"Thirty years ago, if you said the country was living beyond its means, people would have thought about economics. Now, if you talk about the country, or the planet living beyond its means, you think about the environment"
David Miliband, Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs addressing the TUC conference, Brighton (12 September 2006)
As one of the world’s oldest environmental awards schemes the ‘Business Commitment to the Environment’ (BCE) Awards are a much sought-after accolade.
Since 1975, 168 awards have been made to companies that have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to maintaining or enhancing the environment. Just like environmental awareness, the Awards have evolved since their inception and in 2007 they were refocused as the ‘BCE Environmental Leadership Awards’, demonstrating the clear evolution from ‘commitment’ to leadership’.
When the late Sir Peter Parker first started the awards in 1975 the world was a very different place. Harold Wilson was Prime Minister, the Vietnam War had just ended, Microsoft was founded, Britain voted to remain part of the European economic Union, Dutch Elm Disease killed 6.5 million trees in the UK and Mohammad Ali beat Joe Frazier in the epic ‘Thriller in Manila’. However, environmental issues were only just starting to rise up the United Nations Agenda since the first major global environmental congress was held in Stockholm in 1972. This was the first global recognition that the environment was becoming endangered, the realism of which forced companies to think more about the impact they were having.
Environmental concerns through until about 1970 focused largely on local pollution and air quality issues (smoke and other particulate matter). Control was through dispersal using tall chimneys for industry and power generation. For households, the approach was to use smokeless fuel of exempted appliances that were capable of burning ordinary coal smokelessly. The Suez Crisis in the 50s and 60s and the oil crisis of 1973 led to the UK being concerned about fuel security, specifically coal and oil supply and rising fuel prices. Nuclear power was seen as a way of taking the burden off oil/coal fired power plants while the UK started to invest more money to make more use of the North Sea oil reserves. Energy efficiency also came more into the spotlight.
The Energy Technology Support Unit (ETSU) was started in 1974 to provide environmental support to the Chief Scientist at the Department of Energy (DEn - became part of DTI in 1992). Its scope was then widened to include renewable energy technologies, energy efficiency and coal research and development work for the UK Government. The group has now evolved into the private-sector environmental consultancy AEA, which is the main sponsor of the Awards and offers a wide range of environmental expertise.
During the 1970s, the US Department of Energy undertook a series of studies, the results of which started to see the beginning of serious discussion and debate about future global warming.
It was realised, too, that pollution from coal burning could travel long distances. The focus was now on emissions of sulphur and nitrogen oxides that could transform in the atmosphere and subsequently be deposited as "acid rain" or "acid deposition".
In 1979, the National Academy of Sciences' panel on climate change advised a 'wait-and-see' policy that may have meant waiting until it was too late to avoid significant climate change.
The first world climate change conference took place and adopted climate change as a major issue and called on governments to foresee and prevent potential man-made changes to the climate.
"The way business tackles its environmental challenges is a crucial test of its standards of competitiveness, conscience and vision. The winners show us the most acceptable face of enterprise in the environment.“
Sir Peter Parker - Founder BCE Awards
British Petroleum (Dalmeny Tank Farm)
Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister, Apple Macintosh was introduced, Indria Ghandi was assassinated, astronauts made the first untethered space walk and Miami Vice was first aired. The Live Aid concert took place in an effort to highlight the plight of Ethiopia’s suffering from the effects of a severe drought. In 1988, a ‘Free Nelson Mandela’ Concert was held in London and a Pan Am flight crashed in Lockerbie as a result of a terrorist bomb. British Coal was in rapid decline and being lined up by the government as the "ultimate" privatisation. 'Yuppie' culture was in full swing with the ‘filo o fax’ and first mobile phones introduced. The world stock market crashed and the Berlin wall fell, pro-democracy demonstrators were massacred in Tiananmen Square, the USA invaded Panama and the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Alaska spilling millions of gallons of oil. The World Wide Web was created by Berners-Lee.
Resource efficiency was driving environment in business. The 1980s turned out to be the warmest decade with seven of the eight warmest years recorded up to 1990. Even the coldest years in the 1980’s were warmer than the warmest years in the 1880s.
In 1985, the British Antarctic survey discovered a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica. The first major international conference on the greenhouse gas effect took place at Villach, Austria and warned that greenhouse gases would “in the first half of the next century, cause a rise of global mean temperature which is greater than any in man's history”. Research indicates this could cause sea levels to rise by up to a metre. The conference also reported that gases other than CO2 such as methane, ozone, CFCs and nitrous oxide would contribute to global warming.
1986 saw the Chernobyl nuclear power station disaster. I1987 was the warmest year on record and an ice core from Antarctica revealed an extremely close correlation between CO2 levels and temperature, going back more than 100,000 years.
The United Nations set up the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to analyse and report on scientific findings. Global warming attracted worldwide headlines after Dr James Hansen of NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies lab told a Congressional hearing “global warming is at hand” and blamed a major US drought which fuelled massive wildfires in Yellowstone Park on its influence. A meeting of climate scientists in Toronto subsequently called for 20% + cuts in global CO2 emissions by 2005.
ETSU extended its activities to energy efficiency/transport programmes. Emissions standards were set for power stations.
