sain t-gobain annu al report 2008 annual report

2008-2010 OBJECTIVE
ISO 14001 certification will be obtained for over 80%
of concerned sites by 2010, with 46% already certified
as of 2008. The sites concerned have been designated
by Sector/Division on the basis of their water use,
energy use, emission levels, waste volumes
and other environmental criteria (see Reporting
Methodology).
Substantial financial resources
Environmental spending in 2008 totaled €100 million,
including the following outlays:
• €22.3 million in personnel costs for environmental
management staff. This does not include salaries
of employees in charge of waste sorting, water treatment
activities or maintenance of gas treatment equipment.
• €1.7 million to obtain or renew ISO 14001 or EMAS
environmental certification. This includes all certificationrelated
expenses and charges for outside consultants,
internal and external training, the development and upkeep
of EMS and ISO 14001 systems, audits, and meetings
on the topic of certification coordination and review.
• €4.8 million for environmental taxes, including
all environmental management taxes and levies paid to local
authorities or associations such as water management
boards.
• €4.5 million for insurance and warranties, comprising
all insurance premiums covering accidents and pollution
with a potential environmental impact – including pollution
beyond the company’s property – and warranties
for environmental risks such as soil pollution.
• €0.3 million for environment-related fines, including
all fines levied by authorities as a result of regulatory
non-compliance or recent environmental incidents.
• €2 million to cover the cost of environmental incidents,
including the cost of making good environmental damage
arising from recent incidents and, where applicable,
the cost of restoring compliance.
• €6.2 million for technical measures, including the cost
of measuring air, groundwater and noise pollution
and other emission levels, the cost of measurements
carried out by independent laboratories, and the cost
of impact and hazard assessments requested by authorities
prior to granting operating permits and environmental
authorizations.
• €16.7 million to cover the cost of soil decontamination,
rehabilitation of decommissioned sites and miscellaneous
items.
• €41.5 million in environment-related Research
and Development spending.
Capital expenditure on environmental protection measures,
including spending on both compliance programs
and voluntary initiatives, totaled €94.5 million in 2008.
When the Group believes that it is exposed to an
environmental risk, a provision for the estimated future
cost is recorded in provisions for other liabilities. These
provisions totaled €158 million at December 31, 2008.
Comprehensive training
Training offers a unique opportunity to provide employees
at all levels in the organization with the knowledge
they need to fulfill EHS policy objectives. Environment,
health and safety matters accounted for 24,6% of training
hours provided in 2008.
The Group is actively defining a core EHS curriculum covering
essential and recommended training topics for each function.
This training is provided at local level with help from
the various Delegations. The courses address general
management issues as well as key areas such as risk
identification, industrial hygiene and environmental
compliance techniques, and audit procedures and feedback.
Group-wide SMAT training began during 2008 as well.
SMAT
SMAT (for Safety / Senior Management Audit Tool) is a
system that uses observation and discussion to raise
awareness among employees about how their behavior
impacts their own safety and that of their co-workers.
The Gypsum Division has been using SMAT for several
years and has made significant strides in establishing
a safe workplace, prompting the Group’s senior
management to decide to extend its use to all Sectors
in 2008. The CEO and Senior Vice President for Human
Resources received training in SMAT upon its initial
deployment, and in 2008 nearly 12,670 employees
with direct supervisory responsibilities and more than
2,300 managers and members of executive committees
were trained in the method.
Each Delegation uses a local service provider to conduct
the training, based on the Saint-Gobain SMAT standard,
which is available for consultation online on the EHS
intranet.
For International Environment, Health and Safety Day,
Saint-Gobain’s Chief Executive Officer and numerous
other executives, including General Delegates, Sector
and company directors, referred to SMAT in their
videotaped addresses to employees. A selection of their
comments regarding SMAT can be viewed on the EHS
intranet, and is available for use during training sessions.
In addition, a SMAT module has been included in various
courses offered by the Group’s Training Department.
MANAGEMENT REPORT
47
Saint-Gobain - 2008 Annual Report