Integrating Human Rights Into Environmental, Social And Health Impact .

PART 1Human rights issuesand impacts in the oiland gas industryil and gas projects can have a range of impacts—both positive and negative—on the human rightsenjoyment of individuals, groups and communities. Forexample, development of oil and gas projects cancontribute to local economies through the generationof revenue for the government or through the creationof jobs. This in turn can have positive impacts onindividuals’ rights to work and on their ability toachieve an adequate standard of living. On the otherhand, resettlement or adverse impacts on livelihoods, ifleft unmanaged, may infringe on the rights toproperty, health and an adequate standard of living forthose affected.OHuman rights are generally defined as basic standards oftreatment to which all people are entitled, regardless ofsex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language,or any other status. The Universal Declaration of HumanRights lists the core human rights to which all humanbeings are entitled, including thirty different rights andfreedoms, covering civil, cultural, economic, political andsocial rights. Appendix 2 on page 32 lists keyinternational human rights resources. The IPIECA HumanRights Training Tool 4 provides learning on thebackground and current state of play of the humanrights and business arena.Consistent with the United Nations Guiding Principleson Business and Human Rights (UNGPs), oil and gascompanies have the responsibility to respect humanrights. Furthermore, companies should exercise duediligence to become aware of, prevent and addressadverse human rights impacts linked to their activities(see Appendix 3 on page 36).IPIECA DIHRWHAT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACTS?Human rights impacts are influenced largely by the localhuman rights context and the nature of a project’sspecific activities. To be consistent with the UNGPs, thefull range of human rights impacts needs to beconsidered, including those caused or contributed to bythe project, cumulative impacts, and those directlylinked to the project, e.g. through business relationships(see Box 1). An adverse human rights impact occurswhen an action removes or reduces the ability of anindividual to enjoy her or his human rights. The humanrights due diligence process, as articulated by theUNGPs, focuses companies on identifying andaddressing adverse impacts; this is therefore the mainfocus of this Guide. However, the positive contributionsto development by the oil and gas industry should berecognized, and ESHIAs also play a role as a tool toidentify relevant opportunities.Table 1 (pages 5–9) provides a listing of relevant humanrights and possible situations in the oil and gas industry.Further examples are also available in the IPIECA HumanRights Training Tool 4 and IPIECA’s Human rights duediligence process: a practical guide to implementation foroil and gas companies2.BOX 1TYPES OF HUMAN RIGHTS IMPACTSAn actual impact is already present in the project area priorto the project initiation. Legacy impacts are those caused byprevious operators or activities, e.g. insufficient compensationprovided to communities following government-ledresettlement undertaken in relation to project activities.A potential impact is one that may occur at some point, e.g.the project design shows the need for a permanentresettlement of households.A project may cause human rights impacts, e.g. ifdiscrimination occurs in a hiring process.A project may contribute to human rights impacts, e.g. if ituses project contractors with poor labour practices.A project may be directly linked to an impact, e.g. if publicsecurity forces stationed to protect assets use excessive forceagainst protesters.3

IPIECA DIHRASSESSMENT OF POTENTIAL HUMANRIGHTS IMPACTSHuman rights impacts can be identified, assessed andmanaged through a range of company processes andassessments. ESHIAs are already well established in theoil and gas industry. Therefore, integrating humanrights into ESHIAs presents an opportunity for sectorcompanies to assess and address human rights impactsby building on existing systems. For example, some ofthe parallels and overlaps between ESHIAs and theassessment of human rights include the following:1. Issue areas typically considered in ESHIAs are similarto those that are key to human rights, for exampleresettlement, community health and livelihoods.2. Core human rights principles—participation,accountability and transparency, non-discrimination,empowerment and linkage to the internationalhuman rights framework—align in spirit with thesocial impact assessment (SIA) principles of the SIAcommunity7 (see Appendix 5).3. There are significant parallels between the ESHIAand human rights-based approaches, in terms ofprocesses relating to data collection and targetstakeholder groups. For this reason, integratinghuman rights into ESHIAs can be an efficient way ofavoiding or reducing stakeholder engagementfatigue.74Vanclay (2003). Social Impact Assessment—International blications/SP2.pdfWhile there are significant parallels between ESHIAs andthe assessment of human rights impacts, there are alsosome areas of human rights impacts which are not, inpractice, always included in the scope of ESHIAs, orwhich, if included in scope, may warrant furtherattention in practice. Examples include: labour issues with contractors, and within the goodsand services supply chain for the project; post-conflict or conflict-sensitive areas; security activities related to operations; gender analysis, Indigenous Peoples and focus onvulnerable individuals and groups (see pages 27–29for further details); community impacts related to business relationshipsor activities (e.g. partners, government actors or jointventures operations); legacy human rights impacts associated with theactivities of previous operators; cumulative impacts, involving human rights impactsof other companies operating in the same area; and project and in-migration impacts such asoverloading infrastructure and social services.When considering how to integrate human rightsconsiderations into ESHIAs, companies need to payparticular attention to these subject areas and makeconscious decisions about whether such issues are bestcovered as part of the ESHIA process, through othercompany due diligence processes, or in a dedicatedhuman rights impact assessment (HRIA).

