Development of a sustainability management system for petroleum companies

• Main Author: Irhoma, Ammar
• Published: Nottingham Trent University 2017
• Online Access: http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.728847

Petroleum companies contribute to the largest proportion of environmental degradation in Libya. In support, the 2014 environmental performance index ranks Libya 120th out of 178 countries which suggest the country faces serious environmental degradation, unlike the developed countries. It is necessary to critically investigate the key environmental sustainability issues faced by the Libyan petroleum companies to develop a Sustainability Management System (SMS). The research aims to develop a SMS for the petroleum companies through critical investigations of sustainability-related impacts, issues, and barriers to the sustainability approaches, and to develop suggestions for reduction of the adverse effects. The mixed-methods approach involved a survey-based questionnaire and field visits for interviews (semi-structured) with a number of stakeholders. An Environmental Impact Assessment study (EIA) was also conducted as a case study in one of the field visits. Furthermore, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study to Libyan crude oil. The survey questionnaire was used to collect data from the workers. The interviews provide insight into the concerns, barriers, and challenges from the policy makers, environmentalists, and industrial professionals at a senior level. The use of life-cycle assessment (LCA) has further outlined the environmental impact assessment (EIA) of the petroleum industry in Libya. Data analysis was performed through triangulation of the qualitative and quantitative approaches. The LCA results show that there are diverse environmental impacts caused by the Libyan petroleum industry, which require the implementation of an SMS to minimise these impacts. EIA results revealed high levels of environmental impacts mainly associated with air emissions such as GHGs and hazardous H2S along with oil spillages, at the upstream and downstream levels of production. Interviews and the survey confirmed that there are issues/obstacles associated with sustainability in the Libyan petroleum sector which limits the provision of quality and efficient services. The current approaches adopted by companies are neither matched with the developments in the sustainability field in other developed countries nor fit, with the managerial or governance processes. The proposed SMS, applicable in developing countries, proposes the incorporation of environmental factors to increase the scope of stakeholders’ participation in the process, as well as the environmental performance of petroleum companies.