OREANDA-NEWS. December 05, 2012. The Gazprom Board of Directors endorsed the Company's efforts aimed at implementing the voluntary mechanisms of environmental responsibility.

The meeting noted that modern world experience contemplated for companies not just meeting the environmental protection requirements that were in line with the applicable laws, but, in this respect, undertaking the voluntary commitments, and the most common of those were as follows: adoption of the environmental policy, introduction of the environmental management system, disclosure of environmental information in accordance with international standards, reduction of greenhouse gases emission.

Gazprom became one of the first Russian companies to adopt the Environmental Policy. The effective version of the document defines the underlying principles of the Company's business, i.e. rapid economic growth accompanied by maximal conservation of natural resources and preservation of a favorable natural environment for future generations (sustainable development).

According to the Environmental Policy, the strategic environmental goals may be achieved through introduction and maintenance of an effective environmental management system. This vertically integrated system created in Gazprom encompasses the environmental control bodies of the Company and of 28 subsidiaries engaged into gas production, transmission, underground storage and processing.

In 2011 the environmental management system of Gazprom was successfully certified in compliance with the requirements of the ISO 14001:2004 international standard. Det Norske Veritas, an independent certification body, conducted the audit. In October 2012 the compliance audit confirmed the accordance of the Gazprom environmental management system with the said standard.

In regard to environmental information disclosure, Gazprom has been releasing the annual Environmental Report for 17 years now. In 2010 the Company published its first Sustainability Report (for the period from 2008 through to 2009). The Annual Report of Gazprom includes environmental protection sections.

Gazprom's consistent efforts aimed at energy saving are resulted in reducing the greenhouse gases emission. At present, the Company executes the Energy Saving and Energy Efficiency Improvement Program for 2011–2013 where the aggregate fuel and energy savings are anticipated to make 6.4 million tons of fuel equivalent. The actions taken under the Program enabled the Company's subsidiaries to reduce the greenhouse gases emission by 3.8 million tons in 2011 versus 2010.

In addition to the most common mechanisms of voluntary environmental commitments implementation, Gazprom undertakes the ecological liabilities that are unique for Russian companies. Thus, Gazprom is the only company in Russia that has the Environmental Inspectorate – in 2011 it performed 621 inspection procedures in 76 subsidiaries.

Gazprom is the only Russian company that runs corporate environmental examination for each of its investment project.

The Company's Board of Directors tasked the Management Committee to continue implementing the voluntary mechanisms of environmental responsibility.