Environment off the radar for Australian businesses: survey

Over a third of Australian businesses show a very low degree of environmental awareness, with 58.7% of employees saying that environmental issues are never discussed at their company, according to a survey of 1768 employees by online career network, LinkM

Over a third of Australian businesses show a very low degree of environmental awareness, with 58.7% of employees saying that environmental issues are never discussed at their company, according to a survey of 1768 employees by online career network, LinkMe.com.au

While environmental awareness is considered to have increased, more than a third of companies (34.6%) do not aim to be as environmentally friendly as reasonably possible and only 15.6% make any effort to measure the level of greenhouse gases they emit.

“Environmental awareness is on the up, but many businesses are yet to actually implement the simplest of green policies throughout their businesses,” says Campbell Sallabank of LinkMe. “The overwhelming consensus is that business will only be held accountable for the impact they make on the environmental future of Australia if legally bound to do so.”

According to 34.7% of respondents, the single most effective measure to truly drive environmentally friendly workplaces would be to impose legal obligation on “green” standards and force business take responsibility for our green future.

“Some other potential steps that might improve these statistics were suggested by respondents and included companies receiving a free visit from a green consultant to best advise on measures to take (31.9%),” says Sallabank. “Government grants (25.6%) and tax cuts for lowered greenhouse gas emissions (23%) were also seen as potential solutions by employees.”

He says the simplest of steps, such as turning out the office lights and computers after work, can make a huge difference.

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