ESRS Standard
ESRS Standard
The term"Policy" is synonymous with the term"Policy", which is used within the German version of the ESRS standard.
General information on Policies and Actions
General information on Policies and Actions
60 This section sets out the Minimum Disclosure Requirements to be observed when the company discloses information on its policies and actions to prevent, mitigate and improve actual or potential Material Impacts, manage Material Risks and/or take advantage of Material Opportunities (together "Managing Material Sustainability Aspects"). They apply together with the disclosure requirements, including the application requirements provided for in the respective topic-related and sector-specific ESRS. They also apply if the company prepares company-specific disclosures.
61 The relevant disclosures shall be provided in addition to the disclosures required by the relevant ESRS. Where a single Policy or the same Actions address multiple interrelated aspects of sustainability, the company may disclose the required information in its reporting under a single thematic ESRS and refer to it in its reporting under other thematic ESRSs.
62 If the company is unable to disclose the information on policies and actions required by the relevant ESRSs because it has not adopted policies and/or actions related to the relevant sustainability aspect, it shall disclose this and explain why it has not adopted policies and/or actions. The company may indicate a timeframe within which it intends to adopt the relevant policies or actions.
63 The company shall apply the Minimum Disclosure Requirement set out in this provision when disclosing the strategies it is pursuing in relation to each sustainability aspect classified as material.
64 The objective of this Minimum Disclosure Requirement is to provide an understanding of the policies the company has in place to prevent, mitigate and ameliorate actual and potential impacts, manage Risks and capitalize on Opportunities.
65 The company discloses information about its policies applied to the management of material sustainability aspects. The disclosure shall include the following information:
(a) a description of the key content of the policy, including its overall objectives, and the material impacts, risks or opportunities to which it relates, and the monitoring process,
b) a description of the scope of the Policy (or exceptions) in terms of activities, upstream and/or downstream Value chain, geographical areas and, where applicable, affected stakeholders,
c) the top level in the company's organization responsible for implementing the Policy,
d) where applicable, a reference to the third party standards or initiatives that the company has committed to comply with as part of the implementation of the Policy,
(e) where applicable, a description of how the interests of key stakeholders have been taken into account in the adoption of the Policy; and
f) if applicable, whether and how the company makes the Policy available to potentially affected Stakeholders and Stakeholders whose assistance is needed in its implementation.
Application Requirements (AR)
Application Requirements (AR)
AR 20 Due to the interrelationships between human and environmental impacts, Risks and Opportunities, a single policy may be applied to multiple material sustainability aspects, including aspects addressed in more than one thematic ESRS. For example, if a single concept covers both environmental and social aspects, the company may report on the Policy in the section of its Sustainability statement dealing with environmental aspects. In this case, the social section should include a cross-reference to the environmental section where the policy is reported. Similarly, a Policy may be reported in the social section with a cross-reference in the environmental section.
AR 21 The description of the scope of the Policy can explain which activities and/or segments of the company's own operations or upstream and downstream Value chain are affected. The description may also explain other boundaries that are relevant to the company's specific topic or situation, which may include geographical aspects, life cycles, etc. In certain cases, e.g. if the Policy does not cover the entire Value chain, the company may provide clear information on the scope of the Value chain covered by the Policy.
This article has been machine translated. In case of errors, please contact [email protected].