On 5 March, the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration (DICA)’s Yangon office hosted MCRB for a half day training workshop on biodiversity and investment to 70 DICA and Environmental Conservation Department (ECD) staff. The workshops focused on DICA’s role in screening investment proposals in line with Environmental Impacts Assessment (EIA) Procedure.
Session 1: Introduction - Biodiversity, Human Rights and Business in Myanmar
1. Session 1: Introduction –
Biodiversity Human Rights
and Business in Myanmar
Vicky Bowman
Director, Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB)
DICA Office, Yangon
5 March 2019
3. This morning we will cover
U Aung Naing Oo, Director General, DICA - Welcome speech
Today’s presenters:
• Vicky Bowman, Director, MCRB
• Matthew Baird, Environmental Law and Policy
Session 1: INTRODUCTION – BIODIVERSITY, HUMAN RIGHTS AND BUSINESS IN
MYANMAR (20 min)
Session 2: LEGAL REQUIREMENTS, BIOSIVERSITY AND BUSINESS (20 min)
Session 3: A QUICK GUIDE TO USEFUL SOURCES (20 min)
CASE STUDIES/ROLE PLAY – Identifying potential impacts on biodiversity (50 min)
3
5. What is biodiversity?
5
Biodiversity: 'Biological diversity' means the
variability among living organisms from all sources
including, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic
ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which
they are part; this includes diversity within species,
between species and of ecosystems.
7. Why should companies care about
biodiversity?
7
Access to finance
Reduced conflict with stakeholders
Respecting human rights
Enhanced reputation
Reduced operational risks and liabilities
Reduced problems during permitting
Increased investor confidence
Opportunities to identify complementary
environmental/social initiative
9. Business and Human Rights
9
In 2017 the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and the
Environment, John Knox, described the importance of biodiversity and
related ecosystem services for human rights… “ the full enjoyment of
human rights depends on ecosystem services” (i.e. those benefits
contribute to making human life both possible and worth living).
Knox states that “businesses have a responsibility to respect the rights
relating to biodiversity”
Although everyone depends on ecosystem services, some people
depend on them more closely than others. Indigenous peoples can be
particularly vulnerable to impacts on their biodiversity related rights.
11. Eco-system services
11
Provisioning
services such as
food, water,
timber, fibre, and
generic resources
Regulating
services such as
regulation of
climate, floods,
and water quality
Cultural services
such as
recreation,
aesthetic
enjoyment,
spiritual fulfilment
Supporting
services such as
soil formation and
nutrient cycling
Ecosystem Service are the benefits provided by ecosystems to humans. These include:
Natural capital can be defined as the
world's stocks of natural assets which
include geology, soil, air, water and all living
things.
It is from this natural capital that humans
derive a wide range of services, often called
ecosystem services, which make human life
possible.
13. Impacts on Biodiversity
13
Impacts on terrestrial biodiversity
Impacts on aquatic biodiversity
Air quality and noise related impacts
Direct impacts might include habitat loss and disturbance (noise, light, land
or shipping traffic), emissions and effluents, hydrological effects, loss of
provisioning services.
Indirect impacts might include the accidental introduction and spread of
invasive species, in-migration and associated impacts on resources.
Cumulative impacts are the total impact arising from the project (under the
control of the developer), other activities (that may be under the control of
others)
19. Briefing Paper on Biodiversity, Human Rights
and Business in Myanmar
Section 1 explains the ‘nexus’ between business, biodiversity and human rights,
and the business case for addressing biodiversity and ecosystem services
Section 2 provides an overview of biodiversity in Myanmar, with emphasis on
the biodiversity resources that are likely to be affected by private sector
activities and the major threats to them
Section 3 provides an overview of the policy and legal framework and
institutional arrangements related to biodiversity and addresses compliance
with biodiversity aspects of Myanmar’s environmental laws and regulations,
including Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
Section 4 looks at how Myanmar’s EIA process can be used by companies to
improve outcomes for biodiversity and related human rights
Section 5 provides an overview of international standards, practice and tools
and application of international good practice on biodiversity protection by
business, including in EIAs
English: https://www.myanmar-responsiblebusiness.org/resources/briefing-
paper-biodiversity-human-rights-and-business.html 19
21. Supplements
The Nexus between Biodiversity, Ecosystem
Services and Human Rights: Further Reading
Biodiversity in Myanmar, including Protected Areas
and Key Biodiversity Areas
Local and international environmental organisations
working on biodiversity conservation and
ecosystems services in Myanmar
The paper is also accompanied by short briefing
notes on biodiversity impacts of the oil and gas,
mining, tourism and agriculture sectors.
