Assessme nt Task 1:Written Question s

1. Outl ine t he Kyoto Protocol and Austra lia's obl igations under the Protocol, as well as
its current targets and the adequacy of these targets.
• Kyoto protocol has signed among all major developed and developing countries
around the world to manage greenhouse emissions.
• The Australia's obligation is to set strict limits on its annual greenhouse emissions by
adopting improved policies and strategies.
• Their target is to reduce emissions by five per cent below the 2000 levels, which is
in comparison to 13 per cent below 2005 levels.

2. Outline the purpose and scope of the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and
Cl imate.

• The purpose of this partnershi p is to form teams of all major countri es and private
sector partn ers to achieve better and clean er future by accelerati ng the use of
cleaner and efficient technolog ies, accompl ish goals of energy securi ty and
climate in a mann er that supports sustainable growth.

• With new technologies being rapidly developed and extensive research being
cond u cted to harness renewable sources of energy, the scope of t his pa rtnershi p
program is huge.
• The APP appears to be directed at reducing emissions intensity, that is, emissions
per un it of economic output, rather than reducin g aggregate emissions.

3. Outl ine the purpose and scope of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity
Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).
EPBC Act, 1999, is a framework designed by the government of Austral ia to
protect their natural biodi versity, environment and places that have high cu ltural
11nportance. This has huge scope in future, as the climate change i s 11appening
more ra pidl y than though before, therefore, this act wi ll serve as a groundwork for
future developments. To promote the use of Indigenous peop l es' knowledge of biod
iversity with the involvement of, and in cooperation wi th, the owners of the
knowledge. To reconise the role of indigenous people in the conservation and
ecologically sustainat>le use of Austral ia's biodiversity
4. Out l ine the purpose and scope of the Environment Protection and Biod iversity
Conservation (EPBC) Act Regulations.
Therefore, this is li ke the Act that has been mention ed before. The pu rpose of this
regu lation is to illustrate about the importance of environm ent and serve as a gu
idel ine for the development of strategies.
The EPBC Act establ ished the use of Environm ent Protection and Biodi versity
Conservation Regu lations , which have prov ided for the issui ng of approva ls and
perm its for a range of activities on Commonwealth land and land affecting the
Commonwea lt h.

5. Outline the purpose and scope of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting
Scheme.
 • The purpose and scope of the National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Scheme
contributes to the reducing of greenhouse gas emissions by providing a nationa l
framework for reporting.
• Publish ing company information about greenhouse gas emissions and
energy prod uction and consumption .

• Obligations to disclose energy use and greenhouse gas emission to the Australian
government.

6. Outl ine the purpose and scope of the Australian Packaging Covenan t voluntary
code of practice.
• The purpose of the Australian Packaging Covenant voluntary code of practice is to
provide environment ministers a strategic plan.
• Optim ise packaging to use resources efficiently and reduce environmenta l
impact without comprom ising quality and safety.
• Efficient ly col lect and recycle packag ing.

7. Outl i ne the purpose and scope of the Austral ian Ecolabel Program volu ntary code
of practice.
• Purpose of this code of practice is to provide suppl iers cetiain add itiona l
incenti ves so that they reduce the environmenta l impacts of prod ucts sold in the
country.
• A long with th is, to encourage customers to purchase prod ucts that is eco-friendly.

8. Identi fy one internal infonnation source and one external information source that can
be used to plan and develop a company's sustainabil ity policy. For each source,
explain how this source can be used to develop the sustainabi lity pol icy.

9. Explain the key steps in a policy development process.

The key steps in a policy development process are:
• Identify and define the problem:The organization shou ld also know and understand
the purpose of policies and recognize that problems or problems can be effectively
add ressed by creating or revising pol icies.
• Assig n a person or group of people to coordinate the policy d evelopm ent process:
Policy developm ent can take place over several months. There shou ld be someone or
perhaps a commi ttee that is 'driving' the process .
• Establish the policy developm ent plan: The process requires research, consultation
and pol icy writing tasks. The coordinator shou ld develop a plan of what tasks need to
be done by whom and when.
• Cond uct research :find out relevant legal information
• Consultation: Prepare a draft policy before officia lly creating it. Th is draft shou ld be
discussed with stakeholders, especiall y the stakeholders of the company about their
satisfaction, the appropriateness of the policy as well as the effects it can have.
• Adoption: When all parties agree with the new policy, it can be completed based on a
deadline already assigned. Communication should then be undertaken to ensure that
all stakeholders are aware of these new regulations.
• Review and evaluate: The pol icy should be moni tored. The policy may sti ll require
further adjustments and furthennore, the reasons for the ex istence of the pol icy may
change. Feedback should be collected after a process is in place to evaluate the
suitabi lity of the new policy

I 0. Explain the main components of a policy document.