INTEGRATING HUMAN RIGHTS INTO ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENTSTABLE 1 EXAMPLES OF RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS AND RELATED SITUATIONS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRYTopic areasExamples of relevanthuman rightsLand andproperty WorkersRight to ownpropertyRight to adequatehousingRight to a standardof living adequate forthe health and wellbeing of theindividual andhis/her familyRight to participatefreely in the culturallife of communityTreatment of workersshould be consistentwith the InternationalLabour Organization(ILO) Core LabourConventions, i.e.: allow freedom ofassociation andcollective bargaining; prohibit the hiring ofunderage workers, asdefined in relevantILO Conventions; prohibit recruitment,use and practices offorced labour; prohibitdiscrimination inhiring practices orpay; and provide just andfavourable workingconditions.Relevance to the oiland gas industryViewing ESHIA through a human rights lensThe project may acquireland, permanently ortemporarily for use duringconstruction or operations. Communities or individualsmay live on the land anduse it for housing. Theymay use the land foragriculture, watercollection, foraging orother livelihood-securingpurposes. The land mayalso be of cultural, religiousor spiritual value tocommunities orindividuals. Phases of the projectlifecycle will have differentworkforce profiles andintensities. Certain workmay be subcontracted,sometimes multiple times,to various subcontractorswho may hire migrant ortemporary workers.ESHIAs typically consider impacts related to thepresence of contracted workers, e.g. impacts oncommunity health and well-being; they are less likelyto consider the impacts on the welfare of the workersand their dependents. Where potential workerimpacts on human rights are not covered by othercompany processes, consider including them withinthe ESHIA or human rights impact assessmentprocess. Relevant considerations from a human rightsperspective may include: safe and healthy work place conditions; provision of food and water for drinking andsanitation; working conditions and accommodation standards; provision of appropriate personal protectiveequipment (PPE) (by the employer or contractor); whether contract terms and conditions aretransparent and understood by workers prior torecruitment; whether workers have been required to payexcessive recruitment or transportation fees, or tolodge their identity documents or working papers; freedom of movement in and out of the workplaceand workforce accommodation; wages reflective of industry standards/minimumwage; access to workforce grievance mechanisms; and provision of sufficient rest periods and rest days toavoid fatigue.Types of activities whereworker’s human rights maybe at greater risk includeconstruction services,maintenance, security, andfacilities-related servicessuch as cleaning, laundryand catering. Seek to conduct meaningful consultation andengagement with communities who may dependon the land.Consider implications for vulnerable individuals orgroups including indigenous or nomadic peoples.Also consider secondary impacts on specific groupswithin the community; for example, where womenare primary land workers, removal of their access towork the land could also undermine their role in thecommunity.Seek to understand the historical record andcontext relating to land acquisition in the area, andcheck for legacy issues relating to involuntaryresettlement or forced displacement.Consider whether people using the land have title,and if not whether / how they may be compensated.Seek restoration of housing and livelihoods wherephysical or economic resettlement cannot beavoided.continued 5

