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BUSINESSES AND ENVIRONMENT |
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by ANDREW AWUAH WIREKO | 25-03-2021 21:48
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Apart from the well known factors of production in economics (namely land, labor, capital and entrepreneurship) and other businesses decisions, another essential factor which should always be taken into consideration by businesses is how their businesses affect the environment. Businesses should always do environmental impact assessment before they are established as well as during their operations. This will help them know how their activities would impact or affect the environment. This would guide businesses to take prudent decisions which safeguard the environment. Any negative impact on the environment by businesses would likely affect them. It is worth noting that environmental impact assessment should be made part of the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) strategy of businesses. Even though businesses and some human activities contribute to the economy and society in the form of employment, livelihoods, provision of infrastructural facilities, social amenities and many more, it should also be pointed out that some businesses activities impact negatively on the environment. Businesses affect the environment in various ways. Some of them are : (1) INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION Industries which burn fossil fuels contribute to the pollution of the atmosphere. This is one of the several forms of environmental degradation which also contribute to climate change. I recommend that such businesses adopt alternative sources of power through low carbon Technology to run their industries. Low carbon Technology is basically the use of wind, solar, water and other forms of renewable energy to generate power particularly for industrial, commercial and domestic use. Examples are hydro power, wind power and solar power. The current innovations in automotive industry where the use of electric vehicles are seriously being researched into and gradually finding their way into the automotive market to replace vehicles which are powered by fossil fuels should be commended and encouraged. Petrochemical industries involved in the manufacture of plastic materials should also team up with the scientific community to find means to produce very affordable technology of recycling of plastic materials. In my native country, Ghana, for example, the disposal of plastic materials is a huge environmental problem. Plastic materials find their way into lands and water bodies including the ocean. The plastic materials which are disposed on lands have negative effects on the soil since plastics take several years to decompose. Those who find their way into the ocean and other water bodies pose a threat to marine and other aquatic lives. My recommendation is that industries in plastic business should find a way to produce biodegradable plastics which would take relatively shorter time to decompose. Well researched and very affordable plastic recycling technologies should be made available to developing countries like Ghana which finds it difficult to acquire some of the best plastic recycling technologies because of the cost involved. (2) HARMFUL AGRICULTURAL AND AGRIBUSINESS PRACTICE Agriculture and Agribusiness are very essential in the provision of food security and employment among others. However, harmful agricultural practices result in soil erosion, soil infertility, destruction of vegetation and so on. On the part of agribusiness, the production, distribution and the wrongful application of harmful agro-chemicals by farmers have harmful effects on the soil, environment and can also pollute water bodies if they find their way there. As was trumpeted by the United Nations during the recently observed World Water Day on 22nd March, 2021, we should all safeguard water resources to help achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on water and sanitation for all since this is very essential. As the adage goes, "water is life". It has also been observed that the activities of some agro-processing industries are harmful to the environment, particularly the way they dispose of their waste. Bad animal husbandry practices like over grazing destroy the soil and vegetation, thus negatively affect the ecosystem and the environment as a whole. My recommendation here is that, agricultural practices and agribusiness should be done in environmentally friendly manner so as to safeguard the environment. One of the ways this can be achieved is by providing well trained and resourced agricultural extension and environmentalists to assist farmers and agribusinesses respectively. (3) MINING ACTIVITIES Businesses like mining entities mostly contribute to environmental degradation through some of their activities. Mining entities which are licensed and well regulated usually operate within regulations causing relatively less harm to the environment. Some do their best to reclaim and restore the land, vegetation and the ecosystem. However, they are not usually able to restore the environment to the level of its original state after exploring and exploiting the natural resources. This situation affects the environment. Some of the the mining businesses even fail to perform their corporate social responsibilities to the communities where they take