Many small businesses see Climate Change mostly in terms of increasing energy and resource costs and taxes.

They see combating (mitigating) or adapting to Climate Change as outside their sphere of influence or “not on our radar” – a distraction from the main business tasks.

Charnock Environmental believes that small to medium size businesses (SMEs) should see Climate Change as creating opportunities, not threats to their business.

Following a low-carbon, resource efficient, environmentally sustainable business model can result in cost savings and new business.

Here are 10 top tips for you:

• Marketing:  being sustainable can open new markets for your products and services. Demonstrate your credentials by adopting an Environmental Management System such as ISO14001. Tell your customers and highlight it in your publicity
  

• New or re-branded products: redesigning established products or introducing greener ones can make a big difference to your range. A product made from sustainably sourced materials or with a low carbon footprint will access new markets!

• Resource efficiency: whatever your business, reviewing your processes and procedures will almost certainly identify savings – even if it's just reducing paper use or packaging, or  segregating your waste streams  so that less goes to landfill.

• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: could the stuff you are throwing away be used elsewhere in your processes or by someone else? Landfill tax is £48 per tonne and rising: that’s a lot of money to throw in the ground!

• Supply chain: you may be “sustainable”, but are your suppliers ? Ask them to complete a simple check-list which will tell you how green they are. If you’re not satisfied, move on: shopping around may result in lower costs as well as greener inputs.

• Cutting energy use:  you might save 10% by switching off unused lights and equipment, adjusting  heating timers or lowering thermostats a degree or two. Replace obsolete equipment with“A rated”. Energy efficiency investments typically pay back in 1-3 years, and grants and soft loans reduce the costs and payback time further.

• Travel and communications: is that business trip really necessary? Choose tele-conferencing  and see your travel bills sink. When your people must travel, ask them to use public transport or car-share. If you own your own transport, maintain it!

• Adaptability: is your business adaptable and resilient to climate change? Can you operate if roads  flood or power is cut? Could your staff work from home? Are your documents (or backups) stored safely? Planning for emergencies can save disruption and expense.

• Insurance: your insurer will almost certainly lower your premium when he see  you are operating sustainably and have taken steps to protect your business against the risks  of climate change.

• Environmental Management Policy:  fundamental  to structuring your business for efficiency and profit in this era of austerity and climate change. From it flow your Environmental Management System and procedures, checks and records which prove that yours is a sustainable business.

 

 

John Charnock-Wilson, MSc, AIEMA, Adv Dip EDM
charnock  environmental

tel: 01730 231131; mobile: 07785 502 302

e-mail: john@charnock-environmental.co.uk