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SBEV3103

FACULTY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

SEMESTER SEPTEMBER /2014

SBEV3103
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
SUSTAINABLE DVELOPMENT

MATRICULATION NO
IDENTITY CARD NO.
TELEPHONE NO.
E-MAIL
LEARNING CENTRE

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691115105407001
691115105407
012-3303294
whchan33@hotmail.com
Shah Alam

SBEV3103

Table of Contents

1.0 Introduction........................................................................................................................3-4
2.0 Environment Regulatory Compliance..............................................................................5-8
3.0 Environment Risk Management.....................................................................................8-12
4.0 Business and Sustainable Development........................................................................12-15
5.0 Conclusion............................................................................................................................16
6.0

References ...16

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1.0 INTRODUCTION
Nowadays, all the countries in the world are talking about development with the aim to bring
their levels of economic development with associated with social development, in terms of
education, healthcare and life expectancy.
The development will definitely bring the impact on the environment and now the impact on
environment is worsen with more and more issues arises such like global warming, hole on the
ozone layer of earth, reduces of the species which will affect the earth ecology system.
Therefore, the sustainable development is become a major attention to meets the needs of the
present without comprising the ability of the future generation to meets their own needs.
Sustainable development has been defined in many ways, the most frequently quoted definition
is from the Brundtland Report by Bruntdland Commission in year 1987 Our Common Future:
"Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It contains within it two
key concepts:
The concept of needs, in particular the essential needs of the world's poor, to which overriding
priority should be given; and
The idea of limitations imposed by the state of technology and social organization on the
environment's ability to meet present and future needs."
All definitions of sustainable development require that we see the world as a system that
connects space and time. When the world as a system over space, you will understand that air
pollution from Indonesia affects air quality in ASEAN and that the ice melted in North Pole will
cause the flood in Asia. When the world as a system over time, you will realize that the decisions

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our grandparents made about how to farm the land continue to affect agricultural practice today;
and the economic policies we endorse today will have an impact when our children are adults.
We also understand that quality of life is a system and it is good to be physically healthy, but
what if you are poor and don't have access to education? It's good to have a secure income, but
what if the air in your part of the world is unclean? And it's good to have freedom of religious
expression, but what if you can't feed your family?
It helps us understand ourselves and our world with the concept of sustainable development is
rooted in this sort of systems thinking. The problems we face are complex and serious and we
can't address them in the same way we created them but we can and need to address them. It's
that basic optimism that motivates us to innovate for a healthy and meaningful future for this
planet and its inhabitants.

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2. ENVIRONMENT REGULATORY COMPLIANCE


The government of Malaysia has established the necessary legal and institutional arrangements
that the environment factors are considered at the early stage project planning. Business or
industry needs to obtain approval from the second level of approval for environmental
requirement and assessment constitute on the licensing requirement once they registered their
business or industry.
Business or industry is required to comply with some form of licensing before they can start
legally and the licensing requirement is as follow:
a) General licenses such like Company Registration, Company and Employees Tax
registration and etc.
b) Sector Industry Specific licenses unique licenses to a particular industry by
Government.
c) Activity Specific Licenses licenses that regulate particulars activity and could be
applicable to one or more Industries or Sectors.
Besides of the above basic licenses, the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is required for
activities prescribed under the Environmental Quality (Prescribed Activities) (Environmental
Impact Assessment) Order 1987. Those industrial activities that are not subject to the mandatory
EIA requirements are nevertheless subject to various regulations under the Environmental
Quality Act, 1974 (EQA).
In year 2002, Malaysia Government has form the National Policy on the Environment which
integrates the three elements of sustainable development: economic, social and cultural
development and environmental conservation and aims at continued economic, social and
cultural progress and enhancement of the quality of life of Malaysians through
environmentally sound and sustainable development.

There are eight (8) inter-related and

mutually supporting principles set to harmonize economic development goals with


environmental imperatives as follow:Page 5 of 18

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(a)

Stewardship of the Environment

(b)

Conservation of the Natures Vitality and Diversity

(c)

Continuous Improvement in the Quality of the Environment

(d)

Sustainable Use of Natural Resources

(e)

Integrated Decision-making

(f)

Role of the Private Sector

(g)

Commitment and Accountability

(h)

Active Participation in the International Community

The Environmental Quality Act, 197 is the legislation that is related to the prevention,
abatement, control of pollution and enhancement of the environment in Malaysia Under the
Act, industrial activities are required to obtain the following approvals from the Director General
of Environmental Quality prior to project implementation as follow:
(a)

Environmental Impact Assessment reports - under Section 34A of the EQA, 1974 (for

prescribed activities) Preliminary and detailed


(b)

Site suitability evaluation (for non-prescribed activities);

(c)

Written permission to construct - under Section 19 of the EQA, 1974 (for

prescribed premises-scheduled wastes treatment and disposal facilities, crude palm oil mills and
raw natural rubber processing mills);
(d)

Written approval for installation of incinerator, fuel burning equipment and

chimney under Environmental Quality (Clean Air) Regulation, 1978, EQA, 1974; and

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(e)

