Question

a) Why firms and industries should become more efficient in using natural resources?

B) What ethical responsability does businesses have to the enviroment? should it be universal or each country should have its own way to implement it individually?

Answer 1

a) Firms and Industries should become more efficient in using natural resources because of the following reasons:

• Natural resources are always limited, and it becomes very important to use them judiciously. For example, any country has limited land and water availability. If these resources are not used properly, it could lead to a situation where they become scarce.
• Natural resources are the true wealth of a nation or society and have a large impact on the economy. Any inefficient use of natural resources by firms and industries may adversely affect the economy.
• By using natural resources efficiently, firms and industries can reduce their costs and improve their performance.

b) Businesses have the following ethical responsibilities towards the environment:

• They should ensure that their actions do not have an adverse impact on the flora and fauna in the regions where they operate.
• They should ensure that they do not pollute the environment. For example, Industries should keep a check on their emissions so that the environment is not polluted.
• They should ensure that any process-waste, industrial-waste, scrap is disposed of in an environment-friendly manner.
• They should not prioritize business over the environment, and should never indulge in actions that may harm the environment.

Environmental responsibilities like the reduction of carbon footprint, increased use of renewable sources of energy, etc are generally universal in nature. However, for better and stricter implementation, every country needs to have its own action plans for the same. A country may come up with strict penalties for not following the environment-related norms as per the action plan. With their own plans, countries will have better control over the implementation of these plans. This will make all businesses and individuals to take these plans seriously and implement them correctly, without fail.