CC SUSTAINABLE

CRISTINA GOYENECHEA

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CECILIA GOYENECHEA

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My experience focuses on the Environmental and Social Assessment of large Infrastructure projects, with socio-environmental contexts and challenges of varying complexity.

As a main feature of my capacities, I highlight the development of strategies for integrating projects within their socio-natural context, which allow addressing the main problems related to their environmental sustainability, as well as the coordination of interdisciplinary teams by drawing clear and consistent project development guidelines.

I have worked on projects of high relevance and public exposure in all their development instances; from the design of the strategy and scope of the studies, the preparation of the reports leading large groups of professionals of high reputation and academic and scientific recognition, to their presentation to the Application Authorities and Multilateral Financing Bodies for approval, processing of construction permits and financing. I have also worked in public participation stages, hearings and final implementation and monitoring of the Environmental Management Plan, Compliance Audits and revalidation of permits. I have discussed, agreed and presented studies to the National, Provincial and Municipal Authorities, as well as to the Multilateral Credit Organizations. I also participated in countless instances of communication, information and public participation. All this experience has allowed me to address the socio-environmental problems of large projects, in all their instances, from design to implementation and maintenance.

In recent years, this more holistic vision of the socio-environmental aspects has led me to internalize in more inclusive and strategic schemes such as the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), adaptation actions to the climatic extremes, structural solutions based on nature, measurement of carbon footprint, contributions of greenhouse gases and mitigation measures, among others. These principles collaborate with the integration of socio-environmental aspects in project strategy and design instances, providing for the implementation of management programs that are aligned with sustainability schemes. In this way, the environmental issue is not a component but the thread that connects a project from its earliest stages, helping its implementation to be balanced and harmonious with the context, minimizing the risks of failure in more advanced instances of its development or implementation.

My current experience is developed within this context, oriented to the development of sustainability programs for mass consumption products, productive organizations and carbon footprint assessment, with their consequent minimization and compensation measures.

Environmental Engineer - Faculty of Physical-Mathematical Sciences and Engineering of the "Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina" - 2001
MBA Master in Business Administration at the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires – 2006 – without thesis.
ODS101x: ODS in the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations: Challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals, a course offered by UPValenciaX, Universitat Politècnica de València -2021

May 2022 – current:	Independent Consultant. Independent consultant on Environmental, Strategic an Sustainability matters.
2020 – April 2022:	Vice-president – SERMAN & ASOCIADOS S.A
2007 – 2020:	Director – Environmental Department SERMAN & ASOCIADOS S.A.
2003 – 2007:	Environmental Consultant – Elaboration and Coordination of Environmental and Pollution Studies SERMAN & ASOCIADOS S.A.
2001 – 2003:	Environmental Manager in the High Voltage Operation area Edenor s.a. (Empresa Distribuidora Norte).
1998 – 2001:	Assistant consultant in environment Consultora Ambiental Van Eco s.a.

I have developed most of my experience as coordinator of environmental assessment projects, then as Director of the Environment Department of Serman & Asociados s.a. Consultancy, and finally as its Vice President.

Throughout my career I have participated, coordinated and/ or directed more than 200 studies, including:

Socio-Environmental Strategies for the integration of development projects and initiatives in their socio-environmental context. Includes extended territorial development projects that lead to the productive and industrial re-design of a region and therefore require specific strategies to ensure the sustainable development of the projects.
Sustainability measures and programs for mass consumption products and carbon footprint assessment together with the definition of reduction and compensation actions.

Environmental Impact Assessments of large infrastructure projects. The following is a summary by thematic area:

Road projects and urban transport solutions	Bridges, highways and routes, metrobuses (19 Route Santa Fe – Córdoba, Rosario Victoria Bridge, Goya and Santa Fé Reconquista Road Connection - Paraná, La Matanza BRT, among others)
Ports and Dredgings	Port extensions and maintenance and opening dredging (Buenos Aires Port, Dock Sud Port, La Plata Port, Bahía Blanca Port, Quequén Port and private ports in Escobar, San Nicolás and Rosario, among others).
Energy projects	Combined Cycle Thermal Power Plants (CT Ensenada de Barragán, CT Brigadier López, CT Guillermo Brown, CT Querandí, among others), Coal Thermal Power Plant (CT Río Turbio), Biomass-based Thermal Power Plant (CT El Bracho), Wind Farms (PE Loma Blanca, PE Deán Funes, PE Vivoratá, PE El Chocón, among others) , Natural Gas Liquefaction and Regasification Port Plants and Terminals (LNG Escobar and Bahía Blanca, Environmental feasibility studies for the installation of port terminals and LNG onshore plants), High Voltage Lines, Transformer Stations. Green Hydrogen project development initiatives.
Dam Projects	Hydroelectric dams and multipurpose regulatory uses (Exploitation of "Tigre" Ditch, Néstor Kirchner Dams and Governor Cepernic, among others)
Oil projects	Drilling of oil wells, gas pipelines, offshore exploration (Malvinas exploratory well, offshore seismics on the slope of the continental shelf, abandonment of wells in the spit area, Environmental Reports of operations prior to the EIA standards, among others)
Rail projects	Crossings at different levels (Sarmiento Railway), Environmental Site Studies in railway facilities that are out of use or with redefinition of uses (New Roca Line stations, among others), changes and readjustments of railway lines (underground burying of the Sarmiento train)
Industrial Projects	Steelworks (Sipar-Gerdau, among others), Refineries (Patagonian Refinery, among others), chemical industry, among others.
Residential, urban and vulnerable neighbourhood development projects	Private neighborhoods, nautical urbanizations (Nordelta, Villa Nueva, Pilar del Este, among others), urbanization of vulnerable neighborhoods ("Rodrigo Bueno", "31", and "Fraga" vulnerable Neighborhoods, among others)
Sanitation Projects	Large sewage collectors, sewage and drinking water collection networks, sewage effluent treatment plants (Sistema San Vicente, Colector Bajo Costanera, Villa 21-24, among others)
Flood control works	Dredging of riverbed expansion such as flood control works, transient retention areas of water surpluses (Canal Santa María, urban drainage projects in the south of the City of Buenos Aires, Regeneration project of Medrano stream in Saavedra Park, Reservoirs of the Matanza-Riachuelo upper basin, among others)

Master plans of water basins, considering the integration of human uses in the water dynamics of water bodies, developing non-structural measures of watershed management and generating participatory and consensus processes.
Urban integration projects, Urban integration projects, solutions for flood management in urban areas based on the natural resilience to these events, Flood and drought contingency plans, sustainable land management, among others.
Projects for the urbanization and urban integration of vulnerable settlements, based on sustainable land management and sanitation.
Verification of compliance with the socio-environmental requirements of multilateral credit organizations, both for the financing of public and private projects (IFC, Principles of Ecuador, IDB, IBRD, WB, CAF, among others).
Implementation and monitoring of Environmental Management Plans and Monitoring programs in large infrastructure works (Paseo del Bajo, dredging of the Santa María Canal, construction of the Rio Turbio Coal Thermal Power Plant, Construction of the Ensenada de Barragán Thermal Power Plant, Loma Blanca Wind Farm, among others).
Environmental assessments for port expansion and reorganization (Ports of Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia and Bahía Blanca).
Previous socio-environmental assessment and identification of key aspects for the construction and reorganization of cross-borders, for example: Cristo Redentor and Las Leñas.
Socio-environmental baselines for water regulation and general watershed projects, in order to gather sufficient information for decision-making on proper management. Examples: "Portezuelo del Viento" Dam, "Uspallata" and "El Baqueano" multipurpose development, Pilcomayo River Basin, among others.
Environmental site study and identification of environmental liabilities, according to IRAM and ISO standards.
Development of Socio-Environmental Strategies for the establishment of integrated and sustainable energy projects (LNG, Green Hydrogen).

My experience is focused on environmental management, having worked in AySA in this area. More recently, I have been responsible for environment and energy efficiency at the Association of Electrical Material Manufacturers (AFME) in Spain, having worked on topics such as eco-design, circular economy, environmental footprint of the product, declarations of conformity and waste management, among others. I also highlight my role as AFME's representative in European Industry Associations, with the aim of participating as a stakeholder in the formulation, adoption and implementation of European policies, laws and regulations of interest to the industry in terms of environment and energy efficiency.

Throughout my professional career I have gained experience in the implementation, maintenance and improvement of integrated management systems for different types of industries. In particular I highlight the work in the definition of goals and objectives of Environmental Management Systems and the development of their indicators, aligning the organisation's strategy to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At the same time I had the opportunity to represent AySA in the Working Group of the Technical Committee 207 on Environmental Management of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

More recently and as part of my tasks for the Association of Electrical Material Manufacturers (AFME) Spain, I have provided technical advice to different actors in the sector for compliance with the Spanish regulatory framework. In the context of the initiatives carried out by the EU within the European Green Deal with the aim of achieving climate neutrality by 2050, I have worked together with the heads of the National Public Administrations for the efficient transposition of the regulations. Some of the topics I have worked on were energy efficiency in buildings, energy saving certificates (EPC), circular economy, eco-design, waste management of electrical and electronic materials, among others. I also participated as a Technical Advisor in the Product Certification Committee for obtaining the AENOR N Mark, working together with UNE standardisation committees, and I coordinated the working groups for the development of the AENOR sustainable mark (Ns Mark).

