Sustainability now: Sustainability and value systems
(REDD+ economics advisor of UNEP, Ivo Mulder, says that changes to our natural environment through activities like deforestation will affect many businesses in a number of ways – Reuters )
n early October Ivo Mulder, a REDD+ economics advisor of UNEP, wrote an article titled ‘Valuing the Invaluable in Business’ where he elaborated on the difficulty of putting an economic value on our natural environment and links the reader to different kinds of tools with which businesses can prepare for the effects environmental challenges pose.
Given the difficulty of applying financial values to nature, often the environment’s value is considered ‘0’ or ‘priceless Nevertheless, it is also commonly understood by many that given the way humanity is currently progressing there will be a negative impact on society and businesses at a certain point in time; real economic and financial impacts.
The author describes different examples where unsustainable environmental conduct has already negatively affected the costs and revenues of businesses, such as the IOI Corporation and a Malaysian palm oil producer who faced a severe share price decrease linked with illegal deforestation in Indonesia.
Such developments influence not only the company itself but everyone who has put money into it such as stock and bond holders as well as banks and other investors.
“The takeaway message is that changes in our natural environment – deforestation, water scarcity and greenhouse gas emissions building up in our atmosphere – are real and if left unaddressed will affect many businesses in a vast multitude of ways. On the other hand, those who are well prepared and know how to navigate changes in consumer and investor preferences related to natural capital will be much better positioned to weather the storm,” the article states.
There are a number of tools out there which can guide and help businesses to evaluate their status and find customised solutions. Ivo Mulder mentions the “Natural Capital Coalition” and their protocol and sector guides, the “Natural Capital Declaration” or Bloomberg’s and NCD’s “Water Risk Tool”. “What these tools have in common is that they are Excel-based, free to download from the internet, focus exclusively on the financial impact of natural capital risks, and are customisable, meaning that anyone can override the assumptions in the model and add new companies,” asserts Mulder.
Evaluating opportunities
Besides the direct influence of environmental challenges on the balance sheet, companies are advised to have a proactive look at their corporate conduct and assess in which way it needs natural and social resources to run profitably.
Corporate leaders should in addition evaluate the opportunities arising from the changing world in developing businesses which as a basic understanding do not make things worse but are able to deal with natural and societal changes and further than that, create business models which improve the current situation our planet is in.
They can reap business opportunities based on these challenges, which include resource scarcity, greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, agriculture and land use, rising energy and food demand, and have profitable companies facilitating change in the right direction.
There are various companies which already understand these opportunities. In Sri Lanka for example, a renewable energy company which is focusing on biomass has in recent years built up a supply chain including more than 40,000 small farmers who grow Gliricidia, a sustainable, rapidly growing short rotation tree, within a triple fence around their land. Within a multitude of farmer trainings they were able to reach trusted and committed suppliers who were in turn reaping additional benefits such as being able to make organic fertiliser, pesticide and fungicide from the Gliricidia leaves and small branches which help them to save the Government’s subsidy for fertilisers.
How to make this organic fertiliser is also taught in the same farmer training. With this out grower model the company was able to plant 60 million trees across the North of Sri Lanka. To produce biomass only the large branches of the trees are cut, the stem however remains and is used as carbon sink. With this business model, the company is able to make money by facilitating environmental protection (fewer chemicals used in agriculture), increasing forests, increasing farmers’ incomes and skills and facilitating renewable energy to the country.
Earlier the opinion prevailed that companies were looking after jobs and profits and civil society was looking after society and environment. However this assumed often that companies were “excused” when they had a negative impact on both of the other two dimensions.
We as a society cannot afford such behaviour anymore. The time is gone when there was enough forest to be cut down and the only desire was to build a skyscraper or highway. We are going to lose out in the end if we continue to think that development goes hand-in-hand with construction and “getting rid of nature and anything which is considered old and out-fashioned”.
Green bonds
In Sri Lanka we look at the West and its “development” and in turn the West looks at Sri Lanka and its resources and still intact ecosystems. Yes, a society will always strive to develop, however we have to change the approach or we will end up in the same position the West now finds itself in – it might have the infrastructure we desire, however it faces a multitude of other issues which we have in common globally, and which are linked to the natural environment. The world is changing and with it its many industries as we have understood them so far.
