the community and government

bodies. The improvement of environmental performance can result in a

committed workforce working together to improve the business process, which

will result in savings of raw material and waste removal costs.

From the bar chart in figure 7.6 it is clear that the greatest benefit is legal

compliance, furthermore the research showed that SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

was used by ninety seven percent of the organisations as a basis for

environmental management systems (Chalzistergou, 1998:14).

119

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environmental management system:

"Can be used as a general management system containing much more than

environmental information.

, 2. Provides a framework for easy access to environmental management

information.

.:) Can be used as part of the organisation's marketing strategy.

.:. Allows an organisation to compete on the international market.

Enables an organisation to gain the required experience for the time when

government will demand an environmental management system as a

compliance requirement.

It ensures that management address environmental issues in a systematic,

organised manner.

4,. Serves as an early warning system to alert the organisation of potential non-

compliance aspects and issues.

Monitoring provides the organisation with a clear perspective of their

environmental performance.

4:) Allows an organisation to integrate different sets of information to create a

holistic picture of the organisations impact on the environment.

4:> Harmonised decision-making is promoted through the integration of

information related to all activities covered by the environmental

management system.

.;) It enables clear role clarity and each employee can appreciate his

contribution to the successful functioning of the organisation.

Due to the fact that monitoring and auditing plays a major role management

will at all times be aware of the status of their environmental performance.

Should be a management tool working for the organisation and not vice

versa.

=; South African businesses are being integrated into the global village,

forcing organisations to compete on an international level. A sound

environmental management system enables an organisation to confront

121

competition in the environmental performance field head-on and to

demonstrate our competitiveness based on international standards and

practices."

7.5 Benefits from an Eco-Management system

The following benefits can be derived from an Eco-Management System

according to the Quality Network (wwwd, 1996):

7.5.1 Cost Savings (wwwd, 1996)

All opportunities for cost savings must be evaluated, the most common benefits

could be derived from a review of resource and energy utilisation and its

efficiency, forcing management to consider alternative energy sources and cost

effectiveness. Minimisation of waste can ensure cost reduction for the disposal

thereof.

7.5.2 Customer requirements (wwwd, 1996)

The range and diversity of customer requirements and expectancy are

constantly changing. Customers prefer to deal with suppliers, which can

demonstrate positive environmental performance.

7.5.3 Corporate image (wwwd, 1996)

The ability to demonstrate a responsible environmental attitude can improve

the image of the organisation ensuring better relations with all stakeholders.

Adverse publication concerning an organisation's environmental performance

could be detrimental.

122

7.5.4 Legislation (wwwd, 1996)

A sound environmental management system ensures recognition of the

requirements and compliance with them will ensure that fines are avoided.

7.5.5 Investment (wwwd, 1996)

Investors are increasingly moving to green portfolios. For an organisation

seeking additional investment capital it is sensible to ensure the widest scope

and this is improved by a demonstrably sound environmental performance.

7.5.6 Insurance (wwwd, 1996)

Insurance companies are aware of the risk to their policies from poor

environmental performance of the organisations they insure. Organisations

with a sound and effective environmental management system are able to

demonstrate that they pose less risk to the Insurer Company and create a

powerful negotiating tool for lower premiums. Some insurance companies

require an environmental audit of organisations prior to agreeing cover.

7.5.7 Marketing opportunities (wwwd, 1996)

Sound environmental performance will ensure the widest possible market for

an organisation's products or service.

7.6 Benefits linked to the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an integrated environmental management system

According to Nel et al., (2000:4) the following benefits could be linked to the

implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996):

"Technology development and transfer.

,;. Improved industry-government relationships.

Improved environmental performance and state of the environment.

123

Meeting customer's environmental expectations.

Maintaining good public and community relations and enhancing

community goodwill.

Satisfying investor criteria and improved access to capital.

a• Increase world attention on environmental protection.

Assurance that an organisation is managing its liability in a suitable fashion

to protect shareholders interests.

Certification to environmental management system standards may become

a condition of doing business.

Improvement of an organisation's environmental performance through

reviews and auditing.

Increased public pressure for organisation's to provide performance

information.

Improved internal management methods.

Government requirements of incorporating an environmental management

system."

124

Chapter Eight

Management Response to Employee Participation

8.1 Introduction

Due to legislation demanding participation of all interested and affected parties

management must accept that more people will be involved in environmental

decision making. The fifth objective of the research survey is to determine

what management should do to ensure that all interested and affected parties

has the required knowledge and skills to ensure that they take informed

decisions.

Element 4.4.2 of SABS ISO 14001 (1996:3) states " The organisation shall

identify training needs. It shall require that all personnel, whose work may

create a significant impact upon the environment, have received appropriate

training. It shall establish and maintain procedures to make its employees or

members of each relevant function and level aware of:

the importance of conformance with the environmental policy and

procedures and with the requirements of the environmental management

system;

the significant environment impacts, actual or potential, of their work

activities and the environmental benefits of improved personal

performance;

their roles and responsibilities in achieving conformance with the

environmental policy and procedures and with the requirements of the

environmental management system, including emergency preparedness and

response requirements;

the potential consequences of departure from specified operating

procedures.

125

Personnel performing the tasks which can cause significant environmental

impacts shall be competent on the basis of appropriate education, training

and/or experience."

Nel et al., (2000:10.6) said that it is important to note that "personnel" in SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) is broader than employees and include sub-contractors,

temporary workers, visitors, customers and suppliers where a lack of training

could lead to significant environmental impacts.

When an organisation starts to develop environmental training modules, it is

essential that they identify the specific training needs and then develop the

training modules to address these needs. The training course must demonstrate

to employees the importance of conformance to the organisation's

environmental policy. They need to understand the impacts associated with

their job descriptions and the benefits of taking precautionary steps (Barnard et

al., 1999:13).

8.2 Environmental awareness

Awareness does not require in-depth knowledge, but a basic understanding.

The key role players in creating awareness and building motivation for

employees are top management. They need to explain the organisation's

environmental values and communicate their commitment to the environmental

policy to their employees. An environmental management system can only be

transformed from a paperwork exercise into an effective process by the

commitment of individual people in the context of shared environmental

values.

Each employee in an organisation needs to understand the importance of

achieving environmental objectives and targets, and be encouraged to accept

their responsibility and accountability for the possible significant impact their

actions might have on the environment. According to SABS ISO 14004

126

Environmental Issues - EM 1

Environmental Law - EM 2

EMS ISO 14001 - EM 3

Environmental Audit - EM 4

Environmental Environmental Other- EM 5 Representative

CORPORATE STRUCI1URE

(1996:14) "Motivation to continually improve can be enhanced when

employees are recognised for achieving environmental objectives and targets

and encouraged to make suggestions that can lead to improved environmental

performance."

A training and awareness programme is needed for the following target groups

(SABS ISO 14004 (1996:14) figure 8.1):

g* Environmental Management System Representative.

..i:, Trainers with special emphasis on competence.

.,

•

Senior management.

.,

•

Middle management.

Operational level.

' Contractors and suppliers.

Figure 8.1: Generic training and awareness model for environmental management.

Source: Barnard et al., (1999:10).

127

A generic training and awareness model as can be seen in figure 8.1

demonstrates the amount of awareness and competence training required at the

different levels of an organisation. From this it is clear that all levels are

involved but the higher one goes in the structure the more awareness and

competence is required. This makes sense, considering the fact that an

environmental management system is an integrated management system and

management normally has the responsibility for decision-making and they are

held accountable. It is important to note that an organisation must provide

relevant environmental training to suppliers and contractors.

According to SABS ISO 14004 (1996:16) when management evaluates an

organisation's level of environmental awareness they need to determine how

top management established, reinforced and communicated organisational

commitment to the environmental policy. The extent to which employees do

understand, accept and share the values of the organisation must be determined

and to what extent do shared environmental values ensure environmentally

responsible actions. A policy must be put into place to recognise an

employee's environmental achievements.