License to use and occupy prescribed premises and prescribed conveyances - under

Section 18 of the EQA, 1974. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) FOR


PRESCRIBED ACTIVITIES.
Figure 1 outlines the application procedure for environmental requirements in Malaysia

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The first level of environment system in Malaysia is the setting up of the Environment Quality
Act 1974, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is required for activities prescribed under the
Environmental Quality (Prescribed Activities) (Environmental Impact Assessment) Order 1987
and in year 2002, the form the National Policy on the Environment on sustainable development
by the Malaysia Government.
The Second level of environment system has been developing in the rapid pace which includes
both the organization-based and individual company-based programs.
The several examples of individual company-based programs are as follow:
a)

ISO 14000 - issued by the International Organization of Standardization(ISO),based in

Geneva, Switzerland, covering areas process documentation, training, lifecycle assessment


procedure, management reporting and accountability for environment performance(Kleindorfer,
1977). It is required top management commitment and designed to bring environmental
management into realm of strategic decision-making (Woelner, 1977).
b)

Eco-Management Audit Scheme (EMAS) is set by European Union with the closely

related set of environmental requirement and standards. The different between ISO 14000 and
EMAS is that EMAS has additional and more stringent requirements, in terms of requirement of
certification, specific information that be made public on verifying continual performance
(Kleindorfer, 1977).
c)

International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) : Business Charter for Sustainable

Development created by ICC in 1991 in Rotterdam with sixteen principles for environmental
management which has been published in over 20 languages including all the official language at
the United Nation.
d)

United Nation Environmental Programme (UNEP) created Industry Environment

Centre (UNEPIE) in 1975 and work with business and industry, nation and local government,
international group and non-governmental organization. UNEPIE act as catalyst and providing
platform for dialogue to move from confrontation to co-operation and words to concrete action.
We are definitely well aware of the environment regulatory as per our Government act and
regulation and the environmental management system available for us. In order to comply with
the environment regulatory, the environment risk assessment on the business activities need to be
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carried out. The environment risk assessment covers the risk to all ecosystems, including
humans, exposed/impact via these media. After the identification of the environment risk, the
counter measure to control base on the environment regulatory should be in place. Of course, the
best solution will be eliminated the risk if possible. This process will lead the business or
industry to choose the suitable environmental management system in order to comply with the
environment regulatory.

3.0 ENVIRONMENT RISK MANAGEMENT


The environment risk assessment will be conducted to enable risk managers make informed
environmental decisions. The risk assessment frame work is described as figure 2 as below:

Figure 2: Frame work of Management risk assessment


Source: US-EPA(1998)

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The results from the ERA are important and need to be utilized in the managements decision
making process. Figure 3 show the elements that will be considered in deciding the control
measure or risk management.

Figure 3 : Elements for risk-based decision making process


Source : Beer and Ziolkowski.
The risk managers then need to decide the risk level that is acceptable to public and select the
policy and management which is the best to obtain acceptable level of risk and maintaining
sustainability.
Management is required to lower the risk to a tolerable level of residual risk and the decisionmaker has access to a range of risk management options to reduce, eliminate or exploit risk as
zero risk is usually unachievable.
One of the methods is options appraisal - the process of identifying and selecting the most
appropriate risk management strategy given the constraints of the decision-maker (HM Treasury,
2003). Various criteria are used for identifying the best option which involve scoring, weighting
and/or reporting different risk management options with, according to context, but a common
framework is to seek to maximize some long-term denition of human well-being such as

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environmental security, net social benet or value for money (risk reduction per unit cost). The
key inputs for this process are the controlling factors for each risk identied during the problem
formulation stage and if a controlling factor is the level of investment in monitoring and control
equipment, then risk management options can be identied that focus on those issues
immediately.
It is essential to identify the risk management options as a distinct preliminary step because illconsidered risk management strategies may otherwise result in wasted effort and expenditure
(HM Treasury, 2004). The risk management options available usually take one of the following
forms:
a) terminates the source of the risk where possible;
b) mitigates the effects by improving environmental management techniques or engineered
systems;
c) transfers the risk through new technology, procedures or investment;
d) exploit the potential benets of the risk by embracing new opportunities; or
e) Accepts the risk by not intervening with new or existing situations.
In order to select the preferred option, the potential positive and negative effects associated with
each option may be considered under the following headings (Figure 4):
a) Technical factors: whether the options were likely to reduce the risk, by how much, and
how difcult it would be to implement the option; for example, the extent of required
research and development.
b) Economic factors: the cost of implementing the option (to the organization, affected
businesses, exposed groups or society as a whole).
c) Environmental security: the potential impacts of the options on the health and
sustainability of environmental resources including the impact to existing habitats.
d) Social issues: the social impacts of the risk, such as the potential costs or other losses to
the community, jobs or house prices, life expectancy and/or amenities.
e) Organizational capabilities: considering the risk management capability within the
organization or body, or the capability of society or exposed groups.