“The market for green bonds is rapidly expanding with close to $ 700 billion of climate-aligned bonds outstanding in 2016. There are plans to issue the first green bond that would specifically finance commercially viable projects that have a positive effect on the sustainable landscape management,” wrote Mulder.
By June 2016, 579 companies had made pledges to remove forest destruction from their supply chain. This means that a company does not only need to show that it is not harming the environment to achieve finance from a green bond but it also needs to show the positive effect it has on the environment and this is one crucial game changer. Now it is not only about voluntary reporting. Now we talk about large-scale financing opportunities.
To measure one’s own impact there are a number of tools available such as the GRI guidelines, UN Global Compact, OECD guidelines, ISO standards, etc. where a company can measure its footprint. In addition, environmental and societal changes have to be considered in core management decisions depending on the nature of a company’s linkages with these dimensions.
Where such tools offer guidance and evaluation systems, rankings and ratings are often flawed based on the research method they apply. When looking at Forbes’ most sustainable companies in 2016, we have 50 global companies ranked with a large car company leading the group. Where the assessment looked into waste management, resource efficiency, human resource management and so on it did not evaluate the very core activities of companies from the angle outlined above.
Where for sure these companies invest significant time and resources in their sustainability activities their main business activities do not often reflect the sustainable development agenda. A company which needs large amounts of water in their factories does not only need to invest in small water projects in the country within CSR projects; it needs to ensure that the water it takes does not lead to shortages somewhere else. It needs to put systems into place that balance out the water demand of their production. Therefore, to look at the research method of such rankings is crucial.
Finally, as understood from Mulders’ article, whether being ranked or not, a company nowadays has to evaluate its impact as well as its dependence on the natural environment and society and set up its core business accordingly. A few years down the line no one is going to care about rankings anymore but rather about how to sustain their company in a world which is facing a multitude of challenges and there is no indication yet that these are going to reduce within societies and the natural environment. –
Source : 2/11/2016 Daily FT http://www.ft.lk/article/577477/Sustainability-now–Sustainability-and-value-systems#sthash.VtGYMl7c.dpuf
Sri Lanka focusing on Green Sustainable Development
Sri Lanka is focusing on green sustainable development as envisaged in the Maithri Palanayak Election Manifesto, said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in Parliament yesterday.
He said the government had already approved a Sustainable Development Council Bill and the same has been referred to Provincial Councils for their observations. He added that following their observations, the government could debate on it and pass the bill in Parliament, adding that following the bill being passed, the Sustainable Development Minister could come up with new plans for the future.
He made these observations moving the Ratification of the Paris Agreement on the United Nation’s Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted in New York on May 09, 1992.
He said that he was happy that Parliamentarians take a keen interest on the matter and he should also explain as to why a change in Parliamentary business is needed to bring this forward.
“Global Climate Change has captured our attention during the last few decades. The United Nations adopted the framework at the Convention on Climate Change in 1992. But the problem was that the countries could not agree to the steps to be taken. We can see how long it had taken for global countries to come into an agreement. The problem was that, developed countries did not need to control the emission as they thought their own development process would be affected, Premier Wickremesinghe said. “We are well aware that during the last two centuries, the the industrial revolution, the rapid development of the world economies, the World War 11, use of atomic weapons, the test on nuclear weapons, etc. have made a significant impact on the Global Climate Change. Therefore,concerning the Climate Change, the expected 1.5 to 2 Celsius degree increase is getting exceeded. As I told you earlier, the waters of the Mahaweli river could get affected, while tea cultivation too could be affected. Due to this reason, there had been many meetings held, while last was in Copenhagen which also ended without reaching any agreement despite the efforts made as many countries were looking at their own interest.”
He said that it was possible for a country to develop fast, while controlling its emissions. “We are happy that Europe and Japan took the lead on these matters. However, the Paris Climate Talks last year reached a decision. I won’t say that I was 100 percent satisfied with it, but it was a great leap forward. Now the process of ratification has commenced. For ratification requires fifty five percent of the countries with 55 percent of the global emission to ratify the agreement for it to come into force. Although many countries have agreed to it, there are still issues in some of the western countries and also in some of the Asian development economies. While they agree to control emissions, these are major issues coming up when they face the forthcoming elections in western countries this year and next year,” Premier Wickremesinghe said.