Management needs to determine the knowledge and skills required achieving

environmental objectives, and taking these into consideration during personnel

selection, recruitment, training, skills development and ongoing education

(SABS ISO 14004, 1996:17). It is essential that all personnel within an

organisation receive appropriate training to ensure the achievement of

environmental policies, targets and objectives. To enable employees to

perform their tasks in an efficient and competent manner, they should have an

appropriate knowledge base, which includes training in the methods and skills

they require and knowledge of the impact incorrect activities could have on the

environment.

128

It is the responsibility of the organisation to ensure that contractors working on

the organisation's premises have the required knowledge and skills to ensure

that they act in an environmentally responsible manner.

Organisations must ensure that employees have appropriate and current

knowledge of regulatory requirements, internal standards and the

organisation's policies and objectives, this could only be done through

education and training (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:17). The level and detail of

training vary according to the task.

Figure 8.2: Elements of a training programme. Source: Barnard et al., (1999:17).

As can be seen in figure 8.2, training programmes generally starts with the

identification of the employees training needs and the development of a

training plan to address the defined needs (SABS ISO 14004, 1996:17). The

129

plan should be verified to ensure conformance of the training programme to

regulatory or organisational requirements. Now the training of target employee

groups can begin, it is essential to keep documentation of training received and

to evaluate the training received by employees for effectiveness. The elements

of a training programme as discussed are graphically presented in figure 8.2.

Table 8.1: Types of environmental training.

1 y pe of training Audience

Senior management.

Purpose

To gain commitment

and alignment to the

organisation's

environmental policy.

Raising awareness of

the strategic

importance of

environment

management.

Raising general

environmental

awareness.

All employees.

To gain commitment to

the environmental

policy, objectives and

targets of the

organisation and instil a

sense of individual

responsibility.

Skills enhancement.

Employees with

environmental

responsibilities.

To improve

performance in specific

areas of the

organisation.

Compliance

Employees whose

actions can affect

compliance.

To ensure regulatory

and internal

requirements for

training are met.

Source: SABS ISO 14004 (1996:19).

When an organisation attempts to identify training needs it is important for

management, not only to look at their own staff generating possible impacts

130

but also contractors working on their site. Consideration should be given to

general awareness needs, job specific skills, emergency response skills and

special emphasis placed on providing environmental management system

representative and auditors with the required skills. Training modules should

be developed to make employees aware of the importance to conform to

policies, the impacts associated with their jobs and the benefits associated with

taking precaution. Training modules should address the roles and

responsibilities of employees under normal conditions, during emergencies and

the consequences of deviating from planned arrangements.

Management needs to consider how the organisation is going to identify

environmental training needs, how the training needs of specific job functions

are going to be analysed, and how training will be documented and tracked. A

system must be implemented to ensure that training is developed, reviewed and

modified as needed. Table 8.1 is an example of the type of environmental

training, an organisation should provide, and the target audience it is aimed at.

The principles of environmental management training are to:

ensure competency,

.4. obtain management commitment,

.4> source adequate funds,

4> allocate sufficient development and training time, and

.4. ensure that training is site specific.

The key success factors for environmental training are to design it for specific

audiences, to establish clear objectives and to ensure that the training is tailor

made according to the culture of the organisation.

131

Chapter Nine

The Impact of Liability, Accountability, Responsibility and Authority

9.1 Introduction

The final objective of this research study was to determine the impact of

liability, accountability, responsibility and authority on individual employees in

an organisation. According to SABS ISO 14001 (1996) element 4.4.1 (1996:3)

"Roles, responsibility and authorities shall be defined, documented and

communicated in order to facilitate effective environmental management.

Management shall provide resources essential to the implementation and

control of the environmental management system. Resources include human

resources, technology and financial resources. The organisation's top

management shall appoint specific management representative(s) who,

irrespective of other responsibilities, shall have defined roles, responsibilities

and authority for ensuring that environmental management system

requirements are established, implemented and maintained in accordance with

SABS ISO 14001 (1996)." The objective of this section in SABS ISO 14001

(1996) is to ensure that authority, skills and resources are provided to deliver

objectives and targets.

9.2 Why should roles, responsibility and authority be defined?

The reason why roles, responsibility and authority needs to be clearly defined

could be assigned to the fact that an environmental management systems is an

integrated system, which results in horizontal integration at all departments of

an organisation, such as operations, production, marketing, sales and contracts.

SABS ISO 14004 (1996:15) clearly states that all levels of employees "should

132

be accountable, within the scope of their responsibilities, for environmental

performance in support of the overall environmental management system."

In defining roles, responsibilities, authority and liability management must

determine who needs to do what (Barnard et al., 1999:12). All tasks must be

identified and the possible impact it might have on the environment.

According to Barnard et al., (1999:15) roles, responsibilities, authority and

liability could be documented by means of job descriptions, work instructions

or operational procedures. It is essential to ensure that the performance criteria

forms part of the documented system.

Vertical integration could be accomplished in an environmental management

system by assigning specific roles and responsibilities to specific positions,

such as the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), at corporate

level, business unit management and all staff levels in the organisation. SABS

ISO 14004 (1996:16) provides management with an example of what the

responsibility should be at the different levels in the hierarchy of an

organisation.

Even though Table 9.1 could be seen as a possible approach to assign

appropriate responsibilities it should be recognised that organisational

structures differ from organisation to organisation, and each organisation needs

to understand and define environmental responsibilities based upon their own

work processes.

The environmental management system of an organisation may cross many

functional and organisational lines as depicted in figure 9.1. Therefore it is

essential to determine how the integration of the environmental management

function will be established in an organisation.

133

Table 9.1: Typical responsibilities of the different levels in an organisation.

Environmental

responsibilities.

Establish overall direction

'Fypical person(s) responsible

President, CEO, Board of directors

Develop environment policy President, CEO, Chief Environmental

Manager

Develop environment objectives,

targets and programmes Relevant Managers

Monitor overall environmental

management system performance Chief Environmental Manager

Assure regulatory compliance Senior Operating Manager

Ensure continual improvement All managers

Identification of customers'

expectations Sales and marketing staff

Identify suppliers' expectations Purchasers or buyers

Develop and maintain accounting

procedures Finance/accounting managers

Comply with defined procedures All staff

Source: SABS ISO 14004 (1996:16).

134

Research Engineering Manufacturing Logistics Marketing

Figure 9.1: The cross-functional processes of Environmental Management Systems


9.3 The RACI technique

The RACI technique as discussed by Barnard et al., (1999:17) could be seen as

a practical help with the assignment of roles, responsibilities and

accountabilities. In the RACI chart management can assign responsibility (R),

Accountability (A), who must be Consulted (C) and who must be Informed (I).

Responsibility charting delineates key activities or decisions associated with a

project or process and examine the roles of all individual or groups involved

(Barnard et al., 1999:19). It can be used as a diagnostic tool and often

introduces the concept of accountability. More than one individual can have

responsibility for an activity, but the degree of responsibility assigned to each

of them is determined by the individual who is accountable for the task or

activity

Accountability is assigned to the individual who needs to determine if an

activity should take place or not, he should have the authority and full veto

135

power for the activity. According to Barnard et al., (1999:20) it is essential to

"clarify the levels of accountability and to distinguish between management

accountability and operational accountability." For each activity only one

individual can be assigned accountability and hand in hand with accountability

goes authority. An individual cannot be accountable and have no power of

authority.

The RACI chart has a section for consulting with others (Barnard et al.,

1999:22). These are the individuals who must be consulted prior to a fmal

decision or action. "Consult" implies a two-way communication process. At

the same time there are individuals who must be informed of decisions or

actions that has been taken, as they in turn need to take action or make

decisions based on the output. According to Barnard et al., (1999:23) "Inform"

implies a one-way communication process; in other words people need to

know but cannot change the decision.

