Conservation and Wildlife Habitat (Biodiversity) Protection

A growing human population places greater demand on the Earth’s limited supply of natural resources, which makes other species more vulnerable to a loss of their natural habitats and biological diversity. Although the oil and natural gas industry has engaged in environmental partnerships over the years to promote conservation and wildlife protection programs, the industry is taking more aggressive steps to integrate biodiversity conservation into its operational practices by partnering with other institutions to measure biodiversity impacts and employ new technologies to minimize its environmental footprint.

For example, Shell and the Smithsonian Institution signed a five-year memorandum of understanding in June 2000 to assess the impact of Shell operations on areas of high biodiversity value. The first joint project in the Gamba complex in Gabon follows extensive national and international consultation including feedback from a stakeholder workshop. Chevron Niugini Ltd., with help from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), formed The Community Development Initiative (CDI) Foundation to protect the fragile rainforests of Papua New Guinea for generations to come. Petro-Canada in partnership with the Pembina Institute for Appropriate Development, conducted a Life-Cycle Value Assessment of the MacKay River oil sands project to reduce environmental impacts. A number of companies, such as Shell, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil, have implemented a variety of different wildlife conservation programs in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

• Creating Opportunities, Protecting Species

  Unocal Geothermal Indonesia and the Unocal Foundation are involved with local researchers, community groups, and Wildlife Trust to conduct research and education and promote sustainable small enterprises and local farmers and villagers based on the rich biodiversity in the Gunung Salak Nature Reserve in Indonesia. ENV-UN-4
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• Collaborating to Create Shared Vision and Develop Plans

  Unocal recently became involved with the Coastal Resources Management Plan project in Indonesia – a collaborative effort among a growing number of community associations, nongovernmental organizations, companies, and government agencies (global and local) to develop a plan for managing the important coastal resources of Balikpapan and surrounding communities along the East Kalimantan coast. ENV-UN-5
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