Disclosure focus
Disclosure 101-4 requires an organization to explain how it determined which of its sites and which products and services in its supply chain have the most significant actual and potential impacts on biodiversity. The disclosure focuses on the determination process. Detailed information on the resulting sites, products and services and their biodiversity impacts is reported under Disclosures 101-5 to 101-8.
Sites include locations owned, leased or managed by the organization and other locations where it conducts activities. They also include sites where future operations have been announced but have not yet started, inactive sites, and relevant subsurface infrastructure such as underground tunnels, cables and pipelines.
The supply-chain assessment covers products and services from suppliers throughout the upstream supply chain, including suppliers beyond the first tier. The organization can additionally report information for entities downstream in its value chain where such information is available.
The organization should describe the methods and assumptions used, the threshold applied, any limitations or exclusions, and the sources and evidence used. It should also explain whether and how stakeholders were engaged to identify biodiversity impacts.
The organization should distinguish between primary, secondary and modeled data. When secondary or modeled data are used, it should identify the datasets, explain their limitations and state whether and how it plans to improve data accuracy.
To assess the significance of impacts, the organization should consider the severity of actual impacts and the severity and likelihood of potential impacts. Severity is assessed through scale, scope and irremediable character. Relevant supporting factors can include direct drivers of biodiversity loss, proximity to ecologically sensitive areas, threatened species, ecosystem condition and changes in ecosystem services.
Where it is not feasible to conduct a detailed assessment across all sites and all supply-chain products and services, the organization can first conduct a documented scoping exercise to identify where impacts are most likely to be present and significant. It should explain the scope, criteria, assumptions, limitations and exclusions of that exercise.
Reasons for omission are permitted in accordance with GRI 1 where the organization cannot comply with the disclosure or a specific requirement.
This LRA educational guidance supports disclosure preparation. For the exact requirements, always refer to the official Global Reporting Initiative source.
Before you start
A quick mental checklist before you prepare this disclosure — tick each as you settle it.
Preparation
Key information to prepare
＋ Show GRI 101-4 sub-elements (LRA working checklist)
Explain how sites with the most significant actual and potential biodiversity impacts were determined.
Explain how products and services in the upstream supply chain with the most significant biodiversity impacts were determined, including beyond the first tier.
Describe the methods and assumptions used in the determination process.
Describe the threshold used to determine the most significant impacts.
Explain limitations and exclusions in site and supply-chain coverage.
Identify the primary, secondary and modeled data, datasets and evidence used and explain their limitations.
Explain whether and how stakeholders were engaged to identify biodiversity impacts.
Explain how severity of actual impacts and severity and likelihood of potential impacts were assessed.
Where detailed assessment of every site or supply-chain item was not feasible, describe the documented scoping exercise used to identify likely significant impacts.
How to prepare it
1Cover owned, leased, managed and other activity sites, announced future operations, inactive sites and relevant subsurface infrastructure, plus products and services from suppliers throughout the upstream supply chain.
2Collect and reconcile the records for: Site determination process; Supply-chain determination process; Methods and assumptions; Threshold; Limitations and exclusions; Sources, evidence and data type; Stakeholder engagement; Impact-significance assessment; Initial scoping exercise.
3Use a documented scoping exercise only as an initial step where full detailed assessment is not feasible; do not convert it into a permanent first-tier or control boundary.
4Draft the response using the defined terms shown in the disclosure focus; do not substitute broader internal labels.
5Review the final wording against every requirement and the supporting governance or data records before sign-off.
Request the data
Request the disclosure evidence
Translate the disclosure into an internal business question — then adapt it to your organisation's own language.
Provide the complete site and upstream product/service universes, screening and detailed impact assessments, significance criteria and threshold, methods, assumptions, data and source register, stakeholder input, limitations and approved resulting lists.
Use the organisation's own role and document names, but preserve the defined GRI terms and the scope described above.
Better request
Provide the complete site and upstream product/service universes, screening and detailed impact assessments, significance criteria and threshold, methods, assumptions, data and source register, stakeholder input, limitations and approved resulting lists.
Draft your disclosure
Notes that turn data into a disclosure
LRA training templates — adapt them to your organisation, and check the official source before sign-off.
Method note
Assess actual impacts by severity and potential impacts by severity and likelihood. Use direct drivers, sensitive-area proximity, threatened species, ecosystem condition and ecosystem services as supporting factors rather than substitutes for significance.
Context note
GRI 101-4 reports the determination process. Report the resulting site, product, service and impact details under GRI 101-5 to GRI 101-8.
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Preparation tools & forms
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Assurance readiness
For each claim, check the evidence
Evidence pack to prepare
Common reporting gaps
Presenting the resulting list as the core requirement instead of the determination process.Limiting sites to owned or active operational locations.Limiting supply-chain assessment to direct suppliers.Mixing biodiversity impacts with dependencies or financial risks.Using exposure screening alone as the final impact-significance assessment.Failing to distinguish primary, secondary and modeled data.
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Framework references
Relevant GRI requirements and related disclosures
Available framework references and nearby disclosures relevant to preparing this requirement.
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