He said in this background, it gave us great encouragement that the President of the United States of America and the President of China agreed to ratify the agreement prior to the G 20 Meeting. “Following it, many countries and parliaments have decided to go ahead to ratify the agreement. Sri Lanka is concerned that President Maithripala Sirisena’s manifesto agreed to take all necessary measures to protect the environment. The President has taken over the Environmental Ministry and had taken many measures to protect the environment. So, we have a great responsibility to ratify this agreement. Sri Lanka has the ambition for rapid development, however it should be a green development.
The government has already approved a Sustainable Development Council Bill. It has been sent to the Provincial Councils. I have asked the Provincial Council Minister to expedite the process so that we could debate it and pass it here. Later, we could take other necessary measures. In this background, we have to ratify it quickly, by ensuring that at least by the time the UN General Assembly meets, there would be ample ratifications at the November meeting this year by the time this agreement would come into force. We had discussed this matter with President Maithripala Sirisena. We felt that Parliament should ratify this agreement before President Maithripala Sirisena’s visit to New York for the General Assembly in November. This is the last week that we could sit before the President’s visit to New York”, Premier Wickremesinghe said. “So we moved this agreement.”
Source :10/09/2016 Daily News http://epaper.dailynews.lk/art.asp?id=2016/09/10/pg10_0&pt=p&h=
Promoting Biogas among Local Technical Officers for Greener and Sustainable…
Promoting Biogas among Local Technical Officers for Greener and Sustainable Construction Efforts
Janathakshan Gte Ltd and People in Need, Cz conducted a biogas awareness and promotional workshop on renewable energy, biogas and waste management for 65 technical officers recently at the Western Province Waste Management Authority. The technical officers belonged to local authorities in Western Province and are those in-charge of construction. The workshop was conducted under the EU-funded SWITCH Asia initiative on “Up-scaling Biogas Technology for Sustainable Development and Mitigating Climate Change in Sri Lanka”.
The workshop focused on the importance of addressing the Food, Energy and Environment or FEE crises, the impact of increased personal consumption against the decreasing amount of natural resources and the availability of biogas technology as an alternative to a civilisation heavily dependent on fossil fuels.
“Biogas technology used to be popular a few decades back but with a different intent of when there was less access to electricity. However, priorities have changed today and we have shifted from gaining access to electricity to trying to manage waste in limited land area.With this training designed for construction officers in biogas units we hope that the units constructed at local authority level will be doneat higher quality standards,” said Project Manager DamithaSamarakoon.
The Project’s objectives includes creating partnerships in the five select project areas in order to not only ensure sustainability of the project following the project period but also to empower local authorities in the promotion of biogas in their localities.
“It’s important for us to start a large scale project on managing waste in Western Province. We should be able to recycle at least 30% of the degradable waste collected given that 60% of waste is already degradable especially if segregated at disposal,” said Waste Management Authority Director NalinManapperuma.
Adding to his statement was Waste Management Authority Chairman RuviniNadeeshaDharmasiri who believed that it was important “we switch to technologies such as biogas in order to recycle without making more use of existing water resources.”
The project is focused on up-scaling biogas technologies for sustainable development, responsible tourism, economic growth contributing to poverty reduction and climate change mitigation in Sri Lanka. The project targets tourism Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), households and public authorities in the country while building the technical capacity of manufacture and construction SMEs in biogas technologies. The EU SWITCH-Asia initiative assists tourism SMEs and households benefit from sustainable solid waste management and cost savings through energy and resource efficiency. Tourism SMEs adopting “green” technology will also increase their marketing potential and gain the access to “green finances” provided by micro-finance institutions.
Source:08/08/2016 Lanka Business online http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/promoting-biogas-among-local-technical-officers-for-greener-and-sustainable-construction-efforts/
RDA announces Highway Tree Planting Week
The Road Development Authority (RDA) in its efforts to reinforce sustainable development has identified an opportunity to plant trees on the wayside of the Southern Expressway.
At the invitation of Expressway Operation Maintenance and Management Division of the RDA, Sadaharitha Plantations Limited jointly launches a Highway Tree Planting Week and has offered 100 aquilaria plants. The tree planting activities took place in selected locations of the Southern Expressway from July 4 – 8, 2016. Marking this event plants were distributed to the Divisional Executive Engineer Offices at the Galanigama Expressway Interchange Office premises on Monday, July 4.
