Oil and gas are non-renewable resources. Nevertheless, since they are bound to remain a significant part of the global energy mix for many years to come, the industry needs to develop sustainability strategies that go beyond the prevention of air, land and water pollution and ensure the safety and security of not only of those who work in oil and gas, but also of the populations that reside in the proximity of their facilities.
The adoption by the United Nations of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) may have been the trigger that encouraged the oil and gas sector to put more efforts in transforming the industry and leading it towards greater sustainability.
An atlas and a roadmap
In their 2017 report, Mapping the oil and gas industry to the sustainable development goals - An Atlas, three organizations – the Global Oil and Gas Industry Association for Environmental and Social Issues (IPIECA), the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) – explained what the implications of the SDGs were for the oil and gas sector and how the industry could effectively contribute. In 2021, IPIECA, together with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development issued Accelerating action: an SDG roadmap for the oil and gas sector, to prioritize areas where the sector can significantly impact SDG progress.
While IPIECA initially declared that the oil and gas sector could potentially make valuable contributions to all 17 SDGs, it later identified the goals where companies could really make a difference:
- SDG 3: Good health and well-being
Health impact assessments; road safety; worker and community protection - SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation
Water strategy; water use efficiency; water risk management - SDG 7: Affordable and clean energy
Energy efficiency; natural gas; alternative energies - SDG 8: Decent work and economic growth
Skills assessment; local employment; workforce and supplier development - SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Sustainable infrastructure; shared use infrastructure; technology transfer - SDG 13: Climate action
Resilience and adaptive capacity; emission mitigation; strategic planning - SDG 14: Life below water
Accident prevention and response; environmental assessments; ocean acidification minimization - SDG 15: Life on land
Ecosystem management; mitigation hierarchy; biodiversity offsets
Tools helping to achieve the SDGs
For many years, the oil and gas sector has had at its disposal a series of tools that can help in its efforts to contribute to the UN SDGs. Through its standardization and conformity assessment work, IEC provides some of these tools. The IEC has been at the forefront of Ex standardization for many years, preparing international standards and establishing IECEx, one of the four IEC Conformity Assessment (CA) Systems that provides testing and certification for all types of Ex equipment and related services, as well as personnel competence.
IEC TC 31: Equipment for explosive atmospheres, has published a complete series of international standards that cover all specific requirements for Ex electrical and non-electrical equipment and systems. These include general requirements and protection levels for apparatus used by all sectors that operate in hazardous environments, such as oil refineries, offshore oil rigs, gas plants, mines, sugar refineries, flour mills, grain silos and the paper and textile sectors.
Protecting installations and people against risks from explosive atmospheres is not only the result of comprehensive standardization work from IEC TC 31. It is also due, to a great extent, to the work of IECEx, the IEC System for Certification to Standards relating to Equipment for use in Explosive (Ex) Atmospheres.
IECEx at a glance
IECEx, the IEC System for Certification to Standards Relating to Equipment for Use in Explosive Atmospheres, provides:
- a robust and credible system for the operation of standardized certification schemes
- a dedicated IECEx website
- online certificates in real time
- a forum for the industry and stakeholders to have a voice in the running of the IECEx schemes
IECEx has the mechanisms in place to help industry, authorities and regulators ensure that electrical and non-electrical equipment as well as the people working in Ex locations benefit from the highest level of safety.
The System is truly international and has been endorsed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) as the world’s best practice model for the verification of conformity to international standards for explosive atmospheres.
Testing and assessment under the IECEx certified equipment scheme are accepted in all its member countries and beyond. The System provides access to global markets and drastically reduces costs by eliminating multiple re-testing and certification.
The global solution for Ex environments
Taken together, standardization work by IEC TC 31 and the IECEx system provide a global comprehensive solution to address many of the risks found in Ex environments. Their work is ongoing, as new risks arise and as new solutions are found.
Together IEC TC 31 and IECEx can help advance the objectives of the oil and gas industry in meeting the SDGs. Fire- and explosion-proof equipment, a skilled and experienced workforce certainly contribute to a safer work environment and a safer environment.
More information on IECEx: www.iecex.com