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The onshore Baram Delta, located in NW Sarawak is the birthplace of petroleum production in Malaysia. The Miri oilfield was first discovered in 1910 and subsequently abandoned in 1972 with intermittent exploration activities in the late 1980's to early 1990's. To rejuvenate exploration interest and to identify remaining hydrocarbon potential of the study area, in 2009-2010 JX Nippon acquired gravity, then regional 2D seismic data, followed-by exploration well drilling from 2011-2014. This paper discusses the social-environmental impacts and concerns associated with these petroleum exploration activities, from acquisition of seismic where explosives and vibroseis were used as a source of propagating signals, to exploration drilling with petroleum chemicals such as water-based muds used to facilitate the drilling operations. Overall, the inquiry addresses operational challenges, security of explosive storage and concern for handling explosives in the field, the social-environmental impacts of seismic acquisition operations, as well as removal of drilling fluid chemicals and disposal of contaminated cuttings. Containment procedures and mitigation measures undertaken to alleviate these social-environmental impacts are discussed according to the guidelines and regulatory requirements provided by the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), in conjunction with PETRONAS Procedures and Guidelines for Upstream Activities (PPGUA) and the company's Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) Management System. In the final analysis, significant environmental and social challenges were certainly encountered while planning and conducting petroleum exploration activities in the study area. These challenges include problems related to topographic variabilities, permitting issues, compensations for affected lands and cash crops; layout constraints, drilling operations, well control measures for blowout prevention, traffic controls, potential damage to infra-structures, explosive and equipment transportation. However, with proper planning, effective communication with the local authorities, and awareness sessions conducted for the affected parties and stakeholders; together with the support of the local communities the operations have not only managed to mitigate these social and environmental concerns, the exploration activities also provided economic benefits such as hotel accommodation, logistics and transportation demands for local businesses, and short-term employment opportunities for the local people. Ultimately, the operations successfully acquired nearly 900-line km of seismic across many villages, longhouses, and in the city areas, with four exploration wells were drilled in the exploration block. We are glad to report that both seismic and drilling operations were conducted successfully and safely with minimal interruptions to people and environment, without untoward incidents or spills. With the mitigation measures in place, there were no damages other than land access, which were remediated, where incurred. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Design for Environment (DfE) and Design for Disassembly (DfD) have been recognized as an effective sustainable manufacturing approach to reduce environmental impact during product's life cycle. Although Malaysian manufacturers have long demonstrated a strong global market presence, the implementation of DfE and DfD among manufacturers are found lacking. This paper attempts to investigate the current state DfE and DfD implementation and the local driving force in the local Malaysian industry by addressing four research questions (RQ): RQ1 – How do Malaysian designers value the importance of DfE? RQ2 – What are the current approaches used by designers to incorporate environmental issues during product development stage? RQ3 – What difficulties are experienced in the implementation of DfE and DfD in the product development stage? RQ4 – What are the approaches needed to enhance the engagement of DfE and DfD into product design practices? Targeting product designers in Malaysia, a multiple approach using survey and interview is conducted shown that the current state of implementation and awareness within the local industry is fairly low. The soft approach of the local legislation does not contribute much towards seeing a major change in attitude as will be discussed further in the paper. The above two concerns are major challenges that require immediate attention. However, there seems to be growing concern from the industry and the government that pushes the need for options that could leapfrog the current situation. This presents an opportunity for the local research community to come up with various strategies that will be discussed. Finally, the paper proposes a more comprehensive strategy that is tailored to the local business environment in order for the local industry to be capable of maintaining its market presence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increase in global warming, energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions has gained attention in various regions. In Malaysia, the government announced a voluntary commitment to reduce 40% of CO 2 emissions by 2020 and to refurbish 100 government buildings. Existing buildings make a large contribution to energy consumption and CO 2 emissions, therefore refurbishing existing buildings is an essential strategy to achieve the commitment. There is no single assessment scheme for building refurbishment in Malaysia and hence, this study aims to develop a comprehensive list of assessment themes and sub-themes for building refurbishment purposes. It examines and compares 10 assessment schemes from various countries: BREEAM, LEED, CASBEE, BEAM Plus, GBLS, Green Star, HQE, Green Mark, GBI and MyCrest. The findings revealed fourteen themes that were considered for assessment: management , sustainable site , transport , indoor environmental quality ( IEQ ), water , waste , material , energy , pollution , innovation , economic , social , culture and quality of services . Energy and IEQ are dominant themes in all assessment schemes. Most of the schemes are considered relatively weak in evaluating economic and social aspects, in comparison to environmental aspects. The assessment of quality of services is overlooked in most of the schemes, including GBI and MyCrest in Malaysia. Outcomes from this paper will form the baseline for a new environmental assessment scheme that aimed at non-domestic building refurbishments in Malaysia. A new model is proposed for the development of an environmental assessment scheme in the further stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the Malaysian chemicals industry has been progressively growing over the past few decades, the industry associations had not been actively engaged with one another. The Chemical Industries Council of Malaysia was established to form a stronger and more cohesive representation from other sub-sectors of the industry such as oleochemicals, industrial gases, petrochemicals, paints, coating resins, fertilizers, biodiesel and pesticides, as well as their respective chemical traders, distributors and other service providers. Among its initiatives is the Responsible Care programme which has proven to be a very useful tool in promoting responsible practices among signatory companies that protect the environment, human health and safety. While the chemicals industry and related industries have adopted most of the responsible best practices to reduce their environmental impact, participation from small and medium enterprises has been low. This paper aims to provide an overview of the initiatives of the Chemical Industries Council of Malaysia, and assess its current position with regard to providing environmental, health and safety services to its members in view of the expanding global chemicals sector and the challenges it poses. It will also identify the main challenges faced by the chemicals industry, and propose measures to overcome them for the future competitiveness and sustainability of the chemicals industry at both regional and international levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]