“Since 2010, the RDA has added greenery on the main roads and city roundabouts and isles. Today we have overcome a challenge in reforesting the Southern Expressway in an aesthetically pleasing manner. Our goal is to plant 50,000 trees in the RDA-owned properties situated on the wayside of the highway,” Director EOM and M Division Expressway Operation Maintenance and Management Division S. Opanayaka noted.
Drawing attention to the significant value of the project Sadaharitha Plantations Ltd Chairman Sathis Navarathne added, “We are more than happy to be part of this great effort. At Sadaharitha Plantations LTD we support efforts of bringing down carbon footprints every way we could, trees and forests are the most vital weapon we have against climate change.” Further elaborating on the importance of reforestation, University of Sri Jayewardenepura Forestry and Environmental Sciences Department Senior Lecturer Dr. Upul Subasinghe explained the importance of adopting to green economy concept using commercial valuable trees. Residents around the Galanigama area, Opanayaka, Nawarathne and Dr. Subasinghe graced the event. See more
Delicate balance between Development and environment
According to government reports, recent floods and landslides in Sri Lanka have caused widespread disruption across country. Over 400,000 people have been displaced by floods, many casualties have been reported, and dozens are feared missing. Government puts this down to climate change. Such disasters were on the discussion table since 2010, and it was to be expected.
Center for environmental and Nature studies (CENS), Sri Lanka repeatedly reached out to the Environment Ministry and relevant authorities to put a stop to the destruction of environmentally-sensitive areas while implementing the National Physical Plan. But such entreaties were blatantly disregarded. This capitalist system is bent on increasing profit for the business community and decreases quality of life. This article elaborates on the reasons for flooding, landslides and other disasters.
The National Physical Plan to be implemented from 2011 to 2030 creates serious negative impacts on the ecosystems, so far untouched by development interventions. As a result of Colombo-Matara Highway, Sinharaja forest would be fragmented twice and 39 forests, including Sinharaja will be destroyed due to the proposed-development activities. Bibile, Nilgala area would have tremendous negative repercussions as a result of the proposed-hotel complexes.
Forests act as a barrier to soil erosions. Roots systems of these trees hold the soil layers together, protecting the earth from landslides. Destruction of forest cover increases soil erosion and risk of landslides. The percentage value of available forest area in 2012 is around 16.5 and by 2030, it is estimated that this will be further reduced to between 13 to 10 per cent with the decrease of forests due to the implementation of National Physical Plan, if the current government decides to go through with it. Ground water levels in the forests will deplete, and rivers will suffer from acute water shortage and go dry. It has been identified that 103 rivers will turn dry as in the case of Maguru Oya which is almost completely dried out.
There are riffles and pools midstream of every river. According to our research observations, riffles and pools have been covered by concrete buildings and roads. Micro-hydro projects and mega-development projects have blocked water-feeding channels, in Kelani River, for example. Riffles and pools are located in Kaluaggala, Avisswella, Waga and Hanwella areas. Colombo-Avissawella Road and many building were built, blocking and destroying riffles and pools. This is the cause for the many floods and landslides in many areas.
Flow of water in the riverbed should be natural. In the Sri Lankan scenario, downstream riverbeds are filled with sediments, hindering the natural flow of water. Sediment is transport to riverbeds from flood plains; erosion and construction around rivers increase flood and landslides. For example, due to construction of Pico hydro power on top of Laxapana waterfall and Kitulgala, Kelani River receives tons of sediments. This has resulted in increased incidence of flooding in Hanwella and Colombo areas. Most rivers receive lots of sediments from mega highway construction activities and other mega development sites.
In the process of building large cities, highways, airports, tourist hotels, a large number of minor tanks will disappear and tank cascades will be blocked disrupting natural water flow. As a result, droughts and floods will become a recurrent feature in Anuradapura, Polonnaruwa, Trincomalee and Kurunegala.
Many floodplains are being ravaged by mega development projects. For example, a highway was built destroying Muturajawela wetland and many other wetlands in the country. Before the highway was built, not a single incident of flooding was reported in Kaduwela and Ja-Ela areas. Encroachment of floodplain has caused massive disasters in the past. Many floodplains have been converted to build sites of homes, businesses and other urban development activities.