Table 9.2 provides the reader with an example of how a RACI chart could be

used in an organisation. Making use of this tool enables each individual to see

what his responsibility is and who he must consult before taking action or

making a decision as well as who must be informed of the actions or decisions

taken.

Table 9.2: A typical RACI chart


The advantage of the RACI chart is that it is not a rigid system, if the terms do

not translate into the language or culture of an organisation, a substitute could

be used. It is essential to ensure that all participants in the responsibility

136

charting process agree to the terms and definitions thereof, when developing a

system to suit the specific organisation.

9.4 The impact of liability

The National Environmental Management Act, Act 107 of 1998, states in

section 28 that:

"(1) Every person who causes, has caused or may cause significant pollution

or degradation of the environment must take reasonable measures to

prevent such pollution or degradation from occurring, continuing or

recurring, or, in so far as such harm to the environment is authorised by

law or cannot reasonably be avoided or stopped, to minimise and rectify

such pollution or degradation of the environment.

(2) Without limiting the generality of the duty in subsection (1), the

persons on whom subsection (1) imposes an obligation to take

reasonable measures, include an owner of land or premises, a person in

control of land or premises or a person who has a right to use the land

or premises on which or in which-

any activity or process is or was performed or undertaken;

or any other situation exists,

which causes, has caused or is likely to cause significant pollution or

degradation of the environment.

(3) The measures required in terms of subsection (1) may include measures

to-

investigate, assess and evaluate the impact on the environment;

inform and educate employees about the environmental risks of their

work and the manner in which their tasks must be performed in order to

avoid causing significant pollution or degradation of the environment;

cease, modify or control any act, activity or process causing the pollution

or degradation;

137

contain or prevent the movement of pollutants or the causant of

degradation;

eliminate any source of the pollution or degradation; or

remedy the effects of the pollution or degradation."

Visser (d) (2000) interprets this section of the act as follows: "Management

has a duty of care and remediation of environmental damage. This duty is

reflected in the following provisions: in sub-section (1) the duty is imposed

with respect to the historical practices, current practices as well as future

operations of the company. Sub-section (2) puts the responsibility and

therefore also the accountability and liability on company management as well

as all company staff involved in the planning, design and operations of the

operational activities. The measures required include a wide range of options,

from which management must select the most appropriate for implementation"

(Visser (d) 2000).

Visser (d) (2000) warns that those taking the decision regarding the measures

must also accept the responsibility and liability for its eventual success and any

environmental consequences flowing from such a decision. Therefore it is

essential that roles, authority and responsibility is clearly spelled out, coupled

with these goes personal liability.

138

Chapter Ten

Research Findings

10.1 Introduction

A process of triangulation was used for this research study. Secondary data, in

the form of surveys done prior was discussed in chapter seven. The

information in chapter 3 to 6 and chapter 8 is based on literature reviews and

personal experience. The decision was made to use qualitative research and

therefore the questionnaire was sent to the individuals selected through

purposive sampling due to the fact that they are responsible for implementing

and maintaining the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) environmental management

system at nine plants in the Samancor group. This resulted in a homogeneous

group of respondents with the required level of knowledge on the SABS ISO

14001 (1996).

The questionnaire was sent via electronic mail with a covering letter explaining

the purpose of the research. Each individual was asked to please respond to the

questionnaire at the Samancor Environmental Committee meeting held prior to

receiving the questionnaire. Seven of these indiiiduals responded to the

request, resulting in a 77.78% response rate. Even though only two out of the

seven respondents wanted their identity to be kept secret, in this section all the

respondents will be referred to-by the number of the response as in AppendiX

B.

The questionnaire consisted of eleven questions. These were mostly open-

ended questions asking the respondent to provide explanations and detailed

answers. Each question could be linked to one of the objectives or to the aim

of the dissertation. The original questionnaire and copies of all the responses

are available in Appendix B.

139

10.2 Questionnaire analysis

In the questionnaire analysis the questions will be referred back to the

objectives stated in Chapter One section 1.4. Each objective will be discussed

using the answers from respondent to questions linked to the specific objective.

Table 10.1: The link between the questionnaire and the aim and objectives

Objective

No. 1

Question

No. 1 and 2

No. 2 No. 3

No. 3 No. 4

No. 4 No. 5 & 6

No. 5 No. 8

No. 6 No. 9 and 10

Aim No. 11

Please note:

,;. Question no. 7 focus on specific impacts of the implementation of SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) on Samancor and Billiton.

This question will be dealt with separately

10.2.10bjective No 1

The first objective was to determine what SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an

integrated environmental management system consists of. The literature

review was done in Chapter Four. Question 1 and 2 of the questionnaire asked

the respondents to list the main components and to motivate why they think

these are the most important. Table 10.2 is a combination of all the answers

obtained from the questionnaires.

Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B) sees SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as "a framework

for the establishment of an environmental management system", while

140

respondent no. 3 (Appendix B) suggested that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as a

whole are important and not just certain sections. According to the results it

seems that continuous improvement and environmental planning are the most

important components. Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) perceives SABS ISO

14001 (1996) as a system that would enable "the compiling of an invoice of

`environmentally unfriendly' substances, processes, products, and raw

materials or other activities for each section or department, thus identifying all

the aspects".

Table 10.2: The most im ortant components of SABS 0 14001 (1996

Response Management Commitment

Total 2

Identification of Environmental matters 1

Legal compliance 2

Document control 1

Continual improvement 3

Environmental management system 1

International Standard 1

Policy 2

Planning 3

Measurement and evaluation 2

Aspects and Impacts 2

Targets and objectives 1

Training 1

Risk management 1

Source: Questionnaire Responses in Appendix B.

Respondent no. 2 suggests that these should be attended to through; "the risk

rating of each aspect identified, and their classification according to level of

significance, compiling detailed action plans to improve on the mitigating

141

factors associated with each aspect" and the efficient management of these

detailed plans.

Figure 10.1 is a bar chart presentation of the summary of the answer on

question no. 1 where respondents were asked to list the most important

components of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B) makes a valid statement in saying that; "SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) is a management system, and not some form of

environmental master plan or environmental solution in itself." From this

statement it is evident that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) in itself cannot solve

environmental problems, it depends on the effective management of the

system.

Conclusion

According to figure 4.2 management commitment is the first step in developing

an environmental management system. Linked to management commitment is

the policy, which should demonstrate the vision, strategy and objectives of the

organisation. Table 10.1 list both management commitment and the policy as

important to the respondents. Figure 4.5 is an overview of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) and components such as; continual improvement, commitment, policy,

planning, targets, objectives, legal requirements, environmental management

programmes, impacts, training document control, which all forms part of

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) forms part of the respondents lists which are

combined in Table 10.1. From this it is evident that the respondents feel that

all the components of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is of importance to the

organisation.

142

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14001 are, the responses received definitely identified the components listed

during the literature review in chapter four, therefore the first objective of this .

research study has been validated.

10.2.2 Objective No. 2

Objective no. 2 was to determine if there is a link between SABS ISO 14001

(1996) and management decision making. In Chapter Five management

decision making was discussed and the link to the plan-do-check-act cycle

(figure 4.5) of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) was considered. The third question in

the questionnaire asked respondents if there is a link between management

decision making and SABS ISO 14001 (1996). They were requested to name

such a link if they feel that there is one.

All the respondents felt that there is a definite link, some even felt that there is

more than one link. Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B) feels if "management is

genuinely committed to an environmentally acceptable operation, SABS ISO

14001 (1996) will provide all the necessary indicators to highlight problem

areas where attention is required." According to respondent no 2 (Appendix B)

the link is vested in the eight management or business principles namely:

.4 "Customer (environment) focused organisation.

,:. Leadership.

Involvement of people.

.:, Process approach.