IPIECA DIHRTABLE 1 EXAMPLES OF RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS AND RELATED SITUATIONS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY (continued)Topic areasExamples of relevanthuman rightsLivelihood Communityhealth andaccess topublicservices Relevance to the oil andgas industryViewing ESHIA through a human rights lensRight to a standardof living adequate forthe health and wellbeing of theindividual andhis/her familyRight to foodRight to work and tojust and favourableconditions of work(see above)Right to educationRight to freedom ofexpression andaccess to informationRight to the highestattainable standardof physical andmental healthProjects and operationsmay impact both positivelyand negatively upon thelivelihood-sustainingactivities of localcommunities andindividuals. Right to the highestattainable standardof physical andmental healthRight to educationRight to participatefreely in the culturallife of thecommunityRight to equal accessto public service inown countryProjects and operationsmay have an impact oncommunity health andaccess to public services ina variety of ways.People may be dependentupon natural resources forcommercial or subsistenceincome. For example, theproject may require marineexclusion zones, whichcould impact upon localfishing activities, or landacquisition for buffer zonescould impact upon localagricultural activities. Consider whether theproject may: open access topreviously remoteinhabited areas; increase migrant/foreignworkers, leading to anincrease in infectiousdiseases or STDs; put pressure on localhealth resources andinfrastructure, reducingaccess to these services; physically inhibitpeoples’ access to, or useof, public services suchas education; and lead to distortion of localfood prices and basicnecessities. Seek to conduct meaningful consultation andengagement with communities whose livelihoodsmay be impacted by the project, and seek toconsider the significance of the impact from theirperspective.Consider implications for vulnerable communities,including indigenous or nomadic peoples, singleheaded households, individuals below the povertyline, and those who may rely upon subsistence fortheir livelihoods.Consider the potential impact of a change in localemployment patterns or a shift in demand for localskills or competencies resulting from the project oroperation. For example, what is the impact uponchildren’s right to basic education if schoolteachersare recruited to work in more lucrative roles withinthe project.Consider whether information on community orpublic health received from the government isaccurate, for example statistics on certain types ofdiseases and rates of infection or demographicsaffected.Consider whether detailed baseline information oncommunity or public health is available from publicsources, or whether information will have to becreated.Consider in a disaggregated manner, the potentialimpact on different communities or individuals,including vulnerable groups or individuals. Theirresilience to impacts may differ.Where possible, engage directly with potentiallyimpacted communities and individuals. In certaincontexts, it may be helpful to disaggregatestakeholders based on gender, age, ethnicity,sexuality, religion, and susceptibility to specificdiseases or disabilities.continued 6

INTEGRATING HUMAN RIGHTS INTO ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH IMPACT ASSESSMENTSTABLE 1 EXAMPLES OF RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS AND RELATED SITUATIONS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY (continued)Topic areasExamples of relevanthuman rightsSecurity Right to life, libertyand security ofpersonRight to freedomfrom torture or cruel,inhuman ordegrading treatmentor punishmentRight to freedomfrom arbitrary arrest,detention or exileRight of detainedpersons to humanetreatmentRight to freedom ofassembly, freedom ofassociation andcollective bargainingRight to a fair trialRight to an effectiveremedyThe industry seeks toprotect people andassets in a manner thatrespects human rightsand is consistent withthe VoluntaryPrinciples on Securityand Human Rights orthe UN Basic Principleson the Use of Forceand Firearms.Water Right to water andsanitationRight to the highestattainable standardof physical andmental healthRight to a standardof living adequate forthe health and wellbeing of theindividual andhis/her familyRight to workRelevance to the oil andgas industryViewing ESHIA through a human rights lensIn certain contexts, theprovision of security to theproject or operation mayinclude the deployment ofarmed personnel (statesecurity forces, i.e. police ormilitary or private security)with potential for the useof force.Where potential impacts on the security of humanrights are not covered by other company processes,consider including them within the ESHIA or humanrights impact assessment process. Relevantconsiderations from a human rights perspective mayinclude the following: When conducting baseline studies and engagingwith the local community, seek to understand anylegacy issues with respect to state or private securityforces. Consider whether the project is located within anarea currently, historically or potentially affected byconflict or violence. Assess the potential for protest activity related tounresolved grievances of the local community orcivil society. Determine whether the project/operation has given,or is likely to be requested to give, any equipment,facilities, funding or help-in-kind to the governmentto assist with the provision of security. Consider whether there may be a risk of (or evidenceof past) human rights abuses against localcommunities by security forces, including genderbased violence. Determine whether human rights are included aspart of the training of security forces, and if not,consider making provision for human rights trainingso that security forces are aware of how to addressworkforce or community related grievances andpeaceful protests.Impacts on thecommunity, individual orworker’s human rights maybe more likely where: there is a culture ofarbitrary arrest, impunityor disregard for therights of people; state or private securityforces have not receivedhuman rights training; people do not haveaccess to a functioninglegal or judicial systemwhere they may seekremedy for potentialhuman rights abuse bysecurity forces.Projects or operations mayhave an impact on theavailability or quality ofwater (constant orseasonal) for use by localcommunities andindividuals (for domestic orcommercial activities). Thismay affect employmentand livelihoods.Where water availability isdepleted, people may haveto travel further to collectwater, resulting in knock-onimpacts on attendance atschool, work, runningbusinesses, etc.Seek to understand:the potential area of influence of the operations onwater resources, in terms of both quality andquantity; who the current users of water within this area ofinfluence are, or who may be affected, upstream ordownstream, by the project or operation’s activities; the status of access to fresh water for drinking andsanitation; how the project or operation may have a potentialimpact on the availability and quality of water (bothon a constant and seasonal basis) in the short,medium and longer term; and continued 7

