Survey: Small Businesses Still Lagging in Environm
Watertown, MA, April 20, 2006--Since the new environmental "green" thinking began sweeping through corporate culture in the 1990s, the larger, publicly-traded companies are more likely to continue devoting time and energy to adopting business practices that reduce waste, save energy and water, and consider their social impact.
But smaller companies are less likely to adopt formal stewardship programs because of a lack of resources, according to an analysis of about 100 northeast companies conducted by East Coast engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (VHB) and released tomorrow by the Environmental Business Council of New England (EBC) and the Associated Industries of Massachusetts.
The findings, presented today at a special EBC Earth Week Corporate Stewardship event, "Best Practices in Corporate Stewardship," being held 8 a.m. to noon Thursday, April 20, at the Doubletree Hotel in Waltham, show that about 34 percent of companies commit to public reporting; and 67 percent have a formal stewardship policy.
Only about a quarter of the approximate 100 companies surveyed have Environmental Management Systems and most do not regularly report performance to the public. Companies reporting improvements in environmental stewardship see them in their facilities, their measurement, monitoring and reporting, and in their production processes. Companies see the greatest future gain in their operating practices, education, and production processes, so greater efficiencies still seem possible. Product improvement, resource consumption, and improved transportation practices lag in both progress made to date and perceived likelihood of potential improvements. Many companies surveyed have formal environmental policies, but only half of those surveyed have clear goals and specific performance measures.
"These findings indicate that the leaders are still leading, but that the ranks of followers have not filled in," said Leo Pierre Roy, director of environmental services for VHB. who presented the findings at today's EBC event. "This shows that while progress has been made, there is much work to be done. Organizations like the Environmental Business Council of New England and the Associated Industries of Massachusetts are to be commended for encouraging research such as this, and for sponsoring education and outreach to their membership, to help more companies in the region become good corporate stewards."
Environmental stewardship, sustainability, and corporate social responsibility have become topics of steadily increasing interest since the early 1990s. Many leading companies are advancing initiatives to address the impacts and their operations have on society, to improve their business practices, and to involve their employees, suppliers, customers and communities in defining ways that achieve more sustainable and environmentally-friendly operations.
When environmental laws were promulgated beginning in the 1970s, companies sought to comply with the new statutes and regulations. By the 1990s, however, forward-thinking companies began to look beyond mere compliance, seeing the competitive advantages of adopting business practices that reduced waste, saved energy and water, and considered social impacts. Over the years and increasing number of companies have formalized environmental stewardship programs, and begun to track and publicly report on their progress regarding sustainability and social responsibility. Many of these companies, such as Interface Carpet, The Body Shop, and Ben & Jerry's, have been widely recognized for their efforts. The present question is whether other companies are learning from and picking up on these initiatives and adding to the momentum, and whether the results of these initiatives are sufficiently compelling to broadly sustain that momentum.
