Charmaine
Aquino
Mikee
Charlemagne Factores
Penny
Laine Puazo
I.
Abstract
This
paper aims to explore the real reasons why businesses (public and
privately-owned) exist and what their relationship to the environment really is.
The main focus is to discuss the negative effects these businesses give to the
environment and the possible ways on how to address these—either to minimize or
stop them. The continuous subjugation and exploitation of the environment by
established businesses has posed a great risk in the complete destruction of
natural resources. This and its undesirable consequences to the people living
around them. Rules and regulations regarding the preservation of biodiversity
and all other natural resources has been enumerated, along with a
non-comprehensive discussion of the Corporate Social Responsibility practiced
among all organizations and what ethics has to do with it. The result of the
paper indicates that laws regarding these should be properly observed because
it is the way government wants to protect our environment. Business is not just
about profit gains but also considers many factors that helps it operate, in
this case the environment has the greatest contribution to it. In addition, ethics
is an essential ingredient for
today’s business success, because it is considered as a final value produced by
and for the company.
Keywords
Environment biodiversity exploitation preservation
Business natural resources mining subjugation
Ethics DENR illegal
logging rules and regulations
Business and the environment
Introduction
A Business
Every
business has a purpose. This is the main factor which drives the business to
operate. The purpose of a business is to offer value (through products and/or
services) to customers, who pay for the value with cash or equivalents.
Minimally, the money received should fund the costs of operating the business
as well as provide for the life needs of the proprietor (Weiss, 2013). This is often associated with the mission and vision
of every business entity. It defines the reason for the company’s existence.
Having a strong sense of purpose gives people a clear sense of what their
contribution to the company means, and also how they should do things every
day. It makes their work feel more meaningful – a key motivator for staff
across all generations, because we all have an innate desire to contribute to
something bigger.
The Philippine Environment and Environment in
General
“God created man in His
image and likeness; in the divine image He created him; male and female He
created them.
“God blessed them
saying, “Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion
over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that
move on earth.”
-Genesis 1:27-28
The passage from the Bible might have been taken
literally by the people—to have dominion over all things on Earth. This is
exactly what happened in the past, what’s happening today and probably might be
happening in the future. The subjugation and exploitation of the environment
has caused major damage in the past centuries and sadly, the human way of
“taking dominion over all things on earth” will continue in the future.
There
were a few people then and the Earth has easily recovered from the “damage”
humans inflicted on it. But now, there are more than 5 billion people compared
to less than half a million many years ago, it becomes very difficult for the
earth to recover. (Deauna and Dorado,
2008)
The Philippines has a total land area of about
300,000 square kilometres, about 92,000 square kilometres are farmland, and
about 72,000 square kilometres are forest land, including 65,000 square
kilometres of public land and 7,000 square kilometres of privately owned land.
In that vast expanse of land lies minerals and other
valuable items that can bring large profits to businesses. The major natural
mineral resources, for example, include coal, cobalt, copper, chromite, gold,
gypsum, iron, natural gas, nickel, petroleum, salt, silver, and sulphur.
Also, the Philippines fertile lands can house
millions of trees which are habitats of other millions of land animals, some of
them rare and now, very much extinct. Some of these include the tamaraw and
tarsier which can only be found in the country.
Not only that, the Philippines’ aquatic reaches
expands wide and contains more riches than anyone can ever imagine. It’s
blessed with excellent natural harbors for ports. Most popular tourist
attraction is the famous underground river in Palawan; the heart-shaped Laguna
de Bay; lake Taal in Batangas; Maria Christina falls and the Pagsanjan falls
are among others. These are precious stones and beautiful Coral Reefs which are
contained under them.
Being surrounded by the ocean, it is no surprise that the
Philippines rely on the waters as an important natural resource. There are more
than 640,000 square miles of territorial waters in the Philippines and within
these waters; there is an abundance of marine life and materials that are
valuable to the nation's people and those across the world. At least 65 species
of the 2,400 available species in Filipino waters have solid commercial value,
and the crabs, seaweed, pearls and other ocean treasures make the sea among the
top resources for this archipelago. (Morgan,
2015)
However, the Philippines is prone to natural
disasters, particularly typhoons, floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions,
earthquakes, and tsunamis, lying across the typhoon belt, in the active
volcanic region known as the “Pacific Ring of Fire,” and in the geologically
unstable region between the Pacific and Eurasian tectonic plates. The Philippines
also suffers major human-caused environmental degradation aggravated by a high
annual population growth rate, including loss of agricultural lands,
deforestation, soil erosion, air and water pollution, improper disposal of
solid and toxic wastes, loss of coral reefs, mismanagement and abuse of coastal
resources, and overfishing. (Narsus,
2015)
Kennedy,
N. (2010). Global Environmental Health in the 21st
Century: From Governmental Regulation to Corporate Social Responsibility:
Workshop Summary. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK53982/
Relationship between Business and Environment
Environment is closely related with business. There is a
constant ‘give and take’ relationship between environment and business. The
business receives inputs, information and technology from the environment and
gives it back in the form of goods and services (Tanuja, 2017). Every business should always take into
consideration the community that maybe affected in their daily operations. They
are part of the stakeholders as well. They may not be directly benefited from
the business operations but the wastes from the businesses greatly affect their
daily living. Many business operations depend on the environment, as it can be
the primary source of raw materials and can affect business processes.