System approach to management.

Continual improvement.

.::. Factual approach to decision making.

.2. Mutually beneficial supplier (Interested and affected parties) relationships."

Respondent no 4, states that ISO14001 provides a framework for management

in which to make decisions. One of the elements in SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

144

requires that certain decisions related to environmental management must be

documented. This implies that the results or effects of environmental

management decisions are monitored, evaluated and reviewed.

Conclusion

The plan-do-check-act cycle presented in figure 4.5 provides management with

the tools to identify the gaps between customer expectations and what the

organisation is actually delivering. It provides a framework for setting

priorities and developing an action plan to close these gaps. Management must

implement the action plan and then check the outcome of the implemented

changes and evaluate them for effectiveness. After the evaluation process is

completed the results must be communicated and the system redesigned to

reflect the changes. The answer of Respondent no. 2 enforces the plan-do-

check-act cycle (figure 4.5) by listing the eight management components.

Respondent no. 2 said that an organisation must have a customer focus,

allowing for involvement of people, following a process or system approach,

which would result in continuous improvement, and allows for informed

decision making by management. The conclusion can be drawn that objective

no. 2 has been validated and that there is a defmite link between management

decision making the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996). It is

essential to remember that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is an integrated

environmental management system and therefore should be used by

management.

10.2.3. Objective No. 3

Objective no. 3 was aimed at determining how SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could

be used to ensure environmental legal compliance. Environmental liability and

some of the different environmental laws were discussed in chapter six. The

fourth question asked respondents how SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be used

to ensure environmental legal compliance in Samancor. Only one of the

145

respondents felt that no environmental management system could ensure

environmental legal compliance.

Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B) said "part of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) requires

the identification and updating of environmental related legal requirements."

He feels that if management is committed, the required action will be initiated,

without this commitment it could be turned into a paper exercise or 'window

dressing' in an attempt to maintain SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification.

The general feeling was that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification demands

that all environmental laws should be identified and a register of these laws

must be available. Respondent no. 5 (Appendix B) highlights that SABS ISO

14001 (1996) certification does not require full compliance but at least a well-

developed action plan towards compliance and adherence to the principle of

continuous improvement

Conclusion

From the responses received it is obvious that the implementation of SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) will ensure that organisations have a more focussed

approach to environmental legislation and are forced to take cognisance of new

and changed legislation. There is no guarantee though that the implementation

of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will ensure environmental legal compliance. The

objective was to determine how the implementation of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) could be used to ensure legal compliance and the conclusion is that it

can only provide a framework but cannot ensure compliance.


In objective no. 4 an attempt is made to determine if there really is a need for

the implementation of an environmental management system and if any

benefits could be derived from it. The questionnaire dealt with these issues in

question no. five and six and therefore these will be addressed under two

146

separate headings. In chapter five the reasons for using an environmental

management system to address environmental issues was discussed.

10.2.5 Is there a need for the implementation of an environmental management system?

The questionnaire dealt with this issue in question five asking the respondents

if they consider the implementation of an environmental management system a

necessity for Samancor. Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B) replied that an

environmental management system is essential to ensure the maintenance of an

environmentally acceptable operation. He states that "an environmentally

acceptable operation is necessary, firstly due to the company's social

obligations, and secondly, because the developing legislation will enforce

compliance at some stage." He feels that the longer an organisation waits to

implement an environmental management systems the costlier it is going to be.

Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) feels that it is required due to the nature of the

final products and the emphasis placed on environmental matters from various

sources such as our customers. He thinks that if Samancor does not implement

sound systems for environmental management the organisation will lose

market share, especially if competitors can ensure customers that their

operations are environmental friendly. He rates the importance of management

of the environment on the same level as management of safety, health and

quality.

According to respondent no. 3 (Appendix B) the implementation of an

environmental management system provides confidence to customers,

particularly when competing in the international market

According to respondent no. 4 (Appendix B) the implementation of an

environmental management systems is a shareholders requirement at

Samancor. He feels that it allows the organisation to keep track of legal

requirements.

147

Respondent no.5 (Appendix B) states that the implementation of an

environmental management system "provides a structured approach towards

environmental management and gives the customer assurance of responsible

actions in terms of environmental protection during all phases of the

production process."

10.2.6 Advantages and disadvantages of the implementation of an environmental management system

Chapter seven deals with the advantages and disadvantages linked to the

implementation of an environmental management system, such as SABS ISO

14001 (1996). The perceptions of Samancor employees was tested in question

six by asking the respondents to list the actual advantages and disadvantages

derived from the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

Table 10.3: Advantages associated with the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

Advantages

Better conditions for the workers and people living around our factories.

Complying with environmental legislation, constitution and international

conventions can be used as a sales tool.

.4. Less waste, due to control of resource usage such as water and raw

materials.

.4) Better designing of facilities — more energy efficient.

Positive publicity / community relations.

.4) Necessary for long term survival of company.

Structured approach towards environmental management.

Ensures a focus on legal compliance and provides a system to manage it.

Adherence to the principle of continuous improvement.

.4) Auditing by an independent third party.

Risk measurement and proof of environmental compliance.

Source: Questionnaire responses (Appendix B).

148

Table 10.3 is a combined list of the advantages and Table 10.4 address the

disadvantages as perceived by the respondents.

Judging the amount of advantages listed in relation to the disadvantages it

seems that at Samancor there is a perception that the use of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) as an integrated environmental management system would allow the

organisation to reap more benefits. The advantages outweigh the

disadvantages by far.

Table 10.4: Disadvantages associated with the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

Disadvantages

Can be costly at the offset.

More pressure on managing all the activities — scope becomes wider.

Capital projects normally large and makes little direct positive impact on

bottom line.

The cost of having skilled personnel to implement and maintain the

system.

Source: Questionnaire responses (Appendix B).

Conclusion

From the responses received and the survey done by De Villiers and Visser

(2000) discussed in chapter seven it can be concluded that even though the

implementation of an environmental management system might be a costly

process more advantages than disadvantages could be derived from it. From

the fact that legislation will be enforced by government and that organisations

have a social responsibility to the community they are part of it is evident that

the implementation of an environmental management system makes good

business sense. The conclusion can be made that the implementation of an

environmental management system is essential and could enhance an

organisation's market position.

149

Bringing the focus closer to home, it is noticeable that all the respondents saw

benefits in the implementation of an environmental management system. The

conclusion could be made that for Billiton it is of the utmost importance to be

rated highly on the London Stock Exchange. Seeing that Samancor is one of

Billiton's subsidiaries both Billiton and Samancor can benefit from having

sound environmental management systems in place.


Objective no. 5 was aimed at determining how management should respond to

ensure employee involvement. In chapter eight environmental awareness,

training, knowledge and skills were discussed. The aim of question no. 8 of

the questionnaire was to determine how the responsible individuals at the

different plants feel about the duty placed on organisations by environmental

legislation.

Some of the steps listed to ensure employee and community involvement were:

Communication through awareness campaigns. This could be done via

company newsletter and notice boards.

.:) Educating not only the workforce but also the community regarding

environmental matters and at the same time ensuring that the required

information is available.

,:• Training should be aimed at the level of the individuals being trained

therefore environmental matters must be presented in non-technical terms

to ensure understanding. Depending on the level of education one should

consider making use of graphics to bring the message to the people.

According to respondent no 3 (Appendix B) it is dependent on the situation.

He suggests that if a plant is situated in an environmentally sensitive

community a more cautious approach should be used in allowing community

involvement. Respondent no. 4 makes it clear that "community involvement is

not a pre-requisite for IS014001 certification." He states (Appendix B) that by

150

law "new projects, however need to go through an Environmental Impact

Assessment (EIA)." This process requires public participation, whereby

members of the community become involved. He further suggests that through

the celebration of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification, Arbor Day, Water

Week, and World Environmental Day people could be made aware of

environmental issues and participation in these ceremonies would enhance the

image of the organisation.

