Conducting Human Rights Due Diligence focuses a company’s attention on its responsibility to respect Human Rights and ensures that a company manages risk to people, and not just risk to business. Compliance with national law may not be sufficient, where there is a conflict between legal standards and TEPU’s commitment to respect international Human Rights. TEPU seeks to honor the principles of internationally recognized Human Rights to the greatest extent possible in the circumstance.

The Group added further equity and operatorship to the licenses in the Lake Albert Rift Basin when it acquired Hardman Resources in 2007.

The company has provided Environmental and social consultancy services to the developer encompassing the following:

• ESIA for Kigogole Field Appraisal drilling for Exploration Area 2 in Buliisa district
• ESIA for Kigogole-Nsoga 3D seismic Survey for Exploration Area 1 & 2 Buliisa district
• ESIA for Kasemene-Ngiri 3D Seismic Survey for Exploration Area 1& 2 Buliisa district
• ESIA for Nsoga-C appraisal drilling for Exploration Area 2 Buliisa district.
• ESIA for Kigogole-4 Appraisal Drilling for Exploration Area 2 Buliisa district
• Environmental Audit of Ngege base camp for Exploration Area 2 Buliisa district.
• ESIA for Nsoga-5 Appraisal drilling for Exploration Area 2 Buliisa district.

Base Transceiver Station is a piece of equipment that facilitates wireless communication between user equipment (UE) and a network. UEs are devices like mobile phones (handsets), and computers with wireless Internet connectivity. The deployment by operators is to improve service delivery in the region.
Eco & Partner provided Environmental and social consultancy services to the developer, including Resettlement Action Plans (RAPs), ESIAs, Environmental Compliance Auditing and Monitoring for Mobile Telecommunication Base Transceiver Station in various parts of Uganda.

Underground storage tanks (USTs) are used for storing fuel, but they can pose a risk if they develop leaks. Leakage from USTs can result in soil and groundwater contamination, presenting environmental and health concerns. Eco and Partner undertook a thorough site investigation is crucial to confirm the presence of leakage from these underground tank at a fuel station in Central Uganda.

Site investigations involved a systematic process of assessing and evaluating the condition of UST, as well as the surrounding soil and groundwater, to determine if leakage has occurred and to what extent, allowing for appropriate remediation measures to be implemented.

Soil samples were collected from specific locations around the USTs to determine if petroleum hydrocarbons or other contaminants are present. These samples were analyzed in an accredited laboratory to quantify the concentrations of contaminants, to determine the potential severity of the leakage and the extent of soil contamination.

Site investigations involved the use of specialized techniques and equipment, such as soil vapor surveys or geophysical surveys.

The standard requires that ‘the risks and impacts identification process consider relevant threats to biodiversity and ecosystem services especially focusing on habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, invasive alien species, overexploitation, hydrological changes, nutrient loading, and pollution’. To achieve this, the standard outlines ideal strategies for management of impacts on biodiversity for both modified and natural habitats including critical habitats. Critical habitats represent areas with the high biodiversity value including habitat of significant importance to Critically Endangered and/or Endangered species (Stefan et al, 2013). The standard recommends avoidance where critical habitats may be affected unless specific criteria (outlined in Guidance Note 17 of the standard) are demonstrated. These include an exhaustive analysis of alternatives; a requirement that the project does not degrade values for which critical habitat status was designated and a robust monitoring program, among others. As such, the ESIA baseline survey sought to determine presence or absence of valued species to assess whether or not the project area of influence constitutes a critical habitat.

According to IFC (2012) performance standard 6 paragraph 16, a ‘Critical habitat’ is an area with high biodiversity value, and has to fall under the following criterion;

1. Habitat of significant importance to Critically Endangered and/or Endangered species
2. Habitat of significant importance to endemic and/or restricted-range species
3. Habitat supporting globally significant concentrations of migratory species and/or congregatory species
4. Highly threatened and/or unique ecosystems
5. Areas associated with key evolutionary processes.

The KFDA was found to have areas which qualify to be classified as critical habitats basing on IFC performance standard 6 paragraph 16 criterion (i) and (iv), which triggered an analysis to identify possible triggers of critical habitat within the landscape surrounding the KFDA. The analysis identified three critical species namely; Common chimpanzee, Grey Crowned Crane and Nahan’s Francolin as one of these potential triggers. A critical species is any species that has an extremely high risk of extinction in the near future as categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, 2016).