{"id":8798,"date":"2019-07-08T20:28:13","date_gmt":"2019-07-08T20:28:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights2\/?page_id=8798"},"modified":"2019-11-07T18:14:47","modified_gmt":"2019-11-07T18:14:47","slug":"assess-impacts-on-the-hrws","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/respect-in-practice\/assess-impacts-on-the-hrws\/","title":{"rendered":"Assess Impacts on the HRWS"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\">Assess Impacts on the HRWS<\/h3><span class=\"line\"><\/span><\/div><\/div>[vc_single_image image=&#8221;8930&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\"> <span class=\"thim-color\">Core Concepts<\/span><\/h3><\/div><\/div>[vc_column_text]\n<ul>\n<li>In addition to understanding the company\u2019s water-related risks from a business perspective, water stewards are increasingly expected to understand the risks that the company\u2019s operations pose to affected stakeholders. A human rights lens clearly focuses attention on risk to people.<\/li>\n<li>Assessing impacts means gathering the information needed to understand a company\u2019s actual and potential impacts on the HRWS. Meaningful engagement with affected stakeholders is essential to understand how the company\u2019s operations may have negative impacts on people.<\/li>\n<li>Companies need to review their existing assessment systems to determine if they can be used to identify actual and potential impacts on the HRWS, and if not, how these functional gaps can be addressed.<\/li>\n<li>A human rights lens uses the severity of the impact on affected stakeholders to prioritize issues for attention by the company, where prioritization is necessary. Those impacts may be at a company\u2019s own facility or elsewhere in its value chain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"#Key Term: Relevant Business Activities\">Key Term: Relevant Business Activities<\/a><\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\">Key Steps<\/h3><span class=\"line\"><\/span><\/div><\/div><div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\"> <span class=\"thim-color\">A. Assess How the Company May Be Involved in Impacts on the HRWS<\/span><\/h3><\/div><\/div>[vc_tta_accordion][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;1. Understand Who May Be Impacted by the Company\u2019s Activities&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563135725418-96336ae3-e308&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">A company should consider its various business activities and how they may negatively impact different stakeholders. The process should pay attention to individuals or groups who may be particularly vulnerable or marginalized.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;2. Review How the Company May Be Involved with an Impact&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563135725438-61bf99ed-53d8&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">Under the UN Guiding Principles, a company should consider three different modes of involvement \u2014 cause, contribution, and linkage \u2014 when assessing whether it is or may be involved with negative impacts on the HRWS.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><strong><a href=\"#Key Term: Linkage\">Key Term: Linkage<\/a><\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;3. Consider Impacts Arising through Business Relationships&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563136220978-f704a7c3-457c&#8221;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">A company should consider impacts arising through business relationships during the impact assessment process. Where it is necessary to focus on certain types of business relationships because of limited resources, a company should be guided by the severity of negative impacts involved, rather than focusing only on those relationships that are most important to the company.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;4. Engage with Stakeholders in Assessing Impacts&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563137073467-7e630508-99e7&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">To understand its impacts, a company should engage with affected stakeholders or their legitimate representatives as part of the assessment process. Where direct engagement is not feasible, companies should engage with credible proxies.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_accordion]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\"> <span class=\"thim-color\">B. Prioritize Impacts for Attention Where Necessary<\/span><\/h3><\/div><\/div>[vc_tta_accordion][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;1. Evaluate the Severity of Impacts on Affected Stakeholders&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563136022593-af14678e-c309&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">A company should assess the severity of an impact on the HRWS by considering its scale, scope, and the extent to which the harm involved can be remedied. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\"><strong><a href=\"#Key Term: What are customary water rights?\">Key Term: What are customary water rights?<\/a><\/strong><\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;2. Evaluate the Likelihood that Impacts will Occur&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563136022625-8d371a46-e226&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">In addition to understanding severity of an impact on the HRWS, a company should under- stand the likelihood of it occurring or recurring.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;3. Prioritize Impacts for Attention&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563137812152-9df4ffc1-8b90&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">Where it is not possible to address all HRWS impacts at once, a company should prioritize impacts for attention based on their severity and likelihood, with severity being the dominant factor. <\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_accordion]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\"> <span class=\"thim-color\">C. Build a Systematic Approach to Assessment<\/span><\/h3><span class=\"line\"><\/span><\/div><\/div>[vc_tta_accordion][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;1. Review and Build on Existing Systems&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563136090093-4ccd0269-6ba6&#8243;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">A company should review whether its existing assessment processes provide it with the information it needs about impacts on the HRWS and address any gaps that may exist.<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=&#8221;2. Pay Particular Attention to Cumulative Impacts on the HRWS&#8221; tab_id=&#8221;1563136090122-8fc0b011-d46c&#8221;][vc_column_text]<span style=\"font-size: 11pt;\">Cumulative impacts arise from parallel contributions by one or more actors that lead to a negative impact on the HRWS. Such impacts may be particularly severe and challenging to address. A company should ensure that its impact assessment processes adequately capture such cumulative impacts, so that appropriate action can be taken to address them in collaboration with other relevant actors, including the state. <\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_accordion][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column]<div class=\"thim-widget-heading\"><div class=\"sc_heading   \"><h3 class=\"title\">Relevant Key Terms<\/h3><span class=\"line\"><\/span><\/div><\/div>[vc_column_text]<a name=\"Key Term: Relevant Business Activities\"><\/a><\/p>\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\"><span style=\"color: #4c6b8b;\"><b>What are relevant business activities?<\/b><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Relevant business activities include everything a business does in connection with the life cycle of its products or services, from the sourcing of components or commodities to its design, production, delivery and after-service. This includes hiring and\/or contracting staff, contractors, suppliers, customers, governments, or others. Activities can include procurement, legal, compliance, sales, operations, human resources, R&amp;D, among others.<\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><a name=\"Key Term: Linkage\"><\/a><\/p>\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\"><span style=\"color: #4c6b8b;\"><strong>What is linkage?<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">Linkage refers to the actions of a business partner or another entity in a company\u2019s value chain that cause an impact that is directly linked to the company\u2019s own operations, products, or services, which the company itself did not cause or contribute to.<\/p>\n<p>In the context of corporate water stewardship, \u201cdirect linkage\u201d may be similar to the concept of \u201cindirect water use\u201d; however, this Guidance uses the terminology of the UN Guiding Principles to ensure consistency with companies\u2019 broader efforts to implement their responsibility to respect human rights.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><a name=\"Key Term: What are customary water rights?\"><\/a><\/p>\n<table style=\"border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\"><span style=\"color: #4c6b8b;\"><strong>What are customary water rights?<\/strong><\/span><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"width: 100%;\">Customary water rights refer to rights over water use that are acquired or established by traditional patterns or norms within a particular sociocultural setting. Companies should consider these rights in a range of settings, but particularly where there are indigenous communities.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_widget_sidebar title=&#8221;Continue on with the Guide&#8221; sidebar_id=&#8221;thim_sidebar_1564771351&#8243;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=&#8221;8930&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221;][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] In addition to understanding the company\u2019s water-related risks from a business perspective, water stewards are increasingly expected to understand the risks that the company\u2019s operations pose to affected stakeholders. A human rights lens clearly focuses attention on &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":8704,"menu_order":9,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"coauthors":[655],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8798"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8798"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8798\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8992,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8798\/revisions\/8992"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/8704"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8798"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceowatermandate.org\/humanrights\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=8798"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}