This is most evident in Kelani River, during rainy season when water level of Kelani River goes up flooding human settlements built in the floodplain.
The Mahaweli Development Plan which kicked off with the anticipation of tremendous development within a short period resulted in ecological disasters such as landslides, increased incidence of floods, human-elephant conflict, land fragmentation and loss of biodiversity. The country is still paying debts to international funding agencies that funded Mahaweli Accelerated Development Programme. This trend continues with the development activities proposed under the National Physical Plan.
In another example, many people die in the Meeriaybedda landslide in 2014. The cause of the landslide is believed to be the drilling and blasting method used for rock breaking and tunnel drilling of the Uma Oya project. The vibration caused by the process subjects the area to the inevitable risk of landslides in the future.
We have enough environmental laws to protect nature and prevent disasters, but all laws are under political and monetary influence. Funds for the destructive National Physical Plan are provided by funding agencies such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
John Parkinson in his Book Confession of an Economic Hit Man recounts how countries like America believed in a rapid, tremendous development through and when they found that their developmental interventions failed one by one, they attempted to maintain their economy by exploiting other countries with high interest rates and conspiracies to topple governments acting against their policies and so-called development programmes.
In Parkinson’s view, the capitalist countries build hope in the minds of leaders in poor countries through their imaginary models for rapid economic development. One such example is Norochcholai Coal Power Project in Sri Lanka. The project has failed to provide any of the benefits promised at inception.
Parkinson further says that foreign companies provide loans through which developing countries can be caught in an everlasting debt trap. Capitalist countries make huge profits through interest charged for loans and exploitation of natural resources of the countries concerned. They are also concerned with appointing people who obey their policies and commands as the leaders of these countries.
Similar fate would befall Sri Lanka, if the current government is to follow through with the National Development Plan. Mega development does not sustain the world. Luxury apartments, highways, airports, megacities, supermarkets cannot be considered socio-economic indicators of a country. Though capitalist regimes unconditionally stand by the National Physical Plan, World Bank and Asian Development Bank agendas, they do not bother about the priorities of the vulnerable majority.
Source 30-05-2016 Nation( Sri Lanka http://nation.lk/online/2016/05/28/delicate-balance-between-development-and-environment.html
WFO Calls for Farmer-Centred Sustainable Development
LIVINGSTONE, Zambia, May 09 (IPS) – Over 600 delegates representing at least 570 million farms scattered around the world gathered in Zambia from May 4-7 under the umbrella of the World Farmers’ Organisation (WFO) to discuss climate change, land tenure, innovations and capacity building as four pillars on which to build agricultural development.
Among the local delegates was Mary Nyirenda, a farmer from Livingstone, where the assembly was held.
“I have a 35-hectare farm but only use five hectares due to water stress. With one borehole, I am only able to irrigate limited fields. I gave up on rainfall in the 2013/14 season when I lost about five hectares of maize to drought,” Nyirenda told IPS.
Privileged to be part of the 2016 WFO General Assembly, Nyirenda hoped to learn innovative ways to improve productivity and market access for her garden and poultry produce. But did the conference meet her expectations?
(Mary Nyirenda in her garden at her farm in Livingstone, Zambia. Credit: Friday Phiri/IPS)
“Yes it has, especially on market access. I’ve learnt that working as groups gives us a strong voice and bargaining power. I’ve been struggling on my own but now I understand that two is better than one, and so my task from here is to strengthen our cooperative which is still disjointed in terms of producer partnerships,” said Nyirenda, emphasising the power of farmer organisations – for which WFO exists.
Convened under the theme ‘Partnerships for Growth’, the clarion call by delegates throughout the conference was to change the narrative that, while they are at the centre of a multi-billion-dollar food sector, responsible for feeding the whole world, farmers are the world’s poorest people.
And WFO President Evelyn Nguleka says the situation has to change. “It is true that farmers in almost all corners of the world constitute the majority poor, but the question is why?” asked Nguleka while responding to journalists during the closing WFO General Assembly Press briefing.
She said the meeting established that poor organisation and lack of information were the major reasons for farmers’ lack of progress, noting, “If farmers remain in isolation, they will continue to be poor.”
“It is for this reason that we developed a legal tool on contract farming, which will be mostly useful for smallholders whose knowledge on legal matters is low, and are easily taken advantage of,” said David Velde, president of the National Farmers Union in the U.S. and a board member of WFO.
