By René Botha
FOR every conscious step that a business takes to become environmentally more sustainable, the positive impact is so much broader than the business itself. Environmental awareness and habits practised in the workplace are likely to spread to the households of the workers
This makes the community of business owners one of the most important constituencies of the environmental movement. Earth Day, celebrated globally on every April 22 for over half a century, is a good starting point for business owners who want to take their first step towards sustainability, or for those who want to consolidate their progress.
Becoming sustainable need not be an all or nothing affair. It is a process that all business owners will have to go through along with the rest of society. There are nine easy steps that business owners can implement on the journey towards greener, more sustainable business operations:
1. End single use plastics
Find alternatives for all the single-use plastic that your business consumes. If you stock your board or staff room with bottled water, consider replacing it with a water dispenser and glass carafe. Similarly, plastic cutlery and food containers can be replaced with wood, paper or glass. If your raw materials come in single-use plastic containers or wrapping, discuss reusable systems with your suppliers.
2. Package in paper, wood and glass:
The public is increasingly coming to expect the items they buy to be packaged in paper, wood, or glass rather than plastic. It’s reusable and biodegradable.
Even if you have to use a lot of plastic in your manufacturing processes or your packaging, consider using some of the many biodegradable plastics that are becoming available, and look for ways to reduce the amount of plastic used.
3. Start a recycling system for your business
Once your staff know to separate the different types of waste, it is very easy to maintain, and soon it becomes a habit they will all take home with them.
4. Combine sustainability with team building
You can kill two birds with one stone by structuring the greening of your business with team building exercises.
Let your staff members compete to see which team can use the least plastic, save the most energy, or reduce their waste most. Taking your staff out for a beach or veld clean-up can be a great team-building exercise. These can be planned to coincide with global initiatives such as Earth Day or Plastic-free July.
5. Go solar
As the price of solar equipment falls, the case for installing a solar system for your business is becoming more and more compelling. The latest estimates show that a solar system can pay for itself within as little as six years.
6. Reduce your power consumption
Small changes in your business can make a big difference to your power consumption, including changing your lights to LED, switching off unused lights and equipment, boiling only the amount of water you need, and removing unused chargers and power cords from the wall plugs are good ways to start. And once these habits are instilled in your staff members, they are sure to do the same at their homes.
7. Use energy-efficient machines
It’s important to keep an eye out for more energy-efficient alternative machinery, from office equipment to furnaces, that regularly come onto the market in nearly every industry. Not only does it make your business greener, but it is sure to give you a competitive edge.
8. Insulate your building
It costs a bit in the beginning, but over time you will save a lot in energy usage by making sure your premises are well insulated.
9. Become water-wise
With plastics and electricity, there are many ways in which a business can reduce its use of water. Teach your staff to report leaks and stop dripping taps. Harvesting rainwater is relatively inexpensive and helps to preserve this precious resource.
René Botha is the regional investment manager at Business Partners Limited.
BUSINESS REPORT