IPIECA DIHRTABLE 1 EXAMPLES OF RELEVANT HUMAN RIGHTS AND RELATED SITUATIONS IN THE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY (continued)Topic areasExamples of relevanthuman rightsWater(continued)Relevance to the oil andgas industryViewing ESHIA through a human rights lensIf people have to travel toother sources of water, theadditional distance andpotential hazards en routemay put their health oreven their lives at risk. The lack of available watermay also contribute toconflict or social tensionbetween communities, andmay have longer-termimpacts on migrationpatterns.IndigenousPeoples Right to selfdeterminationRight to ownpropertyRight to adequatehousingRight to a standardof living adequate forthe health and wellbeing of theindividual andhis/her familyRight to the highestattainable standardof physical andmental healthRight to participatefreely in the culturallife of thecommunityRight to equalrecognition andprotection underthe lawRight to nondiscriminationRight to an effectiveremedySpecific collective andgroup rights ofIndigenous Peoples ascaptured in the UNDeclaration on theRights of IndigenousPeoples, 2007 and ILOConvention No. 169.8The project may acquire,either permanently ortemporarily, land forproject construction oroperations. IndigenousPeoples or indigenousgroups may be using thatland for cultural purposes,subsistence, livelihoods orfor shelter/housing.Where appropriate, engage with and consultcommunities and groups regarding water availabilityand quality, seek to understand their current water useand access to fresh water, and help them tounderstand the potential impact of the project oroperation. Consider the potential impact on vulnerablegroups within the community, who may be at greaterrisk if water availability or quality is depleted.Indigenous populations may be particularly vulnerableto potential human rights impacts caused by theproject or operation. Projects may have apotential impact on naturalresources, or on access tothese resources uponwhich Indigenous Peoplesrely for food, water, healthand other aspects of theirlivelihoods.whether there are potentially cumulative impactsfrom other businesses or enterprises in the area orregion, e.g. will the proposed development attractother users of water in the future? Consult with Indigenous Peoples and seek to obtainbroad community support for the project.Design consultation/engagement methods to beaccessible and effective, taking into account peoples’native languages, literacy rates, and the remotenessof any settlements.Seek to understand Indigenous Peoples’ way of life,cultural and religious traditions and the potentialimpact that the project may have on these aspects.Respect traditional indigenous approaches todecision making and consultation.Check that anyone who claims to represent theindigenous population is a true representative andhas the group’s endorsement and support.Although Indigenous Peoples may not have formaltitle to the land that they use, the responsibility torespect their human rights remains. Consider workaround solutions or engagement with thegovernment to find solutions.Governments may not have conferred officialindigenous status upon, or recognized, all potentialindigenous groups. It may be prudent to be sensitiveto this and consider the creation of safe spaces* fordiscussion when developing consultation orengagement plans.* A ‘safe space’ is considered to be a positive, affirming,psychological and emotional environment that encourageshonest and open expression in an atmosphere that is freefrom fear of judgement.continued

INTEGRATING HUMAN RIGHTS INTO ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL AND HEALTH IMPA

applying a human rights lens to the activities and content of each step. Part 3: Strategic themes and processes.This section looks at human rights issues that are applicable across the ESHIA process: i) Integrated impact assessment or dedicated human rights impact assessment; ii) Strength testing of the assessment of human rights impacts;