Many people in business start a company or project to provide a quality product or service and make money. Few, however, begin proceedings with the specific goal of being a green, environmentally friendly operation. With the needs of the planet more significant than ever, it is now time that businesses truly pulled their weight in the fight against the climate crisis.
Whether you set out with the end goal of being environmentally friendly in your operations or not, it would be hard to argue now that you don’t need to be just that.
Importance of a green business
According to NASA, the current rate of climate change is unprecedented over decades to millennia, and there is a greater than 95% probability that this is a result of human activity since the mid-20th century.
This climate change includes the melting of vital ice cores, the death of marvellous animal species, and toxic pollution in the air that humans and creatures alike breathe. While not all businesses or industries are equally culpable – a group of 20 fossil fuel companies is to thank for over a third of the whole world’s greenhouse gas emissions in modern times – all businesses can, and should, look to make changes where they can.
1.Recycling
The most essential step a business can take is to recycle more. In general, employees and visitors will recycle if the availability is there, so have obvious recycling points throughout your business, clearly and brightly signposted. If you have problems with recycling storage, solutions at recyclingbalers.com could help, or spend a little more cash on transporting and removing your recycling more often.
There is no national law in the United States for mandatory recycling, which is why it is of vital importance that US-based companies take the initiative themselves. In the EU, member states have targets they should strive to meet.
2. Turn off electricals
If your business operates using bright lights and lots of computers, ensure you are turning everything off at the end of the day. For security reasons, leave on any cameras or safety lights, but the bulk of your equipment should be shut down if it is not going to be used for the next ten or 12 hours. For when you do have lights turned on, look to environmentally friendlier options such as LED bulbs, which are up to 80% more efficient than traditional lighting and emit far less wasted heat. This puts less strain on power plants and emits fewer greenhouse gasses, as your company will instantly be using less energy.
3. Use less water
Install signs around kitchen sinks and in bathrooms requesting users turn the taps off while they are washing their hands. With more and more people washing hands for the 20-second recommendation, this causes a lot of wasted water. In bathrooms, you could consider using motion sensor taps which are more hygienic and are impossible to be accidentally left on.
4. Encourage working from home
Thanks to the daily commute, the UK produces 77.8 million tonnes of CO2 per year – over 14% of which comes from London. Data from the United States showed that rather than condensed, high population cities, it was actually sprawling metropolitan areas that caused the most pollution thanks to commutes.
Clearly, there is an issue in the way that society has evolved to work. There is no way that every job can become a work from home operation, but those that can, should try and implement such a system, even if it is only one or two days a week. Businesses who can afford it could offer subsidies to employees for their potentially increased electricity and water bills to encourage them to travel long distances less.
5. Invest in recycled materials
People want to buy from companies who are actively looking to improve the world around them. To help the environment and your reputation, advertise the fact that you are investing in recycled materials. If the business is a restaurant, for example, use serviettes made from reclaimed materials to reduce deforestation or switch energy supplier to providers who only use green electricity.
6. Create efficiency goals
As mentioned previously, recycling targets work across the EU to encourage members to reduce their impact on the environment. If you have several teams or offices in your business, create efficiency goals whereby the group that uses the least water or least electricity per head wins a perk at the end of the month. Even small prizes will play into the natural human desire for competition, which should drive down energy use.
7. Look at business grants for green initiatives
Finally, your business could look into grants for green initiatives. These grants, or sometimes loans, will help the company invest in cleaner technologies and promote environmentally friendly practices to their employees and their customers. In general, these are aimed at start-ups and small businesses, but there are some available to more prominent companies too.
