We provide tools and expertise to help stakeholders prepare for emergencies and account for the environmental risks and benefits of extraction.
Emergency preparedness
Preparing for environmental emergencies is essential to reducing the secondary impacts of the disaster and allowing for an effective response and timely recovery. Better planning in the extractives industry can pave the way for a smooth response, minimizing environmental and social impact. The Environmental Emergencies Centre (EEC), founded in 2012, is an initiative of the UN Environment Programme/OCHA Joint Environment Unit, developed in close coordination with the Advisory Group on Environmental Emergencies. The EEC is for communities, governments and other stakeholders seeking to increase their ability to respond effectively when disasters strike.
Accounting for risks and benefits
In 2022, UNEP Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) conducted a financial risk assessment of harmful marine extractive industries on the long-term development of the Blue Economy. As the extraction of non-renewable marine resources such as oil, gas and seabed mineral deposits poses a significant risk to the ocean, risk forecasting is essential in supplementing guidance on responsible extraction. Equally, through Proteus, a collaboration of the UN Environment Programme-World Conservation Monitoring Centre and 11 major mining and oil and gas companies and the Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool, biodiversity data has been integrated into extractive development decisions for over a decade, mitigating the potential impact on globally, regionally and nationally important species and areas of biodiversity.