These sectoral briefing notes cover potential
biodiversity/human rights impacts, and links to
sources of more detailed guidance.
21
27. O&G Companies
MUST
Comply with the contractual obligation to conduct operations in
accordance with international standards in the recent Product
Sharing Contracts (PSCs) and apply IFC Performance Standard 6
Ensure that Initial Environmental Examination (IEEs), EIAs and
Environmental Management Plans (EMPs) follow the legal
requirements of the EIA Procedure
Ensure any EIA incorporates biodiversity considerations at each
stage, including in Biodiversity Action Plans developed as part of
EMP
Publish on the company website all draft EIAs once submitted to
MONREC for consideration, in line with the legal requirement in the
EIA Procedure
Publish all subsequent monitoring reports submitted to MONREC
27
SHOULD
Develop an informed and proactive approach to managing and protecting biodiversity by applying relevant guidance for the
O&G sector
collaborate with MONREC and environmental NGOs to share relevant biodiversity data including through platforms
29. Mining impacts
Large spatial habitat loss, often in natural/critical
habitats
May affect unique biodiversity, including species
which are endemic or new-to-science
Barrier creation, edge effects and fragmentation
Induced clearing due to opening up new areas
Impacts to ecosystem services (water, fisheries
etc.)
Induced hunting and poaching
Aquatic ecosystem impacts from water use,
discharges and contamination
Introduction of invasive species
29
31. Mining companies
MUST
Respect legally Protected Areas
Ensure any EIA incorporates biodiversity considerations at each stage,
including in Biodiversity Action Plans developed as part of EMP
Publish on the company website all draft EIAs (and EMPs) once
submitted to MONREC for consideration, in line with the legal
requirement in the EIA Procedure
Publish all subsequent monitoring reports submitted to MONREC
SHOULD
Commit to not mine or explore in World Heritage properties, where
these are identified in Myanmar
Develop an informed and proactive approach to managing and
protecting biodiversity by applying relevant guidance for the mining
sector
31
33. Tourism impacts
Land acquisition for tourism developments or supporting infrastructure:
• natural-resource dependent communities are involuntary resettled
• land that provides important ecosystem services is cleared e.g.
