Michelin

Sustainability strategy and accountability
Michelin discloses its process for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability impacts as well as the outcome of this process, in relation to its sustainability strategy. It has group-wide targets on key sustainability topics for the most material parts of its value chain and reports consistently on progress against all its targets.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
Michelin commits to zero ecosystem conversion in its Sustainable Natural Rubber Policy. It also discloses some activities to achieve conversion-free supply chains.

Resource exploitation and circularity
Michelin reports quantitatively on its group-wide circularity performance. In terms of soil health, it discloses activities to improve soil health or agrobiodiversity in its production or sourcing practices, such as the development of tyres that enable tractors to operate at very low tyre pressures, preventing soil compaction.

Water
Michelin has a time-bound target to reduce water withdrawal in its own operations and reports progress against the target. It is also actively engaging with suppliers to reduce water withdrawal.

Solid and air pollution
Michelin discloses the proportion of hazardous waste treated to reduce pollution compared to total waste, as well as the amount of hazardous waste diverted from or directed to disposal. It also reports some activities to reduce plastic use and waste in its own operations.

GHG emissions
Michelin’s scope 1 and 2 emissions reduction target is aligned with a 1.5-degree trajectory.

Indigenous Peoples’ and land rights
Michelin is committed to respecting Indigenous Peoples’ rights and discloses its processes for identifying and recognising the rights of Indigenous Peoples when activities in its own operations may impact their rights. It also describes how it obtains Indigenous Peoples’ free, prior and informed consent, and it requires its business relationships to identify and recognise affected Indigenous Peoples and to obtain their free, prior and informed consent regarding whether and how to carry out projects. Michelin commits to respecting ownership and use of land and natural resources and related legitimate tenure rights. The company requires its business relationships to have a process for identifying legitimate tenure rightsholders, paying particular attention to vulnerable or marginalised tenure rightsholders, and negotiating with them to provide adequate compensation.

Sustainability strategy and accountability
There is an opportunity for Michelin to link performance criteria in senior executives’ remuneration policies to targets and objectives which cover nature, including biodiversity, and social issues. Furthermore, it does not disclose whether its highest governance body has expertise regarding nature-related topics.

Stakeholder engagement
Michelin discloses an overview of the issues raised during its stakeholder engagement activities. However, it does not disclose the process for engaging with stakeholder groups beyond its materiality assessment.

Lobbying
Michelin has an opportunity to disclose its lobbying and advocacy practices on nature-related issues.

Impact and dependencies assessment
In terms of its impact and dependencies assessment, Michelin discloses having an environmental management system at every location for its business operations to measure the company’s impact on its surrounding environment and biodiversity. However, there is no evidence that it reports on the process followed for identifying and prioritising its most relevant sustainability topics, impacts and dependencies on nature and biodiversity in its supply chain.

Key areas and species
Michelin discloses that every five years it conducts a survey of its operations which are nearby biodiversity areas classified as protected under supranational, national or local legislation, reporting on the results in its public disclosure. However, no evidence of the results of this survey could be found. It also does not disclose the locations of its suppliers that are in or adjacent to areas important for biodiversity. Furthermore, while it does provide information on species, it is expected to provide quantitative data on all species/groups affected in all its activities. Finally, it does not disclose the status according to national and international conservation lists of species identified in its own locations.

Ecosystem conversion and restoration
To align with its commitment of ensuring zero conversion, Michelin has an opportunity to define time-bound targets to achieve conversion-free supply chains. In terms of ecosystem restoration, there is an opportunity for Michelin to commit to the restoration of any impact on ecosystems derived from its operations or that of its business relationships. It is also encouraged to provide the details and outcomes of its ecosystem restoration activities.

Resource exploitation and circularity
Michelin does not disclose its inputs or its material footprint. Regarding soil health, Michelin has an opportunity to define targets to improve soil health in its production or sourcing practices.

Water
While Michelin demonstrates reductions in water withdrawal in its own operations, it does not report how much water is withdrawn from water-stressed areas. In terms of water pollution, Michelin discloses its processes for managing and monitoring discharge water quality. However, there is an opportunity for the company to define targets to reduce water pollution. Furthermore, it does not disclose a commitment to respect the right to water, or its processes for implementing preventive and corrective action plans for identified specific risks to the right to water and sanitation in its own operations.

Solid and air pollution
Michelin has an opportunity to reduce plastic use and waste in its own operations, and to report on the amount of plastic waste generated and proportions directed from or to disposal. In terms of air pollution, it does not report time-bound targets to reduce air pollutants across its value chain, and it does not report on air quality parameters of emissions of harmful air pollutants.

GHG emissions
While Michelin has a time-bound target to reduce its scope 3 emissions, it has an opportunity to align this target with a 1.5-degree trajectory.

Invasive species
While Michelin has not identified any activities that could lead to the introduction of IAS in its own operations, it is encouraged to broaden the scope of this identification process to include its business relationships.

Safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment
There is an opportunity for Michelin to show its commitment to respect local communities’ right to a safe, clean, healthy and sustainable environment and to zero tolerance for acts of violence, threats, intimidation or judicial harassment committed against land and environmental rights defenders.

While Michelin discloses conducting due diligence in general, it has an opportunity to specify that it conducts human rights due diligence that includes a process for identifying human rights risks and impacts in its financing activities. Furthermore, it describes its process for assessing its human rights risks and provides a case study describing how it has acted on a salient human rights risk issue. However, it has an opportunity to disclose what it considers to be its salient human rights issues, as well as to implement a global system to act on all its salient human rights issues. In terms of stakeholder engagement, Michelin discloses the categories of stakeholders it engages with generally on sustainability issues. However, it is not clear if these stakeholders are those whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities. Furthermore, while it provides general examples of engagement with stakeholders, it has an opportunity to clarify if these stakeholders are those whose human rights have been or may be affected by its activities.

There is no evidence that Michelin has a publicly available policy statement committing to respect the health and safety of workers, although it has a publicly available policy statement which shows it expects its suppliers to commit to respecting the health and safety of their workers. Regarding living wages, there is no evidence that Michelin discloses a time-bound target for paying all workers a living wage or that it has achieved paying all workers a living wage. It does disclose an effective methodology that was developed with the support of the Fair Wage Initiative . There is an opportunity to describe how the company determines a living wage for the regions where it operates. It also states that it expects its suppliers to pay wages that are sufficient for workers and their families to fulfil their basic needs. However, it has an opportunity to disclose how it works to support the payment of a living wage by its suppliers. Lastly, Michelin is encouraged to disclose the coverage of collective bargaining agreements, and to describe how it works to support the practices of its suppliers in relation to freedom of association and collective bargaining.

Michelin discloses a global tax strategy and shows evidence of assessing corruption risk by using the methodology recommended by the French anti-corruption agency. It also includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its contracts with direct business relationships. However, it does not describe the process to identify its bribery and corruption risks and impacts in specific locations or activities covering its own operations. In terms of lobbying and political engagement, there is no evidence that Michelin has a publicly available policy statement or policy setting out its lobbying and political engagement approach. It specifies that it does not make political contributions.