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Figure 4 : Positive and Negative Environmental Effect


With the above strategic and selection option, the best environmental system management can be
established to mitigate and control the environment issue and achieve the sustainable
development.

4.0 BUSINESS AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT


The concept of sustainable development has received growing recognition, but it is a new idea
for many business executives. Organization is protecting its capital base is a well-accepted
business principle and generally it do not recognize the possibility of extending this notion to the
worlds natural and human resources.
Businesses enterprises must integrate into the planning and measurement systems tom achieve
sustainable development and for that to happen, the concept must be articulated in terms that are
familiar to business leaders.
Therefore, the definition as follow is suggested:
For the business enterprise, sustainable development means adopting business strategies and
activities that meet the needs of the enterprise and its stakeholders today while protecting,
sustaining and enhancing the human and natural resources that will be needed in the future.
This definition is intended to help business directors apply the concept of sustainable
development to their own organizations. However, it is important to emphasize that sustainable
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development cannot be achieved by a single enterprise in isolation. Sustainable development is a


pervasive philosophy to which every participant in the global economy (including consumers and
government) must subscribe, if we are to meet todays needs without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own.
This definition also highlights businesss dependence on human and natural resources and further
emphasizes that economic activity must not irreparably degrade or destroy these natural and
human resources.
The role of business in contributing to sustainable development remains indefinite and all
business enterprises can make a contribution towards its attainment but the ability to make a
difference varies by sector and organization size.
Seven steps are required for managing an enterprise according to sustainable development
principles. These are set out below.
a) Perform a stakeholder analysis
A stakeholder analysis is required in order to identify all the parties that are directly or indirectly
affected by the enterprises operations. It sets out the issues, concerns and information needs of
the stakeholders with respect to the organizations sustainable development activities.
b) Set sustainable development policies and objectives
The next objective is to articulate the basic values that the enterprise expects its employees to
follow with respect to sustainable development to set targets for operating performance by the
Senior Management to formulating a sustainable development policy for its organization as the
sustainable development means more than just the environment. It has social elements as well,
such as the alleviation of poverty and distributional equity.
c). Design and execute an implementation plan

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It is important to draw up a plan for the management system changes that are needed in order to
achieve sustainable development objectives and the enterprises organizational structure should
then be reviewed to determine who should take specific responsibility for the sustainable
development objectives.
Business planning processes should be modified to reflect the sustainable development priorities,
the expanded stakeholder consultation process and external monitoring needs. Management
information systems should be enhanced, in order to ensure that management and employees
receive the information they need to assess their performance against the objectives.
A successful implementation plan depends on rethinking the corporation if it is to respond to
the paradigm shift associated with sustainable development. It is important to address not only
the positive forces for change but also barriers and sources of resistance.
d) Develop a supportive corporate culture
In order to ensure that the organization and its people give their backing to the sustainable
development policies, an appropriate corporate culture is essential and the board provides an
oversight in the allocation of responsibilities for sustainable development objectives. This
umbrella role should include ensuring that responsibilities are assigned in a manner that holds
key executives accountable. It also means ensuring that reward and promotion systems recognize
those people who achieve, or help to achieve, sustainable development objectives.
e) Develop measures and standards of performance
The implementation of sustainable development objectives and the preparation of reports on
performance are required for measuring performance and monitoring the progress of the
organization objectives.
f) Prepare reports

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The next step in the process is to develop meaningful reports for internal management and
stakeholders, outlining the enterprises sustainable development objectives and comparing
performance against them.
g) Enhance internal monitoring processes
Performance monitoring is well established as an important element of the management process.
In many areas, it is directly linked to reporting. The key to any systems effectiveness is whether
the management monitors operations and outputs on an ongoing basis.
Monitoring can take many forms, such as:

Reviewing reports submitted by middle managers;


Touring operating sites and observing employees performing their duties;
Holding regular meetings with subordinates to review reports and to seek input on how

the procedures and reporting systems might be improved;


Implementing an environmental auditing programme.

The figure 5 is well described the relation of business and sustainable development and the
impact on the human being and environment.

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Figure 5: Business and Sustainable Development

5.0 CONCLUSION
In view of the above, development is essential to our society and development will lead to
business opportunities. Business will create wealth and in order to achieve to grab the wealth, the
impact on human being and environment will be ignored. The continuous ignorance of the
environmental issue will lead to the disaster to the earth ecology system and we might end up
with nothing to our next generation. The concept of sustainable development is to mitigate and
minimize the above impact with the objective of development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Lets
start to maintain and exercise the sustainable development and it is achievable if we planned and
execute accordingly.
-2947 words-

6.0 References
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1. www.doe.gov.my/eia/wp-content/uploads/2012/13/a-Guide-For-Investors1.pdf
2. Md. Jahir, Jamaluddin (1996). Environmental Legislations and its management in
Malaysia: issues and suggestions.
3. The Geneva Papers on Risk and Insurance Vol. 27 no. 2 (April 2002) Pages 152-180
4. www.defra.gov.uk : Green Leaves III, November 2011
5. www.iisd.org : Business Strategy

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