Biodiversity and ecosystems

In 2003, we decided not to explore for, or develop, oil and gas resources in natural and mixed World Heritage Sites.

When planning a new project on land or offshore in the marine environment, we apply the mitigation hierarchy, a decision-making framework that involves a sequence of four key actions: avoid, minimise, restore and offset. We assess the potential impact of projects on biodiversity and local communities as part of our impact assessment process (see Respecting human rights and Embedding sustainability into our activities).

In 2023, we embedded our biodiversity commitments into our new Safety, Environment and Asset Management (SEAM) Standards, which take effect in mid-2024. We are developing guidance and sharing good practice across the organisation to support implementation (see Our approach to respecting nature).

Critical habitats

Potential new projects are screened to determine if they are located in a critical habitat. If we decide to proceed with a project that is in a critical habitat, we develop a biodiversity action plan. This sets out actions needed to follow the mitigation hierarchy and, where there is impact, the actions designed to achieve a net positive impact.

At the end of 2023, 43 of our new projects, which started after we launched Powering Progress in February 2021, were wholly or partly located in critical habitats. Of these, 20 already have a biodiversity action plan in place to work towards a net positive impact, compared with four in 2022.

Achieving a net positive impact on biodiversity can take many years. Examples of activities in development or under way in 2023 include:

• identifying opportunities to restore heathland habitats around the Nyhamna gas processing plant in Norway;
• collaborating with Universiti Malaysia Sarawak to help understand environmental conditions in the region and support turtle conservation; and
• monitoring our annual progress towards achieving a net positive impact at the biodiversity offset sites managed by our QGC business in Australia.

Nature-based solutions

We set a commitment in 2021 that our nature-based solution projects, which protect, transform or restore land, will have a net positive impact on biodiversity. This commitment is embedded in our new SEAM Standards, which take effect in mid-2024. It applies to all nature-based projects we invest in directly that generate carbon credits.

These projects work to achieve accreditation on net positive impact on biodiversity from a standard or regulation equivalent to the voluntary Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards (CCB). The CCB standards set out criteria for having a positive impact on climate change, local communities and biodiversity. The projects are audited by independent third parties.

In 2023, all our direct-investment nature-based projects that were certified and produced carbon credits complied with this commitment.

Forest habitats

We use the definition of forest used by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Deforestation occurs when forests are converted to non-forest uses. Our aim is to avoid deforestation, in line with the mitigation hierarchy. Where avoidance cannot be achieved, we require our projects and assets to develop and implement reforestation plans that include measures to achieve net-zero deforestation, while maintaining biodiversity and conservation value. We work with partners and stakeholders to develop robust and credible plans unique to each reforestation project.

Between January 2022 and the end of 2023, around 292 hectares had been deforested as a result of our new activities, which occurred largely in Australia, Canada and Nigeria where reforestation plans have been finalised.