Sustainability
The assessment and improvement of business strategies, economic sectors, work practices, technologies, and lifestyles while maintaining the natural environment.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR)
Has become a major initiative because of stakeholder expectations.
4 reasons social responsibility became such an issue for oganizations:
1. Socially responsible activities such as sustainable business practices can create competitive advantages.
2. Both positive and negative information about products and organizations became more available.
3. Organizations can use their products and bran
What industry is one of the largest investors in clean energy sources?
Oil and gas
Most significant issues facing business and society today:
1. Air pollution
2. Acid rain
3. Global warming
4. Water pollution
5. Water quantity
6. Land pollution
7. Waste management
8. Deforestation
9. Urban spread
10. Biodiversity
11. GMOs
Air pollution arises from 3 sources:
1. Stationary - factories and power plants
2. Mobile - cars, trucks, planes, trains, etc
3. Natural sources - windblown dust and volcanic erruptions
Recent air pollution concern
Fracking
Fracking
Occurs when water, chemicals, and sand are pumped into a well at high pressure. Fractures the rock layers deep in the ground, allowing natural gas to be extracted.
Kyoto Protocol
Created in 1997. An international treaty meant to curb global greenhouse gas emissions by having countries voluntarily reduce national outputs. The US did not ratify and therefor it is not bound.
Cancun package
In 2010 most of the word's nations agreed to a package of climate initiatives. Called for industrialized countries to cut greenhouse emissions and pay into a $100 billion a year green fund to help poorer countries. US, China, Japan, and India did not agre
Doha Gateway Agreement
Two years after Cancun package - another attempt to develop a universal, legally binding international agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Calls for both developed and developing countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Expected to be signed i
One of the biggest factors in land pollution
Dumping of waste into landfills
Rate at which the world's forests are being destroyed
50,000 sq miles annually
Forest Stewardship Council
A nonprofit organization comprised of loggers, environmentalists and sociologists that seek to coordinate forest management around the world and develop uniform set of standards.
GMO
Created through manipulating plant and animal DNA to produce a desired effect like resistance to pests and viruses, drought resistance, or high crop yield.
EPA
The most influential regulatory agency that deals with environmental issues and enforces environmental legislation in the US.
Environmental movement reached significant climax with the publication of this.
Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. An attack on the indiscriminate use of pesticides. President Nixon responded with the EPA.
EPA ensures the following:
1. Protecting Americans from significant health and environmental risks.
2. Managing environmental risks based on empirical information.
3. Ensuring the fairness and effectiveness of laws protecting human health and the environment.
4. Ensuring environmen
Goals of the EPA
1. Taking action on climate change and improving air quality.
2. Protecting America's water
3. Cleaning up communities and advancing sustainable development.
4. Ensuring the safety of chemicals and preventing pollution.
5. Better waste management, restora
Clean Air Act
A comprehensive federal law established in 1970 that regulates atmospheric emissions from a variety of sources. Establishes national air quality standards. States are responsible for the quality of their air and cannot negatively impact the air quality in
Endangered Species Act
Established in 1973 is a program to protect threatened and endangered species as well as the habitats in which they live. Highly controversial.
Toxic Substances Control Act
Established in 1976 to empower the EPA with the ability to track the 75000 industrial chemicals currently produced or imported into the US. Repeatedly screens these chemicals and requires reporting or testing.
Clean Waters Act
In 1977, Congress amended the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972. Granted the EPA the authority to establish effluent standards on an industry basis and continued the earlier law's requirement to set water quality limits for all contaminants in s
Pollution Prevention Act
1990. Focuses on reducing pollution through cost effective changes in production, operation, and raw materials use. Common method is designing buildings to be more environmentally friendly.
Food Quality Protection Act
In 1996, amended the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodentcide Act and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act to change the way the EPA regulates pesticides. New safety standard --- reasonable certainty of no harm-- for all all pesticides used on f
Energy Policy Act
2005. Promotes alternative forms of energy in the desire to lessen the US dependence on foreign oil
Wind power
Great promise. Great Plains-- could meet as much as 20% of the nation's energy needs. Roadblocks: High cost of turbines and restructuring the power grid.
Geothermal power
Constant source of heat. Plants emit fewer carbon emissions than coal power plants. Roadblocks: Expensive and geothermal drilling sites are not readily available.
Solar power
100% renewable energy that can be converted into electricity through the use of either photovoltaic cells (solar cells) on homes and other structures or solar power plants. Roadblocks: Technology remains expensive and inefficient and the infrastructure fo
Nuclear power
Reduced emissions. Pollution free. Roadblocks: Danger associated with nuclear meltdowns and radioactive waste disposal, bad reputation in the US.
Biofuels
Most controversial form--ethanol. Takes a lot of energy and is not much more sustainable than oil. Could cause a reduction in the world's food supply--corn---and increase costs. Algae and nonedible plants are currently being explored.
Hydropower
Provides only 7% output and 19% of total electricity production worldwide making it the largest form of renewable energy. Roadblocks: Destruction of wildlife and human habitats when valleys are flooded using dams.
Triple-bottom line approach
Many businesses responded to sustainability by adopting this. Takes into consideration social and environmental performance variables in addition to economic performance.
Better environmental performance can increase revenue in 3 ways:
1. Better access to certain markets.
2. Differentiation of products
3. Sale of pollution-control technology.
Better environmental performance can reduce costs by
improving risk management and stakeholder relationships, reducing the amount of materials and energy used, and reducing capital and labor costs.
Opportunities for reducing costs by better environment performance:
1. Risk management and relations with external stakeholders.
2. Cost of material, energy, and services.
3. Cost of capital
4. Cost of labor
Green marketing
A strategic process involving stakeholder assessment to create meaningful long term relationships with customers, while maintaining, supporting, and enhancing the natural environment.
Greenwashing
Misleading a consumer into thinking a product or service is more environmentally friendly than it really is.
Agreement between companies that they should work to protect and preserve sustainability by implementing a number of goals:
1. Strive to eliminate waste. Run things more efficiently.
2. Rethink the concept of a product. The design of a product should use a closed-loop system of manufacture and use and a return to the manufacturing process that allows products and resources to
Recycling
Reprocessing of materials, especially steel, aluminum, paper, glass, rubber, and some plastics, for reuse. Greatest sustainability success stories.
Coca cola
Took steps to reduce water use.
Through risk management,
it is possible to quantify the trade-offs to determine whether to accept or reject environmentally-related activities and programs.
Companies that perform environmental audits may use this globally accepted standard.
ISO 14000