Velde told IPS that various tools would be required to help smallholders be well equipped to fully benefit from their work, especially in a world with an unstable climate, a sub-theme that found space in all discussions at the conference due to its multifaceted nature.
With technology transfer being one of the key elements of the sustainable development agenda as enshrined in the Paris climate deal, delegates established that both innovation and capacity building for farmers to improve productivity cannot be discussed in a vacuum.
“Agriculture is indeed a global sector that needs serious attention. The fact that a world farmers’ organization exists is a sign that food production, food security, climate change are global issues that cannot be looked at in isolation. Farmers need information on best methods and technologies on how best to enhance productivity in a climate conscious manner,” said Zambian President Edgar Lungu in his address to the WFO General Assembly.
In the world’s quest to feed the hungry 793 million people by 2030, and and the projected population growth expected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050, more than half in Africa, WFO is alive to the huge task that its members have, which can only be fulfilled through increased productivity.
“WFO is in recognition that the world has two conflicting issues on face value—to feed the world and mitigate climate change. Both require huge resources but we believe that it is possible to tackle both, through increased productivity using latest technology,” said William Rolleston, president of the Federated Farmers of New Zealand.
Rolleston, who is also Vice President of WFO, told IPS that while WFO’s work does not involve funding farmers, it helps its members to innovate and forge partnerships for growth.
It has long been recognised globally that climate change, if not tackled, could be a barrier to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). And this presented, perhaps, the hardest of choices that world leaders had to make—tackling climate change, with huge implications on the world’s productive capacity, which has over the years largely relied on a carbon intensive economy.
By approving the SDGs and the historic climate agreement last year, the world’s socio-economic agenda is set for a complete paradigm shift. However, WFO President Evelyn Nguleka wants farmers to remain the focus of the world’s policies.
“Whatever changes the world decides moving forward, it should not be at the expense of farmers to survive and be profitable,” she stressed.
For Nyirenda, access to markets holds the key to farmers’ productive capacity, especially women, who, according to FAO, constitute half of the global agricultural labour force, while in Africa, the figure is even higher—80 percent.
“My interactions with international organisations such as IFAD and others who are interested in women empowerment was a serious-eye opener moving forward,” she said.
Source: Inter Press Service–(May 2016)
New laws soon for sustainable development
Sri Lanka will soon introduce a new law on sustainable development which will help move the country towards more innovation and future-orientated thinking to inspire better buildings and businesses, Deputy Foreign Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva said.
The new law will come into effect with the launch of the proposed Development Agency. With the introduction of this new law Sri Lanka will become one of the first countries in Asia to legislate sustainable development, Dr. de Silva told Sunday Observer Business.
It is now at the last stage of vetting in the legal draughtsman’s office. “I personally got involved in writing the new law and worked closely with the Attorney General’s department. We wanted to incorporate the objectives of the sustainable development goals.
“What that means is environment and sustainability becomes something that gets incorporated in the body of the text rather than in an appendix. Therefore, green technology is going to be very important in the decisions we make in particular in the megapolis and other urban development projects in Sri Lanka. Clean technology and sustainable development together will help create good and quality jobs which are a major necessity in our country,” Dr. de Silva said. Currently there is no such law or policy in Sri Lanka.
“This move will encourage foreign investments as the investors are assured of a proper monitoring and coordinating body,” he said.
The government is in the process of setting up two key agencies – the Agency for Development and the International Trade Agency.
An International Trade Agency will be set up, with representation of the Foreign Ministry and Export Development Board, and the Department of Commerce.
Sustainable development has become necessary for all economic policymakers and stakeholders at the national and international levels to incorporate the concept of sustainability into their development strategies.
(Green technology – is important in the decisions we make in particular on the megapolis and other urban development project)
In Sri Lanka there are about 87different approvals to be taken from various different organizations prior to launching development projects.
The agency will coordinate and make sure that each individual agency has a plan for their institution.
If it is the Water Board or the Transport Board — whatever it is, we want to ensure they have followed the sustainability laws in their key performance indicators. It will be a monitoring process of sustainable development of the country and responsibilities are entrusted to every organization and investment project.
Parliament has power in ensuring that every investment project is green and sustainable.
(Source 08-05-2016 Sunday Observer-Sri Lanka )