mangroves
Competition for limited resources especially water
Increased pollution:
• inland waterways and coastal areas (including mangroves and coral
reefs), as a result of discharges of inadequately treated sewage
• unsanitary disposal or burning of domestic/commercial waste from
tourism facilities
Physical barriers (e.g. hotel or marina) restricts access of local people to
ecosystem services e.g. beach for fishing or recreation
Pressure on biodiversity and other ecosystems services
• Eg snorkelling and dropping anchors on coral reefs, fishing and taking
shells, bushmeat, turtle eggs etc
33
EIA should cover
not only impacts of
hotels and other
infrastructure, but
also management
of impact of visitors
NB Myanmar
domestic tourists 5
million; foreign
tourists 1 million per
annum
35. Tourism businesses
MUST
Adhere to all applicable Myanmar environmental laws
Only locate tourism developments in or adjacent to current/planned legally
Protected Areas and World Heritage Sites if they have legal permission to do so
Ensure any EIA incorporates biodiversity considerations at each stage, including in
Biodiversity Action Plans developed as part of EMP
Publish, on the company website, all draft EIAs (and EMPs) once submitted to
MONREC for consideration, and subsequent monitoring reports
SHOULD
Develop an informed and proactive approach to managing andprotecting
biodiversity
Educate staff and tourists about the importance of protecting biodiversity
Collaborate with MONREC and environmental NGOs to share relevant biodiversity
data including through specific platforms
35
37. Impacts from Agriculture
Large spatial habitat loss, often in natural/critical
habitats
May affect unique biodiversity, including species
which are endemic or new-to-science
Induced hunting and poaching
Aquatic ecosystem impacts from water use,
discharges and contamination
Species disturbance and loss
Overexploitation of resources
Ecosystem change
Habitat change due to climate change 37
39. MUST
NOT locate plantations in, or adjacent to, legally Protected Areas or in areas
that have been designated to be set aside for Protected Areas
Ensure any EIA incorporates biodiversity considerations at each stage,
including in Biodiversity Action Plans developed as part of EMP
Publish on the company website all draft EIAs (and EMPs) once submitted
to MONREC for consideration
SHOULD
Align practices with guidelines set out in commodity certification schemes
such as the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)
Develop an informed and proactive approach to managing and protecting
biodiversity by applying relevant guidance for the agriculture sector
Collaborate with MONREC and environmental NGOs to share relevant
biodiversity data including through platforms
Agricultural companies
39
41. Session 3: A quick guide to
useful sources
Inga Makusheva
Programme Manager, Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB)
DICA Office, Yangon
5 March 2019
42. အပိုင္း (၃)း၊ အားိုးဝင္ ားမ အ္င္းအျ စ္ မးလ ္းကုမ္
Inga Makusheva
Programme Manager, Myanmar Centre for Responsible Business (MCRB)
DICA Office, Yangon
5 March 2019
43. Key Myanmar sources
Myanmar Marine Biodiversity Atlas (Wildlife Conservation Society)
marine.myanmarbiodiversity.org
Myanmar Biodiversity myanmarbiodiversity.org
Myanmar Environmental Portal mya.gms-eoc.org/themes/biodiversity
Wildlife Conservation Society Myanmar programs.wcs.org/myanmar/
Myanmar Biodiversity Clearing House Mechanism
http://www.myanmarchm.gov.mm/biodiversity/bio_myanmar
Myanmar Alliance for Conservation https://myanmarbiodiversity.org/
The Myanmar National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP)
describes national biodiversity priorities and conservation planning.
One Map Myanmar (OMM)
https://www.facebook.com/OneMapMyanmar/
GEF/Phandeeya (open data projects) http://phandeeyar.org/
MyLAFF is a forum for sharing information about Land, Agribusiness,
Forestry issues in Myanmar www.mylaff.org
43
45. Key International sources
Proteus Partners www.proteuspartners.org
Integrated Biodiversity Assessment Tool for Business (IBAT)
https://www.ibatforbusiness.org
Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) www.gbif.org
Areas of Biodiversity Importance www.biodiversitya-z.org
IUCN Red List of Threatened ecosystems www.iucnrle.org
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species www.iucnredlist.org
Conservation gateway, Nature Conservancy