Companies around the world are integrating environmental interest with business
and are becoming proactive in finding ways to reduce environmental impact.
Additionally, consumers are favoring businesses that contribute to protecting
natural resources. How your company addresses environmental issues affects the
turnout of your business (Davoren, 2017).
Regardless of the type of business you run, it's possible to reduce your impact
on the environment and improve your bottom line. Lowering your carbon
footprint, reducing your waste and becoming more sustainable can result in
energy, water or waste management savings. It can also increase your profit
through efficiency or productivity gains.
Environmental issues affect business because laws require
them to change equipment and procedures to meet imposed standards, which costs
business money. Many businesses do such Corporate Social Responsibility effort
to preserve the environment. Some environmental issues affecting business
include industrial waste, sustainable development of raw materials and water
and air emissions. These issues require additional cost to the business in man
hours, procedures, and equipment.
Proper disposal of waste is the most common issue that needs
to be addressed. Businesses most especially those in the manufacturing process
create waste that obviously harms the environment. By products from these needs
to be dispensed properly in accordance with the environmental laws existing in
that certain place. Recycling programs can also be done; the waste of one
manufacturer can be a raw material for another business. Waste is minimized and
the business also benefits from it because selling the wastes in the form of
raw materials is also an added profit for them.
Another environmental issue is the sustainable development of
raw materials. Raw materials used by manufacturers which include natural
resources such as wood require business to take measures to replace what it uses.
Planting trees to replace them is the simplest way but it will take time for
these to be able to grow into mature ones. Again, the effect on business is
cost in terms of higher raw materials costs, which usually include the
supplier's cost to “replant” or “restock” the natural raw materials.
Emissions both air and water affects the environment
as well. Again, environmental protection laws require businesses to
protect the environment from exposure to these. Remedial process include
placing screens of specified gauges over smoke stacks, filtration of waste
water and lining of retention ponds with clay and poly liners. New regulations
are implemented frequently that require retrofitting of manufacturing
facilities with increased protections, such as screens of even finer gauges and
pond liners of newer and safer materials. All of these measures are costly to
business and affect businesses first by decreasing profit margins
Ethical
Relationship between Business and the Environment
Environmentalists
and business leaders have traditionally seen themselves at odds. But the
concepts of business, ethics, and the environment can be aligned to create
innovation rather than legislation and litigation. There are no magic
solutions; however, asking the right questions is a step in the right
direction.
Businesses
must continue to create value for their financiers and other stakeholders. To
leave a livable world for future generations, business leaders also must pay
attention to environmental matters. Yet most of the methods, concepts, ideas,
theories, and techniques used in business do not put business, ethics, and the
environment together. Neither ethics nor regard for natural systems is
typically central to the way we think about business.
In
a similar way, environmental considerations are frequently viewed as barriers
to profitability. They are viewed as necessary evils, costs to be minimized, or
regulations with which to comply. The environment is rarely considered central
to business strategy unless there is some regulation that constrains business
goals. Historically, business people neither have been encouraged nor
discouraged to get involved with environmental concerns. Models and theories of
business traditionally have been silent on the subject of the environment.
Silence, however, is no longer an option in the face of society’s recognition
of the potential environmental price of corporate profits.
An
increasing number of citizens consider themselves to be environmentalists.
Governments are increasing their cooperative actions to address worldwide
environmental concerns such as global warming and biodiversity. And interest
groups are beginning to propose solutions to problems that involve business
decision-making outside of and beyond government regulation.
The
success of every business depends on adapting itself to the environment within
which it functions. For example, when there is a change in the government
policies, the business has to make the necessary changes to adapt itself to the
new policies. Similarly, a change in the technology may render the existing
products obsolete, as we have seen that the introduction of computer has
replaced the typewriters; the color television has made the black and white
television out of fashion. Again a change in the fashion or customers’ taste
may shift the demand in the market for a particular product, e.g., the demand
for jeans reduced the sale of other traditional wear. All these aspects are
external factors that are beyond the control of the business. So the business units
must have to adapt themselves to these changes in order to survive and succeed
in business. Hence, it is very necessary to have a clear understanding of the
concept of business environment and the nature of its various components.
Business and Environment
There
is a close and continuous interaction between the business and the environment.