Respondent no. 5 (Appendix B) feels that participation could be enhanced

through 'Interested and Affected Parties' meetings and "news letters containing

information on environmental projects and contact numbers of relevant

personnel to allow for a process of communication and consultation."

Conclusion

Not only does SABS ISO 14001 (1996) demands evidence of training being

provided, but the different legislation demand participation of interested and

affected parties. From the responses received it is evident that management

must ensure that not only employees but also all interested and affected parties

are allowed to participate in the organisation's environmental management.

The conclusion can be drawn that if management want individuals to make a

positive contribution to environmental management they need to provide them

with the required skills and knowledge. The objective was to determine how

management should respond and the conclusion drawn is that they should

allow people to participate, provide training and awareness workshops and

keep the community informed of the steps organisations are taking to ensure a

sustainable environment.


Objective No. 6 was to determine the impact of liability, authority,

accountability and responsibility. Chapter nine answers the question on why

roles, responsibility and authority must be defined. The RACI technique is

151

discussed as a possible framework to be used in assigning responsibility and

authority and the impact of liability is considered. The general feeling under

the respondents in relation to these issues was tested with question 9 and 10.

Question no. 9 asked respondents how important they consider the assignment

of environmental responsibility, liability, authority and accountability.

Question 10 asked respondent to state how they would assign responsibility,

liability, authority and accountability in their organisation.

All seven respondents consider it as important, respondent no. 2 (Appendix B)

states that it is "essential and non-negotiable." Some of the other responses

were:

.;) It is vital to the success of an effective environmental management system

(Respondent no. 3, Appendix B).

It is a requirement to stay in business and should be viewed with the

necessary importance (Respondent no. 5, Appendix B).

If responsibility is not assigned, nothing will happen concerning

environment (Respondent no. 6, Appendix B).

'=. In view of sustainable operation very important (Respondent no. 7,

Appendix B).

Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) felt that it is "very important." He links his

answer to the eight management principles namely: customer focus, leadership,

participation, system approach to management, continual improvement, factual

approach to decision making and mutually beneficial supplier relationships.

He feels that Samancor will be forced by these management principles to apply

control measures for environmental issues, to the same extend as applying

them for production. Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) feels that "Billiton and

Samancor will have to be seen as companies with clear policies, strong

commitment and strategies on all levels." He considers "transparency as a

must."

152

On determining how the respondents would assign responsibility, authority,

accountability and liability at their individual plants, the following responses

were obtained:

Respondent no 1 (Appendix B) states that "the overall accountability for

maintaining the environmental management system and for technical

support in actual environmental matters should resort with one

department." He feels that in addition to this, "each departmental manager

should be accountable for environmental compliance and system

maintenance in his / her own department."

Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) states that the assignment of environmental

responsibility should happen as "for appointments under the Occupational

Health and Safety Act (OHS Act), appointments must include

environmental responsibilities." Respondent no. 3 feels (Appendix B) that

it should happen through consultation, education and training. He feels that

only after an individual has the required knowledge and skills a

documented appointment should be made.

Respondent no. 5 (Appendix B) feels it should happen by "making a person

exclusively accountable to manage and co-ordinate the process of

responsible environmental management."

Conclusion

Chapter 9, section 9.4, mentions the fact that an individual could be held liable

for the impact of his actions on the environment. From this and the

questionnaire responses it is obvious that the impact of liability, authority,

accountability and responsibility is of the utmost importance. The conclusion

drawn is that liability, authority, accountability and responsibility must be

clearly assigned and documented. Individuals need to know what their roles

are and how their activities can have an impact not only on the environment but

also on themselves seeing that according to law they could be liable.

153

10.2.9 The Aim of the Research

The aim of the research was to determine if SABS ISO 14001 (1996) as an

integrated environmental management system could be used as a framework to

ensure environmental legal compliance at Samancor. The last question of the

questionnaire asked the respondents if they consider the implementation of

SABS ISO 14001 (1996), a guarantee for environmental legal compliance.

The general answer received was that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification

could not be used to guarantee environmental legal compliance. Respondent

no. 1 (Appendix B) feels that a certain amount of "window dressing" is still

possible.

Respondent no. 2 (2000:B10) feels that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could

possibly guarantee legal compliance "if top management, middle management

and supervisory staff are committed to use this system to become more

efficient in what we do." He states that "if the code is seen as glamour, or a

nice to have item, that could be used to impress people, SABS ISO 14001

(1996) would not ensure legal compliance.

Respondent no. 3 answered (Appendix B) "Absolutely not." He feels that it is

"possible to meet all the requirements of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) standard

on the day of the audit and have an illegal spill the very next day." Respondent

no. 5 (Appendix B) feels that "adherence to the requirements of the code as

well as legal compliance audits conducted by specialists contracted by the

SABS could provide a guarantee for environmental legal compliance."

From these responses it is clear that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification

could not guarantee environmental legal compliance. The fact is that SABS

ISO 14001 (1996) demands that an organisation must have an environmental

law register and the laws must be available. This forces an organisation to

determine which laws might have an impact on the organisation. From this

viewpoint SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be used as a tool to ensure that

154

organisations take cognisance of the different laws and regulations, but a lot

more must be done to ensure environmental legal compliance.

10.2.10 Question No. 7 The financial, legal and social impacts for Billiton and Samancor

In question no. 7 the respondents were asked what the financial, social and

legal impact of the implementation and certification of SABS ISO 14001

(1996) would be on both, the Samancor Plants and the parent company,

Billiton. This discussion deals with impacts and is divided into; financial

impacts, social impacts and legal impacts. After looking at the different types

of impacts the focus will move to the impact on Billiton (section 10.2.10.4) and

Samancor (section 10.2.10.5).

10.2.10.1 Financial Impacts

Maintaining SABS ISO 14001 (1996) can go hand in hand with maintaining

SABS ISO 9002, which is a Quality Assurance system, and requires one full

time person with the salary expenses at middle management level. According

to Respondent no. 1 (Appendix B)"the cost of environmental compliance is a

legal and social requirement, and should stand separate from maintaining an

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) management system." Respondent no. 5 (Appendix

B) sees the annual audit fees, especially the relatively high audit fee every third

year (tri-annual audit) as having the biggest financial impact. He also thinks

that it is costly to adhere to environmental legislation.

10.2.10.2 Legal Impacts

If the correct commitment exists, SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will facilitate legal

compliance. Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) feels that "there is no side-

stepping this issue legally we will have to comply and the SABS ISO 14001

(1996) code is a method to ensure legal compliance." He foresee that as

customers demanded that their suppliers must obtain SABS ISO 9000 Quality

155

Assurance certification, customers might demand SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Environmental certification before doing any business with an organisation.

10.2.10.3 Social Impacts

Samancor can prove to the community that it is not polluting the environment.

Respondent no. 2 (Appendix B) feels that "environmental pressure group in the

different areas will force Samancor to negotiate with them before entering into

new processes." He suggested that the managing of environmental pressure

groups would become an integral part of Samancor's management strategy.

According to respondent no. 3 (Appendix B) allowing for communities to

participate in an organisation's environmental management would lead to

improved public relations. On the other hand respondent no. 5 (Appendix B)

feels that the involvement of all interested and affected parties could have a

negative impact if an organisation does not have an approach accepting

responsibility in terms of pollution. He feels that "People, who would

normally not have a say in the business will have an opportunity to express an

opinion and put demands" on an organisation.

Respondents were asked to bring their answers closer to home and list the

implications for Billiton and Samancor. The following responses were

obtained:

10.2.10.4 Billiton

Respondent no 4 (Appendix B) said that Billiton "need to comply with FTSE

100 company reporting standards." According to him if Billiton's subsidiaries

are SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certified it will enable them to make a positive

environmental performance statement and enhance the possibility of a higher

BiE Index rating on the FTSE 100. According to respondent no. 6 (Appendix

B) Billiton can gain economically from recycling and better usage of its

resources. Having all plants SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certified will enhance

the organisation's international social acceptance. According to respondent no.

