ESS 2 recognizes that resource efficiency and pollution prevention and management are core elements of a sustainable development agenda. For this reason, FAO programmes and projects shall meet good international practice in this regard. The mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation to the impacts of climate change are essential to increasing efficiency in the use of resources and building resilience.

Objectives

• Promote more sustainable and efficient use of resources, including energy, water, land and soil, chemicals, forests and oceans, and work to ensure that women and men have equal access to these resources.
• Promote integrated pest management (IPM) to reduce reliance on pesticides, and good agricultural practices to avoid the adverse impacts of pesticide use on the health and safety of farming communities, consumers and the environment in accordance with the FAO/WHO International Code of Conduct on Pesticide Management (FAO and WHO, 2014).
• Promote integrated soil fertility management (ISFM) through integrated farming practices and agro-forestry and the use of all relevant sources of plant nutrients, particularly those that are locally available in accordance with The international Code of Conduct for the sustainable use and management of fertilizers (FAO, 2019d) to avoid adverse environmental impacts and economic losses to farmers. Framework for Environmental and Social Management
• Avoid or minimize emissions of short-lived climate pollutants (e.g. black carbon, methane) and long-lived climate pollutants (carbon dioxide) as well as ozone-depleting substances.
• Avoid or minimize the generation of hazardous and non-hazardous substances and wastes, and promote a human rights-based approach to the management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes that includes the correct disposal of agrochemicals.