This interaction helps in strengthening the business firm and using its
resources more effectively. As stated above, the business environment is
multifaceted, complex, and dynamic in nature and has a far-reaching impact on
the survival and growth of the business. To be more specific, proper
understanding of the environment helps the business in the following ways:
a. Determining
Opportunities and Threats: The interaction between the business and its
environment would identify opportunities for and threats to the business. It
helps the business enterprises for meeting the challenges successfully.
b. Giving
Direction for Growth: The interaction with the environment leads to opening up
new frontiers of growth for the business firms. It enables the business to
identify the areas for growth and expansion of their activities.
c. Continuous
Learning: Environmental analysis makes the task of managers easier in dealing
with business challenges. The managers are motivated to continuously update
their knowledge, understanding and skills to meet the predicted changes in
realm of business.
d. Image
Building: Environmental understanding helps the business organizations in
improving their image by showing their sensitivity to the environment within
which they are working.
e. Meeting
Competition: It helps the firms to analyze the competitors’ strategies and
formulate their own strategies accordingly.
f. Identifying
Firm’s Strength and Weakness: Business environment helps to identify the
individual strengths and weaknesses in view of the technological and global
developments.
Every
business enterprise is an integral part of the society. It uses the scarce
resources of the society to continue and grow. Hence, it is important that no
activity of business is injurious to the long run interests of the society—that’s
where ethics comes in. However, it is observed that, in practice, there are a
few socially undesirable aspects of business such as, polluting the environment,
non-payment of taxes, manufacturing and selling adulterated products, giving
misleading advertisement and so on. This has resulted in the development of the
concept of social responsibility of business whereby the owners and managers of
business are made conscious about the responsibilities of their business
towards the environment.
Environmental
responsibility is widely viewed as an aspect of corporate social
responsibility. But the idea that business has a responsibility toward the
environment is treated almost as a self-evident proposition, and the
theoretical basis for such an assumption is rarely discussed. Whether the
objects of environmental ethics wildlife, the natural environment, and so forth
qualify as stakeholders is among the key questions that need to be reexamined.
However,
when it comes to responsibility toward nature or the global environment, the
objects of responsibility are non-human entities the atmosphere, soil, water,
wildlife, and so forth that are not covered by traditional ethics. The concept
of responsibility toward the natural world as a whole has arisen only in recent
years, as human activities that interfere with natural cycles have been carried
out on such a scale as to upset the balance of nature and the environment.
Environmental
ethics considers the ethical relationship between business and the natural
world and the kind of decisions companies have to make about the environment:
Should we continue to cut down the rain forests for the sake of human
consumption? Should we continue to manufacture petrol-driven cars when we have
the technology to make cars which do not pollute the environment? Should we
knowingly cause the extinction of other species? What are our environmental
obligations to future generations? Should humans be forced to live a simpler
lifestyle in order to protect and preserve the environment?
Most
people recognize that our planet is in a bad way and we all seem to have an
opinion on environmental issues, such as climate change or the use of
four-wheel drive cars in cities. The importance of environmental ethics is
brought home daily by the news of global warming and its effect on our lives,
both now and in the future.
Conclusion
All
human and business activities have an impact on the environment. Indeed, each
individual has an ecological footprint that represents the sum of that person’s
resource use and contributions to pollution. (United Nations Environment Programme, 2009)
The
government should be the one leading the preservation of the Earth. In the
Philippines, current President Duterte stated that mining companies and all
others who exploits the environment relentlessly have the right to mine, but in
doing so, care must be exercised that we do not harm the environment. In any
way we can, we must give back what we’ve taken to preserve our natural
resources (Anunciado and Gita, 2017).
The
success of every business depends on adapting itself to the environment within
which it functions. Adjusting the relationship between business and the
environment is one of the most fundamental issues businesses face and must deal
with Here, organization managers have major tasks and responsibilities. Ethical
principles concerning environment should be internalized by all the
organizations for an effective environmental management. In order to meet their
social and business responsibilities, organizations should behave like this and
sustainability should be the key of their guidelines.
Ethics
is an essential ingredient for today’s business success, because it is considered
as a final value produced by and for the company. In other words, ethical
management should be implemented to achieve not only a value that will provide
a better external corporate reputation, but also a good place to work (Palomino, Gomis, Banon, & Carmen,
2011). Ethical management is not only necessary for a good business
atmosphere or success of organizations, but also for environmental values.
Corporate Social Responsibility
is an added bonus to the preservation of the environment. At a minimum, corporate social responsibility includes
environmental issues, but it also takes on social, ethical, governance, health,
and other issues (Kennedy, 2010).
The
business-environment interaction is a continuous process. We primarily get our
resources from the environment, and in return we should learn how to take care
and preserve it. There will soon be a time wherein these resources would vanish
and all of us will suffer. Laws regarding these should be properly observed
because it is the way government wants to protect our environment. Business is
not just about profit gains but also considers many factors that helps it
operate, in this case the environment has the greatest contribution to it.
VII.
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