156

6 (Appendix B) SABS ISO 14001 (1996) could be "used to ensure legal

compliance to a higher standard."

10.2.10.5 Samancor

Respondent no. 4 said (Appendix B) SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification

could help the plants to score "Brownie points." He thinks that it will ensure

that Samancor Management will not be rapped on the knuckles at every board

meeting. At the same time he suggests that environmental management

through SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will ensure better control over the general

housekeeping at the plants and the audit system can be extended to include

housekeeping. According to respondent no. 4 good housekeeping is a

prerequisite for responsible environmental management. He suggests that the

implementation of a sound integrated environmental management system could

ensure better handling of complaints received from members of the community

and the authorities. According to respondent no 4 the implementation of the

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) standard will result in the "identification of

responsibilities and authorities of personnel" at Samancor and the

"identification and control of objectives and targets with relationship to

environmental management."

10.3 Environmental reporting at Samancor

As early as 1996 Samancor has been reporting on environmental management

issues in their annual reports. The Samancor annual report (1996:42) states

that during 1996 the Samancor Environmental Management Committee

(SEMCO) has focused on environmental objectives and action plans, legal

compliance and management systems. A system of environmental

management by objectives has been established at each plant during this

period. In April 1996 the National Forum endorsed the Samancor

Environmental Mission Statement. During 1996 Samancor became involved

with the Consultative National Environmental Policy Process (CONEPP)

providing input in the various industry bodies, and lobbying for a balance

157

between environmental protection and economic development. Table 10.5

shows the group's total expenditure on environmental management for the year

1996.

Table 10.5: Environmental expenditure at Samancor during 1996

1996 1997 1998 E nv ironmental ironmental Expenditure

R Million R Million R Million

Mining Properties 6.2 3.4 7.1

Hazardous wastes and effluents 49.5 52.3 48.3

Solid wastes 28.5 1.9 4.3

Worksite restoration 0.8 0.7 0.6

TOTAL 85.0 58.3 60.3

Source: Samancor Annual Report (1998:26).

In the 1998 Samancor Annual Report (1998:25) it is claimed that Samancor

"continued to apply previously adopted strategies in its environmental

management processes." These strategies are based on:

"accreditation to internationally recognised environmental management

system namely SABS ISO 14001 (1996);

achievement of environmental legal compliance;

elimination of identified environmental concerns using environmental

management by objectives (EMBO) and ongoing monitoring of progress

against these objectives;

.0 improvement in waste management through the adoption of cleaner

technologies; and

participation in environmental processes impacting on the group's

operations.

During 1998 approval was obtained from the Department of Minerals and

Energy and the Commissioner for Inland Revenue for the establishment of the

Samancor Environmental Rehabilitation Trust Fund for mines. According to

the Samancor Annual Report (1998:27) "Samancor remained closely involved

158

in several legislative processes" during 1998. Some of these were the White

Paper on Environmental Management Policy as discussed in chapter six, the

Water Services Act, Act 108 of 1997, the National Water Bill, and the Water

Pricing Policy. Representatives of the group participated in the revision of the

Department of Minerals and Energy Affair's environmental management

programme report (EMPR) for prospecting and mining operations.

10.4 Recommendations

A Board decision that all of its subsidiaries will implement an integrated

environmental management system, such as SABS ISO 14001 (1996) does not

provide the driving force needed to ensure the actual implementation. It is

essential to ensure that all levels of management are involved. Seeing that

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is a management system, management must be

trained on the different components of the system, the implementation and

evaluation process. Without top management commitment SABS ISO 14001

(1996) will never be successful. SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is too complex a

system to allow that as a result of a Board decision, an individual somewhere

in middle management is tasked with 'getting it in place.'

The environment is such a complex entity that it demands expert knowledge in

identifying aspects and impacts, setting the targets and objectives, planning and

implementing the environmental management system. If top management does

not have the background knowledge of what SABS ISO 14001 (1996) consists

of and how the process works, unfair demands and time constraints are placed

on the individual tasked with the implementation process.

The required resources must be available before an attempt could be made to

implement SABS ISO 14001 (1996). Some of the resources needed are

financial resources, human resources, knowledge, skills, and time. Without

knowledge of the organisational processes, the SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

159

process, environmental knowledge and knowledge of legislation the

developing process is doomed.

Expert knowledge should be available, even if it is in the form of a consultant.

For the interpretation of environmental legislation someone with a sound legal

background is required. Developing training modules and awareness

programmes demands people with training skills but at the same time they need

to be competent on environmental matters and therefore the training

department should be trained in environmental issues.

Without a strong change agent at top management level there is no change that

the environment will receive priority over operational issues. Having someone

in middle management driving the process but with no authority or even input

in management meetings is futile. Therefore it would be recommended that the

overall responsibility and involvement must be vested in an individual at top

management level.

10.5 Conclusion

If an SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certified organisation was found to be in non-

compliance with an environmental regulation, the organisation will have

procedures in place to deal with the occurrence. Part of the SABS ISO 14001

(1996) requirements are that an organisation must declare its intent to comply

with regulations, to do so, and to be able to prove that they are in fact doing so.

The feeling are that the reaction on the part of the regulatory authorities might

be less severe in a case of non-compliance if an organisation has implemented

a sound integrated environmental management system, such as SABS ISO

14001 (1996).

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) allows an organisation to establish a set of managerial

and technical tools, required to provide products and services using less

energy, fewer materials, and with far less environmental repercussions. As

160

Gibbons (1995) said "Environment should not be an "add-on" matter but

should be viewed as integral to the process." He suggested that SABS ISO

14001 (1996) could be used to protect the environment and human health, to

re-invent government policy through the establishment of public-private

partnerships, to pursue regulatory reform and to promote the development and

use of innovative environmental technologies.

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) goes beyond mere compliance with environmental

legislation. It encourages a systematic examination of all an organisation's

activities, which might have an impact on the environment. It could yield

bottom-line benefits such as reduced waste and savings in consumption of

energy and materials. Developing countries, which obviously cannot afford to

waste their scarce resources, stand to benefit from wide-spread knowledge and


Consider the fact that if the current generation does not rectify the mistakes

made by out forefathers and make a concerted effort to stop environmental

degradation and pollution there will not be an environment for our ancestors!

This should be enough for each of us o realise that it is essential to put in the

effort here and now! There is no replacement for the environment after it is

lost it is gone forever!

161

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Quarters Web Page, Introduction to SABS ISO 14001 (1996).

08 February 2000.

wwwb http:/www.IS014001.ch/presse/financial.pdf. ISO in figures.

5 February 2000.

wwwc http://www.qrca/faq.htm QRCA, (1996): Frequently asked

Questions regarding Qualitative Research. 24 May 2000.

wwwd http://www.quality.co.uk ./eco/benefits.htm Quality Network

(1996): Benefits of Eco-Management Systems from the quality

network. 05 February 2000

wwwe http://www. guide starco. coin/qualitative-and-quantitative-

survey-research.html Guidestar Communications (1999):

Quantitative & Qualitative Research. 03 June 2000.