Environmental Engineer - Faculty of Physical-Mathematical Sciences and Engineering of the "Pontificia Universidad Católica Argentina" – 2019
Diploma in Proyect Management- Technological Institute of Buenos Aires (ITBA), Buenos Aires. - 2020
ODS101x: ODS in the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations: Challenges of the Sustainable Development Goals, a course offered by UPValenciaX, Universitat Politècnica de València -2022
ESSENTIAL TOOLS FOR THE LOW CARBON ECONOMY- The University of Queensland-2022
LEAD AUDITOR OF INTEGRATES MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS, ISO 14001:2015- ISO 9001:2015-ISO 45001:2018 - IRAM, IQNet Academy – 2020
WATER RESOURCES PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT, Asociación Argentina de Ingeniería Sanitaria y Ambiental- 2017

November 2022-present	Independent Consultant.
March 2022-October 2022	Environmental and Energy affairs Manager - AFME
December 2015- October 2021	Responsible for Environmental Management System - AySA Central Laboratory
June 2013- December 2014	Environmental Consultant - ECOSEG
March 2012- June 2013	EHS Analyst- 3M
November 2010- March 2012	Environmental Analyst (internship)- Serman & Asociados

ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENERGY AFFAIRS MANAGER
Asociación de Fabricantes de Material Eléctrico (AFME), Barcelona, Spain.

March 2022-Oct 2022

Technical advice to different actors in the sector for compliance with the regulatory framework (eco-design, circular economy, environmental footprint of the product, UE declarations of conformity, waste management, among others).
Coordination of working groups for the identification of risks and opportunities emerging from European initiatives in the field of Environment and Energy Efficiency. Proposal of the sector's position and debate.
AFME's representative in European Industrial Associations, with the aim of participating as a stakeholder in the formulation, adoption and implementation of European policies, laws and regulations of interest to industry in the field of environment and energy efficiency. Participation in regulations on energy efficiency in buildings, energy saving certificates, circular economy, eco-design, waste management of electrical and electronic materials, among others.
Collaboration with the heads of the National Public Administrations in the transposition of European regulations, taking the position of the sector and guaranteeing an efficient application of the legislation.
Technical Advisor on the Product Certification Committee for obtaining the AENOR N Mark. Work with standardisation committees.
Technical Advisor for the development of the AENOR sustainability mark. Coordination of the working group.

RESPONSIBLE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
Aguas y Saneamientos Argentinos, Central Lab, Buenos Aires.
Dic 2015- Oct 2021

Responsible for ISO 14001:2015 environmental management system and active collaboration in ISO 9001, 45001 and 17025 Management Systems.
Provide Health and Safety and Environmental training to staff at all levels.
Elaboration and Analysis of KPIs.
Identification of environmental aspects and weighting of environmental impacts. Mitigation measures.
Action Plans and follow-up.
Identification and follow-up of legal requirements. Presentations before the Enforcement Authority. Responsible for audits and inspections of Governmental Bodies.
Participation in strategic planning. Report generation
Internal Auditor ISO/IEC 17025:2017 " General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories"
Internal Auditor ISO 14001-ISO 9001 - ISO 45001.
Representative in working groups of the Technical Committee 207, Environmental Management, of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
Project Management: In collaboration with the R&D manager, participation in the implementation of projects for service expansion. Opening of Regional Laboratories, certification and accreditation.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTANT
ECOSEG, Buenos Aires.
June 2013- Dic 2014

Environmental Complexity Level Assessment (ECA)
Environmental Impact Assessments in Industries (EIA)
Environmental Audits
Legal Compliance Audits - Hazardous and/or special waste affidavits
Implementation of Environmental Management Systems (ISO 14001:2008)
Report and follow-up of files for different Authorities
Management of solid waste, liquid and gaseous effluents.

EHS ANALYST
3M Argentina & Uruguay, Buenos Aires.

March 2012- June 2013

Provide Health and Safety and Environmental training to personnel.
Provide Health and Safety and Environmental advice for the introduction of new processes (GMP Guidelines)
Actively participate in internal and external ISO 14001 and OSHAS 18001 audits.
Ensure the execution of periodic controls. Surveys
Collaboration in the layout of new facilities.

ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYST
Serman & Asociados, Buenos Aires.
Nov 2010- March 2012

Participation in the preparation of EIAs for urban developments within the framework of provincial and municipal environmental regulations.
Compliance audits and reports.
Implementation of Environmental Management Systems ISO 14001:2008 and Quality Management Systems ISO 9001:2008.

My experience focuses mainly in the area of Climate Change, in the review of projects related to obtaining carbon credit certificates (reduction of greenhouse gas emissions), both for the voluntary and regulated markets and in the development of projects related to thhhhe measurement of the carbon footprint, also developing minimization and compensation plans.

