Page 52 - Business Principles and Management

Chapter 2 • Social and Ethical Environment of Business

At times, pollution-control goals, such as improvement of air quality, may be
at odds with energy conservation goals. For example, the use of coal, which is facts
currently in great supply, generally pollutes air more than natural gas, which is &
in short supply. A business changing from coal to natural gas meets environmen-
tal goals but violates conservation goals. In contrast, a business changing from figures
natural gas to coal conserves natural gas but creates pollution. In time, scientists
may discover ways to use coal without creating a great deal of pollution. Until
then, people have to decide how best to conserve natural resources and protect In 2004, more than 44 million
the environment. Americans worked as full-time
Pollution dangers have become more and more apparent. Large cities are of- or part-time telecommuters.
ten covered by smog that contains pollutants from motor vehicles. As a result, Increasing numbers of employ-
many residents suffer from breathing problems. In numerous rivers and lakes, ees are conditioning their
pollutants have killed fish and other marine life. Chemical products used to acceptance of new jobs on
destroy insects and plant life have especially endangered waterways and farm- approval from the employer
lands, and in some places entered the food chain. to telework.

CONTROLLING ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
Many groups have pressured governments and employers to tighten pollution stan-
dards and to conserve natural resources. The federal government created the Envi-
ronmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 1974 to help control and reduce pollution in
the basic areas of air, water, solid waste, pesticides, noise, and radiation. The EPA
enforces such laws as the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Resource Recovery Act,
Federal Water Pollution Control Act, Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act,
Noise Control Act, and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. For instance,
laws have been passed that require engines in cars to be both fuel-efficient and less
polluting.
New waste disposal rules, especially for hazardous materials like medical and
nuclear waste, are very strictly enforced and often costly to carry out. These high
costs also encourage illegal dumping in bodies of water or on remote land areas.
To conserve resources and to protect the environment, more and more companies
are using recycled materials in their production processes.
In the aftermath of the Exxon Valdez accident, which spilled oil along coastal
Alaska in 1989 and killed large numbers of marine life, environmentalists and
socially minded groups formed the Coalition of Environmentally Responsible
Economies to encourage companies to behave responsibly. The Coalition devel-
oped a list of 10 environmental guidelines, named the CERES Principles. The
Coalition asks organizations to follow the principles voluntarily; they are not
legally required to do so. Sun Oil Company (Sunoco) was the first major company
that promised to follow the CERES Principles listed in Figure 2-4 (see p. 40).
Laws against pollution and demands for conserving natural resources are
costly to businesses. An issue arises when foreign countries have weaker laws,
law enforcement is lax, or public concern over pollution and conservation is not
as strong as in the United States. As a result, companies in these foreign countries
can make goods more cheaply than companies in America. One of the objections
to increasing trade with Mexico, for example, is that pollution laws in Mexico
are much weaker than in the United States.

CHECKPOINT
List natural resources issues impacting businesses and describe
how these businesses are reacting to them.

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