A new report from business services company SAI Global has revealed that sustainability will be a major focus of Australia’s post-pandemic recovery, and all businesses will be looking to their suppliers to reduce their environmental footprint.
According to the 2021 Australian Business Assurance Report, which is based on a survey of 328 Australian executives, local businesses, on average, will put 57 per cent more resources, of budget, time and people, towards environmental initiatives.
The report found that 85 per cent of businesses are already taking measures to reduce their environmental impact. Waste management is the leading concern, and the most manageable. Some 57 per cent of executives say their organisations are reducing waste management processes including reusing, refurbishing, recycling and disposal.
Businesses are also focused on reducing their emissions. Almost half (48 per cent of businesses) are reducing their energy consumption, 24 per cent are increasing local sourcing, and 23 per cent are reducing travel and product transportation.
Large organisations (more than 500 employees) are taking charge in reducing emissions, with two thirds (66 per cent) focusing on reducing their energy consumption, compared with 41 per cent of small businesses (less than 50 employees). More than a quarter of companies (29 per cent) are reducing their travel and transportation emissions, compared with 21 per cent of small businesses.
Saeid Nikdel, environmental management systems expert at SAI Global, believes the Covid-19 crisis has caused a fundamental shift in our current trajectory and presented an opportunity for businesses to rebuild more sustainably.
“The global pandemic has presented many challenges to businesses, but the silver lining of the crisis is that it allows us to rethink our future and build resilience to other challenges such as climate change,” he said.
“The pandemic also hastened the transition to a hybrid working model, which has resulted in employees avoiding unnecessary face-to-face meetings, as well as domestic and global travel, in turn, reducing fossil fuel depletion and the associated impacts on climate change.
“As we emerge from the pandemic, it’s imperative that businesses looking to put more resources toward environmental sustainability create a multi-faceted approach that focuses on a range of measures.”
Less common are taking measures to improve efficiency of resource-heavy processes, which only 17 per cent of businesses are acting on and improving end-of-life treatment of products, chosen by 14 per cent.
“While many businesses say they are taking strides to reduce their waste management, energy consumption and emissions, not enough businesses are taking a holistic approach to environmental sustainability to also look at the lifecycle of their products, better uses of raw materials and natural resources, and better utilisation of space. The end-of-life treatment of products, how they are stored and how raw materials are acquired and extracted all have an impact on a company’s environmental impact and should be considered when developing an environmental strategy,” said Saeid.
To help them with this strategy, almost a third (31 per cent) of businesses said they will review their environmental policy.
However, Saeid believes this is not enough. He said, “An environmental policy is simply a statement that outlines an organisation’s commitments to sustainability. Whereas, adopting an environmental management system, such as the ISO 14001 standard, will improve an organisation’s ability to develop and implement policies, objectives, procedures, and governances to deliver environmentally responsible and sustainable business practices.
“When an organisation successfully certifies to a management system, they don’t just focus on their own people and their own organisation. To properly address sustainability, businesses are best to look across their entire operations, to their suppliers and partners, to ensure there is environmental consideration in the production, design, transportation and disposal – the full lifecycle – of their products or services.”