Currently, I am also part of the External Committee of Experts of the United Nations Climate Change Office, serving as an expert in article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, in the areas of Accreditation and Methodologies.

During the last 16 years I have reviewed more than 1800 projects, working as an external expert reviewer for the United Nations Office of Climate Change (UNFCCC), VERRA (Verified Cabon Standard) and GCC (Global Carbon Council), evaluating bothh requests for registration and issuance of carbon offset projects, in Asia, America, Africa and Central Europe in the sectors of renewable energy (solar, wind, hydroelectric), waste management, biogas generation, energy efficiency, use of coal mine methane and electric vehhicles, among others.

These projects belong to both the regulated emission trading scheme (Clean Development Mechanism – CDM) and the voluntary market (VERRA, GCC).

Previously I have worked as a Lead Verifier in the European Emissions Market and as a Lead Auditor in ISO 14001, 9001 and OSAS 18001, in Bureau Veritas Certification, in Spain and Argentina, auditing companies in the areas of automotive production and auto parts, electricity generation, power generation (hydroelectric, thermal), oil extraction and processing (including all related services such as sanitation and water management, emissions and waste generated), construction sector and food sector (including water and waste management and treatment) , among others.

Environental Enggineer. Universidad Católica Argentina. 1996-2000
industrial ecotoxocologgy: Course in Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña, Barcelona, Spain. 2001
Master Waste Management Universidad Politécnica de Cataluña, Barcelona, Spain. 2002
Master Environmnetal, Quality and Eat and Safety Management, Instituto Catalán de Tecnología, Barcelona, Spain. 2003
Lead EU-TS Verifier (European Union Trading Scheme), Generalitat de Catalunya Spain. 2006

2010 – present	Independent Consultant-freelance
2008-2010	UNFCCC Secretariat- United Nations, Bonn, Germany
2003-2008	Bureau Veritas Certification -BVC- (Spain and Argentina)
2002-2003	Delfos, S.A. Barcelona, Spain
2000-2001	Argentinean Construction Chamber
2000	Hertig S.A., Argentina

As an Independent Consultant

External Expert Reviewer for projects requesting registration and issuance in UNFCCC, VERRA and GCC
External Rooster of Experts for the for article 6.4 Paris Agreement, Accreditation and Methodologies).

Working for the UNFCCC Secretariat- United Nations (Bonn, Germany)

Associate Programme Officer - CDM – Registration and Issuance Team

Working for Bureau Veritas Certification -BVC- (Spain and Argentina)

Lead Auditor ISO 14001-9001-OHSAS 18001
Lead Verifier EU-TS for Europe. Greenhouse as emissions verification for the European Trading Scheme.

Working for Delfos, S.A. Barcelona, Spain

Consultant in Environmental and quality Management Systems, services, manufacturing and construction sector.

As part of the Argentinean Construction Chamber

Environmental recommendations for the construction sector

Working for Hertig S.A., Argentina

Environmental Assistant, Reports for the National Energy Secretariat (fuel strorage tanks )

Sustainable is the mother idea of our proposal, not as an exhaustive expression but as an order of integration.

Being sustainable implies everything and refers to nothing specific, but we can make our actions sustainable if we base them on the same guiding idea.

We are a group of interdisciplinary professionals with common interests, experience, professional dedication and great teamwork. We form teams of specialists for each project. This allows us to sell services at the right price.

We have the capacity to develop specific solutions to a variety of problems.

We design a sustainable economic structure for our work organisation. We make economy of space, energy use and combine professional work with our social and family roles.

OUR SERVICES

Sustainability-based tools applicable to each client.

Design, planning and monitoring of actions to meet the goals linked to the ODS.

Development of strategies and programs for waste reduction and management of recovery and recycling processes, especially of plastic materials.

Environmental Footprint (which integrates not only the carbon footprint but also other relevant environmental aspects for sectors where greenhouse gas emissions are not the main impact).
Example: Water footprint.

Design of measures to adapt projects or processes to the specific natural environmental conditions of the places where the activities shall take place. Nature-based solutions.

Carbon footprint calculation and definition of reduction actions. Advice on neutralization of emissions through the purchase of bonds/emission credits.

Development of specific documentation for adherence to UN voluntary programs related to the assessment and reduction of the carbon footprint.

Development of selection criteria based on sustainability for acquisitions and suppliers.

Life-cycle assessment.

Design of waste management strategies, energy efficiency, among others.

Detailed analysis of projects or production processes as a basis for the design of sustainability strategies of rapid implementation, synergizing the environmental control actions that the company currently develops.

Design of environmental outreach programs, community relations and participation in sustainability actions.

Verification of compliance with environmental and social safeguards of international credit agencies (World Bank, IDB, CAF, IFC, Ecuador Principles, among others).

NOTES

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CONTACT US

crgoyenechea@ccsustainable.com