A pioneering E&T&C Certification (Engagement, Transparency, and Communication) has been developed to assess the performance of composting plants and other sectors in their relationships with nearby communities, particularly during recurring odour-impact situations.
This framework promotes citizen participation, increases transparency, and optimizes communication channels, with performance verified either internally or through independent external audits. Its objective is to measure the facility’s level of commitment, transparency, and communication in managing odour-related conflicts, representing a paradigm shift from traditional opaque industrial practices.
A. Antón*, C. Díaz & C. Izquierdo
Ambiente et Odora SL C/Uribitarte 6, ground floor. 48001, Bilbao, Bizkaia
* ainhoaanton@ambienteetodora.com
Competing interests: The author has declared that no competing interests exist.
Academic editor: Carlos N. Díaz.
Content quality: This paper has been peer-reviewed by at least two reviewers. See scientific committee here.
Citation: A. Antón, C. Díaz & C. Izquierdo, 2025, E&T&C Certification: A New Way to Qualify Commitment, Transparency, and Communication in Industry – When the Odour Unit Is Not Enough, OLORES25 Congress, Santiago, Chile, www.olores.org.
Copyright: 2025 Olores.org. Open Content Creative Commons licence. It is allowed to download, reuse, reprint, modify, distribute, and/or copy articles on Olores.org website, as long as the original authors and source are cited. No permission is required from the authors or the publishers.
ISBN: pending.
Keywords: Certificate, odour management
Abstract
A framework that integrates citizen engagement, increases transparency and boosts communication channels is needed in the event of repeated odour impact episodes. When there is an odour conflict, most crisis communication experts would agree that Engagement, Transparency and Communication (E&T&C) are vital to maintaining or regaining the trust of neighbours. The Volkswagen emissions scandal is a recent case demonstrating the negative consequences of not being transparent and communicative.
To promote a paradigm shift in traditional industrial opaque thinking, we have created the first E&T&C Certification. This certification was designed to evaluate the performance of composting plants and other sectors in terms of their relationship with nearby communities, making it the first certification of its kind.
Performance is verified by the plant itself or through audits conducted by an independent auditor. This certification process is the first of its kind in the world. The ultimate goal is to measure the degree of a plant's commitment, transparency and communication in addressing odor-impact situations.
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