166

Appendix A

Table of Environmental Legislation

Abattoir Hygiene Act No. 121 of 1992

Advertising on Roads and Ribbons Development Act No. 21 of 1940

Agricultural Pests Act No. 36 of 1983

Atmospheric Pollution Prevention Act No. 45 of 1965

Aviation Act No. 74 of 1992

Cape nature and Environmental Conservation Ordinance No. 19 of 1974

Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act No. 43 of 1983

Constitution of the Republic of South Africa Act No. 108 of 1996

Development Facilitation Act No.67 of 1995

Eastern Transvaal Parks Board Act No. 6 of 1995

Environment Conservation Act No. 73 of 1989

Fencing Act No. 31 of 1963

Fertilisers, Farm Feeds, Agricultural Remedies and Stock Remedies Act No. 36

of 1947

Forest Act No. 122of 1984

Game Theft Act No. 105 of 1991

Hazardous Substances Act No. 15 of 1973

Health Act No. 63 of 1977

Kwazulu-Natal Nature Conservation Management Act No. 9 of 1997

Lake Areas Development Act No. 39 of 1975

Land Survey Act No. 8 of 1997

Minerals Act No. 50 of 1991

Mountain Catchment Areas Act No. 63 of 1970

Natal Nature Conservation Ordinance No. 15 of 1974

National Environmental Management Act No. 107 of 1998

National Forests Act No. 84 of 1998

National Monuments Act No. 28 of 1969

National Parks Act No. 57 of 1976

A-1

National Veld and Forest Fire Act No. 101 of 1998

National Water Act No. 36 of 1998

Nuclear Energy Act No. 131 of 1993

Occupational Health and Safety Act No. 85 of 1993

Orange Free State Nature Conservation Ordinance No. 8 of 1969

Physical planning Act No. 125 of 1991

Sea-shore Act No. 21 of 1935

State Land Disposal Act No. 48 of 1961

The South African National Roads Agency Limited and National Roads Act

No. 7 of 1998

Transvaal Nature Conservation Ordinance No. 12 of 1983

Water Act No. 54 of 1956

Water Services Act No. 108 of 1997

Western Cape Land Administration Act No. 6 of 1998

A-2

Appendix B

Responses to questionnaires sent via electronic mail to Environmental

Managers of the different Samancor Plants. Please note that the questionnaires

are the exact responses as received from the participants without any

alterations and as such the format between the individual responses and the

main body of the dissertation might differ..

1S014001 Questionnaire I would like my answers to be treated with confidentiality. Yes/ No

(Please delete the option not applicable)

Question 1

According to you what are the main components of SABS ISO 14001 (1996)?

Answer

Question 2

Why do you think the components you listed as your answer in question no 1

are the most important?

Answer

Question 3

Is there any link between management decision-making and SABS ISO 14001

(1996), and if so, what is the link?

Answer

Question 4

How could SABS ISO 14001 (1996) be used to ensure environmental legal

compliance in Samancor?

Answer

B-1

Question 5

Do you consider the implementation of an environmental management system

a necessity for Samancor? Please motivate your answer.

Answer

Question 6

According to you could any advantages and/or disadvantages be derived from

the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996)? Please name and describe

them.

Answer

Question 7

What will the financial, social and legal impact of the implementation and

certification of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) be, both at Samancor Plants, and for

the parent company, Billiton?

Answer

Question 8

What steps should management take to ensure employee and community

involvement? Please provide typical examples.

Answer

Question 9

How important do you consider the assignment of environmental liability,

responsibility, authority and accountability at plant and corporate level?

Answer

Question 10

How would you assign liability, authority, accountability and responsibility in

your work environment?

Answer

B-2

Question 11

Do you consider the implementation of SABS ISO 14001 (1996), a guarantee

for environmental legal compliance?

Answer

B-3

1S014001 Questionnaire Response No 1

I would like my answers to be treated with confidentiality. No

Question 1


Answer

A framework for the establishment of an environmental management system.

Question 2



Answer

Because SABS ISO 14001 (1996) is a management system, and not some form

of environmental master plan or environmental solution in itself.

Question 3



Answer

Yes. If management is genuinely committed to an environmentally acceptable

operation, SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will provide all the necessary indicators to

highlight problem areas where attention is required.

Question 4



Answer

Part of SABS ISO 14001 (1996) requires the identification (and updating) of

environmentally related legal requirements. If there is genuine commitment by

management, the required action will be initiated. If not, window dressing will

be applied to ensure that SABS ISO 14001 (1996) certification is maintained.

B-4

Question 5



Answer

Yes. A proper system is in the first place necessary to ensure the maintenance

of an environmentally acceptable operation. An environmentally acceptable

operation is in turn necessary, firstly due to the company's social obligations,

and secondly, because the developing legislation will in any event force

compliance at some stage. The later this happens, the more costly it is going to

be.

Question 6



them.

Answer

I see no disadvantages. The main advantages are those discussed under

questions 4 and 5.

Question 7




Answer

Legal If the correct commitment exists, SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will

facilitate legal compliance.

Social Samancor can prove to the community that it is not polluting the

environment.

Financial Maintaining SABS ISO 14001 (1996) can go hand in hand with

maintaining ISO 9002, and requires one full time person - say D (lower) level.

The cost of environmental compliance is a legal and social requirement, and

B-5

should stand separate from maintaining an SABS ISO 14001 (1996) integrated

environmental management system.

Question 8



Answer

Communication / aware making campaign (company newspaper, notice boards,

etc.)

Question 9



Answer

It is essential and non-negotiable.

Question 10



Answer

The overall accountability for maintaining the environmental management

system and for technical support in actual environmental matters should resort

with one department (e.g. SHEQ, Technical, or Services). In addition to this,

each departmental manager should be accountable for environmental

compliance and system maintenance in his / her own department.

Question 11



Answer

No. You can still window dress to some extent. (This might change, as auditors

become more knowledgeable).

B-6

IS014001 Questionnaire Response No 2

I would like my answers to be treated with confidentiality. - No

Question 1


Answer

Management Commitment

Identification of Environmental matters

Legal Compliance

Document control

Continual improvement

And the rest of the code.

The system used to cover this is

The compiling of an invoice of "environment unfriendly" substances,

processes, product, raw materials or other activity for each section

(department) thus identifying all the aspects for each area.

The risk rating of each aspect identified, classifying each aspect as

significant or not significant.

Compiling a detailed action plan to improve on the mitigating factors

associated with each aspect.

Managing these detailed plans.

Question 2



Answer

The management of environmental aspects and their impacts are what the ISO

code and environmental legislation is all about.

B-7

Question 3



Answer

The link for me is the 8 business (management) principles.

.4 Customer (environment) focused organisation

4:6 Leadership

.::. Involvement of People

,:. Process approach

,4> System approach to management

Continual improvement

Factual approach to decision making

.4. Mutually beneficial supplier (Interested and effected parties) relationships

Question 4



Answer

Through an effective document control system — receiving the legislation —

applying it after consultation with legal department and updating aspects.

Question 5



Answer

Yes!

Out of the nature of our products and the emphasis on environmental

matters from various sources including our customers.

,4> If we do not implement sound systems for the environment as for safety,

health and quality we will lose our market if our competitors follow this

route.

Environment protection has become the new buzzword in the world.

B-8

Question 6

According to you could any advantages and / or disadvantages be derived from


them.

Answer

Advantages.

Better conditions for the workers and people living around our factories

Complying with environmental legislation, constitution and international

conventions can be used as a sales tool.

Less waste — water, raw materials, etc (because programs are in place to

control the purchasing, control and disposal)

Better designing of facilities — more energy efficient.

Disadvantages:

Can be costly at the offset

More pressure on managing all the activities — scope becomes wider

Question 7




Answer

There is no side-stepping this issue legally we will have to comply and the

SABS ISO 14001 (1996) code is a method to ensure legal compliance.

I foresee that as for the ISO 9000 code customers will demand accreditation

before doing any business with us.

Environmental pressure group in the different areas will force us to

negotiate with them before entering into new processes etc — they are going

to become an integral part of our management strategy.

B-9

Question 8



Answer

Education and Information to the workforce and community.

Environmental matters will have to be presented in a non-technical way for

them to understand.

Question 9



Answer

Very important. As mentioned earlier the 8 business principles will force

us to apply control measures for the environment identical to that of

production.