Main components of the policy document involve a statement describing the object i ves
 to be accomplished, principles, values and rhilosophies, strategies to
achieve objectives, specific actions to be taken as wel as a performance ind icator and
strategies to review performance .

1 1 . Outl ine policy development practices that may be used in response to resistance to
the int rod u ction of pol icies.
Identify the problem: Find out the cause of the problem, possibly through employee
feedback or mvestigation;
Identify the solution to the problem. Some possible methods incl ude:
Do change management right the first time
Expect resistance to change
Address resistance fonna lly
Identi fy the root causes of resista nce
Engage the "right" resista nce managers
A pply for a small group for trial;
Eva luate the success level of the solution;
Apply to the whole company in case the solution is reasonable

12. Outl ine why a company may choose to implement an environmental management
system (EMS) and outline at least three key components of an EMS.
• An EMS management system helps reduce waste: Every company can reduce
waste from the smallest of companies with a recycl ing program to larger
compa nies who m inimise waste through design innovations.
• Maximize resources: Maximizin g resources is closely al igned with waste reduction.
When a business can get more than one use out of their raw materia l th is has
multiple benefits.
Waste red u cti on - The more you can use out of one source the less you wi ll throw
away. Decreasing waste transport costs and transport emissions and resulting in less
landfi 11.
I ncreased Efficiency - Ordering I product instead of multiples can save time in the
procurement process, reduce delivery costs and storage space needed.
I nnovation - When you start to look at resources di fferently you start to see more
possibil ities.
• Minimize environmental risk: Detem1ining the activities your business performs
which may have an impact on the environment. The level of impact they can or do
have. When detennining impacts consideration must be given to the severity and
longevity of the impact.
• Improve sustainability: By implementing just a few sustainabil ity improvements can gain
an edge and stay in front of rising costs giving business a greater chance of long tenn
success.

13. Outline at least three key components of an EMS.

• Environmental Policy: The Environmental Policy verbalizes the organization 's
commitment to be environmentally responsi ble. The content of the environmenta l policy
describes the organizations aspirations, evoking the degree of commitment by top
management and serving as a beacon to influence the behavior and actions of all mem
bers of the organization to high achievement for environmental protect ion.
• Planning: Identify environmental interactions and significant aspects; identify legal and
other requirements; and, develop environmental objectives, targets and the program in
which to achieve them
• Implementation and Operation: Define structure and responsibility; identify and an
effective EMS should immediately trigger a thorough investigation when an
environmenta l incident occurs. Such investigation should be designed to find the root
causes of the incident and to demonstrate promptness and completeness in your
responses to the incident.

14. Outline how a business can use environmenta l sustainabil ity indicators and two
examples of indicators that can be used.
Sustainability indicators help firms identify and prioritize sustainability actions by allowing
them to monitor their performance and changes. Food production can reveal the condition
of the soil, and thus the ability to feed the globe. Athe steady expansion in human
population shows that there is a limited resources.

15. Outline how a business can use life cycle management proced ures to assist with
implementing sustaina bi lity practices.
Life cycle management (LCM) could be applied in targeting, analysing, organising and
managing product-related data and operations in order to achieve continuous improvement
across the product life-cycle.

16. Outline at least two barriers to introducing pol icies and procedures, and strategies that
can be used to address each of the barriers you identify.
Two major barriers for the process of introduction of policies and procedures are:
• Ineffective leadershi p.
• Lack of proper communication.

Strategies that can aid to overcome them are

• Investing in training and development procedures of employees to promote them to

become strong leaders.
• Use reliable and appropriate technologies for communicat ion.