the minerals and other natural resources from. The worse form of mining is the unregulated and illegal mining by businesses which is called "Galamsey" in my native country, Ghana. Fighting this menace has been extremely difficult because powerful and influential people like politicians, security personnel, state officials among others are all involved in this environmental disastrous business venture. The activities of these illegal mining businesses lead to the destruction of vast lands and vegetation cover including forest reserves. Precious forests with endangered species are pulled down in name of mining for the so called precious minerals. What is more precious than a well preserved environment? To even make matters worse, some of the mining businesses (legal and illegal) have the audacity to mine very close and inside water bodies. In the process water bodies are polluted and destroyed. Some of the negative impacts of such polluted water bodies are that the turbidity of the water is so bad that water treatment plants which take their source of raw water from them for production spend much more resources to treat it for consumers. In many instances also, poisonous chemicals like mercury and cyanide are used in mining operations by mining entities (legal and illegal businesses). These poisonous and harmful chemicals sometimes find their way to pollute water bodies, soil and other aspects of the environment. Communities whose livelihoods depend on these polluted and degraded water bodies, soil and environment are severely affected by the inhumane business activities of these entities. I recommend that all mining businesses must be strictly regulated and those whose activities are found to be detrimental to the environment must be made to restore the ecosystem and also face severe punitive sanctions according to law. (4) DESTRUCTION OF VEGETATION AND LOGGING Businesses in agriculture, logging, mining and real estate among others contribute to the destruction of vegetation particularly forests. These activities of such businesses have adverse effects on soil, agricultural production, conservation of water bodies and the environment in general. This can contribute to climate change. Endangered forest species are sometimes destroyed by regulated and illegal logging. As science has proven, vegetation cover helps reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere since green vegetation absorb carbon dioxide for photosynthesis and in turn provides oxygen for the atmosphere. Vegetation cover also has an impact on rainfall patterns and agricultural production. Therefore, the destruction of vegetation through logging or any other form is harmful to the environment. It should be noted that forests provide fresh food, water and clean air apart from playing a major role in reducing carbon emissions. My recommendation here is that businesses which flout the laws of nature by destroying the vegetation and forest reserves should be severely sanctioned according to law. Businesses should also endeavor to venture into tree planting and massive afforestation to safeguard the environment. After all, there is the saying that " when the last tree dies, the last person dies." In conclusion, businesses should take note that : (i) Living in harmony with nature is very beneficial to mankind and businesses. (ii) Environmental protection and sustainable development are very important and should be seriously considered in business decisions. (iii) Businesses must also realize that ecology and climate go hand in hand. Hence, business decisions and operations should not negatively affect the environment. I recommend that, in determining the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) as well as policy direction of any business, the above issues that l have raised among others should be well considered in decision making since businesses affect the environment. Businesses must treat the environment as sacred and give it the dignity it deserves. This will make Mother Earth a better place to live.
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3 Comments
Thanks mentors! I do appreciate.
Posted 04-04-2021 09:43
Hi ANDREW, this is your mentor Yuseon:D
Enjoyed reading your well organized thematic report regarding how business affects the environment and the four ways they do so. Among them, I found mining activities an interesting topic to discuss as harms done to the environment. I personally thought that it was a topic that was not mentioned much, so it was good to know some new facts such as how mining operations by mining entities pollute the water bodies, soil, and therefor the environment as well.
Keep up the good work,
Yuseon
Posted 03-04-2021 01:26
Hi Andrew,
This is your mentor Debbie :)
Thanks for sharing with us four examples of how businesses are affecting the environment. In particular, I??d like to mention how destruction of vegetation is often forgotten when we are discussing environmental impact. Destroying natural vegetation affects the entire ecosystem. If a business is to build its factories after such a destruction without consumers realizing, this may create a huge drawback when this is later announced in public.
With this being said, businesses should also try to “plant” more as well. In this way, we would be able to at least give back to the nature a little and not take things for granted.
Great job with the article. Keep it up!
Best,
Debbie
Posted 30-03-2021 03:05