Billiton and Samancor will have to be seen as companies with clear

policies, strong commitment and strategies on all levels - Transparency is a

must.

Question 10



Answer

As for the appointments under the OHS Act — appointments will have to

include environmental responsibilities etc.

Question 11



Answer

Yes — If top, middle management and supervisory staff are committed to use

this system to become more efficient in what we do.

B-10

No — If the code is seen as glamour, a nice to have item, that can be used to

impress people and within the company race to see who is first to be

accredited.

B-11



Question 1


Answer

Depends on the defmition of "main"!

If, by "main" is meant important, all are equally important.

Question 2



Answer

All are equally essential to the running of a successful EMS.

Question 3



Answer

Yes. All management decisions require inputs from a number of disciplines.

These include the EMS.

Question 4



Answer

It couldn't! No EMS, including IS014001, can "ensure" legal compliance.

Question 5



B-12

Answer

Yes because

.=i It gives confidence to customers, particularly overseas customers.

.=? It assists in making good business decisions.

,=. It assists in achieving legal compliance.

Question 6



them.

Answer

Advantages are as shown in Q5.

Disadvantage is the cost.

Question 7

What will the fmancial, social and legal impact of the implementation and



Answer

Financial Increased cost.

Social Improved P.R. with local communities.

Legal Contribution to compliance.

Question 8



Answer

This is dependent on the situation. E.g. for a plant situated in an

environmentally sensitive community (e.g. adjacent to a game park), a more

cautious approach should be used compared to that for a plant situated in an

industrial area.

B-13

Question 9



Answer

It is vital to the success of an effective environmental management system.

Question 10



Answer

By consultation, education and training and then documented appointment.

Question 11



Answer

Absolutely not! It is possible to me et al.,1 the requirements of the SABS ISO

14001 (1996) standard on the day of the audit and have an illegal spill the next

day.

B-14


I would like my answers to be treated with confidentiality. Yes

Question 1


Answer

Management System

International Specification/Standard

Environment

Question 2



Answer

Environment.

Question 3



Answer

IS014001 provides a framework for management in which it may make

decisions.

It requires that certain decisions be recorded re environmental management.

0 It requires that action/effects of decisions are followed up and reviewed.

Question 4



Answer

Properly identifying all relevant legislation.

Instituting systems to ensure compliance (measurement/reporting)

B-15

Question 5



Answer

Yes.

Shareholder requirement.

Keep track of legal requirements.

Complex area to monitor / evolve / grow by non-specialists.

Question 6



them.

Answer

Advantages

Positive publicity / community relations.

Some running cost savings.

Necessary for long term survival of company.

Disadvantages

Capital projects normally large and makes little direct positive impact on

bottom line.

Question 7




Answer

Samancor Plants

Brownie points.

Management will not be rapped on the knuckles at every board meeting.

B-16

Better control over the general housekeeping — audit system can be easily

extended to housekeeping. Good housekeeping is a prerequisite for

responsible environmental management.

..i=‘ Better complaint handling from community / authorities.

Identification of responsibilities and authorities of personnel. Identification

and control of objectives and targets with relationship to environmental

management.

Billiton

Need to comply with FTSE 100 company reporting standards — will be able

to report favourably that the environment is in fact being managed

Question 8



Answer

Community involvement is not a pre-requisite for IS014001 certification.

New projects however need to go through an EIA procedure (law) that

needs public participation — which would involve some of the community.

Employee involvement, Awareness training, Induction training, Ad hoc

training, In task training, Formal training modules, Specialist training (i.e.

auditing, law, environmental engineering). Flag waving; for example with

the celebration of certification, celebration of Arbor Day, Water Week,

World environment day.

Question 9



Answer

Yes. Line function.

B-17

Question 10



Answer

In writing.

Question 11



Answer

No.

B-18



Question 1


Answer

Commitment and Policy

..i= Planning

Implementation

Measurement and Evaluation

.* Review and Improvement

Question 2



Answer

It forms the foundation of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) environmental

management system.

Question 3



Answer

Each of the components mentioned in question 1 requires management

involvement and decision making.

Question 4



B-19

Answer

One of the elements of the SABS ISO 14001 (1996) code is "legal and other

requirements". It is a requirement that you have to adhere to environmental

legislation if you want to be SABS ISO 14001 (1996) listed. Accreditation

does not require full compliance but at least a well-developed action plan

towards compliance and adherence to the principle of continuous improvement

Question 5



Answer

It provides a structured approach towards environmental management and

gives the customer assurance of responsible actions in terms of environmental

protection during all phases of the production process.

Question 6



them.

Answer

Structured approach towards environmental management.

Ensures a focus on legal compliance.

Adherence to the principle of continuous improvement.

Auditing by an independent third party.

Question 7




Answer

Financial Minimal annual fees for audits

Relatively high audit fee every 3rd year (tri-annual audit)

B-20

Relatively high cost to adhere to environmental legislation.

Social

Involvement of IAP's can impact negatively if approach is not responsible

in terms of pollution.

People that would normally not have a say in the business will have an

opportunity to express an opinion and demand to a certain extend

Legal

Certification requires a process towards adherence to environmental

legislation.

Question 8



Answer

Interested and affected Party meetings

News letters containing information on environmental projects and contact

numbers of relevant personnel to allow for a process of communication and

consultation.

Question 9



Answer

It is a requirement to stay in business and should be viewed with the necessary

importance.

Question 10



Answer

By making a person exclusively accountable to manage and co-ordinate the

process of responsible environmental management.

B-21

Question 11



Answer

Adherence to the requirements of the code as well as legal compliance audits

conducted by specialists contracted by SABS provides a guarantee for

environmental compliance.

B-22


I would like my answers to be treated with confidentiality. Yes

Question 1


Answer

Policy, Aspect & impacts, Targets & objectives — environmental management

plan training, legal, monitoring & measurement, management review, continual

improvement, (all headline topics)

Question 2



Answer

Headings of sections. System cannot function effectively without any one of

them.

Question 3



Answer

Management Review

Question 4



Answer

By means of legislation identification and building it into the aspect identification section

B-23

Question 5



Anwer

Yes. Compliance to Billiton. Public relations.

Question 6



them.

Answer

Advantages

Better environmental management

System to use for legal compliance

Public image

Risk measurement and proof of environmental compliance

Disadvantages

Cost of projects

Personnel

Question 7




Answer

Samancor

Cost at first — gain in long term (rehabilitation. cheaper, etc.)

.4) Can have economic gain from recycling, etc.

Better social acceptance.

Can use system to ensure legal compliance to a higher standard.

Billiton

Same as above.

B-24

Better international acceptance.

Question 8



Answer

Employees — training from very basic.

Community — policy and annual public report. Publications, etc.

Question 9



Answer

If responsibility is not assigned nothing will happen concerning environment

Question 10



Answer

Procedures, appointments, job descriptions...

Question 11



Answer

No

B-25



Question 1


Answer

A system to manage environmental issues

Question 2



Answer

Managing the environmental issues and not the system

Question 3



Answer

Yes. Management decisions making is ruled by the higher order management

decision captured in SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

Question 4



Answer

The system designed in SABS ISO 14001 (1996) will at all times be subject to

legal compliance

Question 5



B-26

Answer

Yes. Environmental management is one of the pre-requisites for sustainable

business operation

Question 6



them.

Answer

Advantages

.=; Necessary for long term survival of company

' .Positive publicity

Disadvantages

' Capital outlay normally large.

Makes little direct positive impact on bottom line.

Question 7




Answer

No long term financial impact. With or without SABS ISO 14001 (1996)

operations has to be managed in an environmental responsible way

Question 8



Answer

Normal process of consultation and participative management

B-27

Question 9



Answer

In view of sustainable operation very important

Question 10



Answer

Through formal appointments

Question 11



Answer

Short term no. Long term yes.

B-28

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