www.conservationgateway.org
WWF Ecoregions Ecoregions Conservation
Intact Forest Landscapes
http://www.intactforests.org/index.html
45
46. Oil and Gas Sector
For more on human rights impacts of the sector, see Oil &
Gas Sector Wide Impact Assessment (MCRB, 2014)
Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services: Good Practice
Guidance for Oil and Gas Operations in Marine
Environments (FFI, 2017)
Ecosystem Services Guidance: Biodiversity and
Ecosystem Services Guide and Checklist (IPIECA, 2011)
Biodiversity and ecosystem services fundamentals:
Guidance document for the oil and gas industry (IPIECA,
2016)
Integrating Biodiversity Conservation into Oil & Gas
Development and
Negative Secondary Impacts of Oil & Gas Development
(Energy and Biodiversity Initiative (EBI), 2006) 46
47. Mining sector
For more on human rights impacts of the sector, see
Sector Wide Impact Assessment of Limestone, Gold
and Tin Mining in Myanmar (MCRB, 2018)
Mining and Biodiversity Guideline: Mainstreaming
biodiversity into the mining sector (Pretoria, 2013)
Biodiversity: science and solutions for Australia (FFI,
2014)
Good Practice Guidance for Mining and Biodiversity
(ICCM, 2006)
A cross-sector guide for implementing the Mitigation
Hierarchy (CSBI, 2015)
Good Practices for the Collection of Biodiversity
Baseline Data (Gullison, R. 2015) 47
48. Tourism Sector
For more on human rights impacts of the sector, see Myanmar Tourism Sector Wide Impact
Assessment (MCRB, 2015)
Convention on Biological Diversity page on Biodiversity and Tourism
Tourism Supporting Biodiversity: A Manual on applying the CBD Guidelines on Biodiversity
and Tourism Development (UNDP, UNEP, 2015)
Guidelines for tourism partnerships and concessions for protected areas: Generating
sustainable revenues for conservation and development (Spenceley, A., 2017)
Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) Criteria for hotels, tourism operators and
destinations
Siting and Design of Hotels and Resorts Principles and Case Studies for Biodiversity
Conservation (IUCN)
Sustainable Coastal Tourism Handbook for the Philippines (Hüttche, C.M., A.T. White and
M.M.M. Flores, 2002)
Tourism and Biodiversity – Achieving Common Goals Towards Sustainability (UNWTO, 2010)
IFC’s Performance Standards and especially PS6 (IFC, 2012)
Environmental, Health, and Safety Guidelines for Tourism and Hospitality Development (IFC)
48
49. Agriculture Sector
For a more on human rights impacts of the oil palm sector in Myanmar, see
MCRB’s forthcoming “Sector Wide Impact Assessment of the Oil Palm
Sector in Myanmar” (2019)
Agribusiness and the SDGs: How the agribusiness sector in ASEAN can
embrace the Sustainable Development Goals (CSR Asia, 2017)
Sustainable Agriculture for Biodiversity: Biodiversity for Sustainable
Agriculture (FAO, 2016)
Incentives for Ecosystem Services in Agriculture (IES) FAO (2015)
Better Management Practices and Agribusiness Commodities Phase Two
Report: Commodity Guides (IIED, ProForest, 2004)
Protecting Biodiversity by Working with Agribusiness Supply Chains (UNDP,
2011)
A Practical Handbook for Conserving High Conservation Value Species and
Habitats within oil palm landscapes (ZSL, 2011)
Practical Toolkit for Identifying and Monitoring Biodiversity in Oil Palm
Landscapes (ZSL, 2013)
49
50. Hydropower Sector
Strategic Environmental Assesment (SEA) of the Hydropower Sector in Myanmar
Resources Page (IFC)
MONREC and MOEE with support from IFC and the Australian government
All projects of 10 MW capacity or greater in Myanmar
55 consultation activities across Myanmar
Covers:
• 6 river basins: Ayeyarwady, Thanlwin, Mekong, Sittaung, Bago and Belin
• 2 coastal basins: Tanintharyi and Rakhine
• 58 sub-basins
Provides clear direction to decision makers and developer
Can help maintain healthy basins over the next 100 years and beyond
Can improve access to international financing
Read the full report English / Myanmar
Read the Executive Summary English / Myanmar / Kachin / Karen / Shan /
Mandarin / Thai 50
51. Biodiversity Data from the Private Sector
• Seven O&G companies collated
visual marine fauna sightings data
collected by marine fauna
observers (MFOs) during seismic
surveys in the offshore waters of
northwest Myanmar in the Bay of
Bengal between 2015 and 2017.
• 580 marine mammal (whale
and dolphin) sightings – 29,421
individuals
• 228 turtle sightings (267
individuals)
• Some were new species for
Myanmar waters