John Major started his term as Prime Minister in 1991 and was succeeded following the Labour Government’s win with Tony Blair taking the role in 1997. Nelson Mandela was freed and the first Gulf War came and went. The Soviet Union collapsed. The UK saw Mad Cow Disease. In the US, the Oklahoma bombing killed 800 people. Some 8,000 were killed in Bosnia. The Channel Tunnel opened connecting England to France and the Euro was introduced
The 1990s saw a marked increase in international governmental activity and discussion relating to the impacts of climate change. And there was a recognition that it was a problem that could only be tackled with international co-opperation.
In 1990, 80 nations agree to stop producing ozone layer damaging CFCs by 2000.
The first report from the IPCC found that the planet had warmed up by 0.5 degrees in the past century and warned that only strong measures to halt rising greenhouse gas emissions would prevent serious global warming. This provided scientific clout for the United Nations negotiations for a climate convention.
In 1991, Mount Pinatubo erupted in the Philippines throwing debris into the stratosphere that shields the Earth from solar energy, which helped interrupt the warming trend, average temperatures dropped for two years before rising again. Scientists pointed out that this vent showed how sensitive global temperatures are to disruption.
In 1992, an Earth Summit was held in Rio. The Framework Convention on Climate Change was signed by 154 nations and agreed to prevent “dangerous” warming from greenhouse gases and set an initial target of reducing emissions from industrialised countries to 1990 levels by 2000
In 1996, at the 2nd meeting of the Climate Change Convention in Geneva, the US called for legally binding emissions targets. After a four-year pause, global emissions of CO2 continued their steep climb and scientists warned that the most industrialised countries will not meet the Rio agreement to stabilise emissions at 1990 levels by 2000.
!n 1997, The Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was created after intensive negotiations. Most industrialised nations and some central European economies in transition agreed to legally binding reductions in greenhouse gas emissions of an average of 6 to 8% below 1990 levels between the years 2008-2012, defined as the first emissions budget period. The United States would be required to reduce its total emissions an average of 7% below 1990 levels. However, neither the Clinton administration nor the Bush administration sent the protocol to Congress for ratification.
The governmental programmes on resource efficiency increase and ETSU managed Energy Efficiency, Environmental Technology and Transport Programmes spreading good practice, as well as the Clean Coal programme.
The Energy Saving Trust (EST) was set up and initially 60,000 consumers were advised on energy efficiency. By 2007, EST had advised over 1 million consumers.
In the 1990s, there were hardly any condensing boilers. However, by 2007 they constituted about 90% of the market for domestic boilers. There were hardly any 'A' rated white goods, but by 2007 'A' was the base standard in many white-goods sectors.
The first voluntary energy efficient agreement was signed with the Chemicals Industry. IPPC/ Environmental management systems BS7750/ISO 14001 are established in businesses.
Emphasis is now focused on the move towards zero emissions coal-fired plant. This means the effective demonstration/deployment of CO2 capture and storage.
"BCE has been a trailblazer in the promotion of the environment as a fundamental part of business management for over a quarter of a century. Through its Awards, it continues to highlight excellence, innovation and enthusiasm for the environment within British business.“
Sir Anthony Cleaver - President BCE
Tony Blair was Prime Minister until 2007 when Gordon Brown took over the Premiership. George Bush became president of US. The 9/11 disaster struck and the war on terrorism was launched, leading to the war in Iraq . Poverty in Africa and the environment are very much in the headlines.
In 2002, the Larsen B ice shelf in Antarctica collapses into the sea and a 2-mile thick pollution cloud over South Asia is reported to cause death to 500,000 million people a year. In 2003, a heat wave scorches Europe where over 35,000 people die as a result. In 2005, 150 nations agree to launch talks on mandatory post 2012 reductions in greenhouse gases. The G8 leaders act – at the G8 summit at Gleneagles, climate change is one of the two main issues addressed by leaders of the eight largest industrial nations along with invited developing nations.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina was the costliest and one of the deadliest hurricanes in US history causing catastrophe in New Orleans and killing almost 2,000 people. In 2004, the deadliest Tsunami in history followed an Earthquake in the Indian Ocean, killing 300,000 people.
Many regulations have been introduced: the Climate Change Levy; Emissions Trading; Environmental regulations - Packaging Regulations; Landfill Tax; Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment. Congestion charging was introduced in London. Recycling and zero waste are becoming normal business practice.
Although environmental disasters are taking place, business responds with the following headlines 2006-2007:
“Tesco to spend £100 million greening its stores” (27.04.06)
“Branson in $3bn pledge on green fuels” (21.09.06)
“M&S to spend £200m on green strategy” (15.01.07)
“Wal-Mart: A Giant Gone Green” (02.01.07)
“Corporate leaders push Bush, Congress for stronger U.S. laws controlling greenhouse gas emissions” - US Climate Action Program (22.01.07)
This evolution of what is exceptional into what is expected is one of the main driving forces behind improved environmental performance. A large part of the credit can therefore go to accolades like the BCE Awards for encouraging other businesses to follow these leaders by highlighting and rewarding exceptional environmental performance.
The presence of David Cameron at the 2005 Awards ceremony in June 2006 demonstrates the importance placed on the environment these days. Whether or not businesses want to, they are forced to consider the importance placed on corporate social responsibility in order to compete.
The context for our environmental concerns has changed dramatically; instead of just considering how things look and how to clean up, we are now thinking about our environment in ways that previous winners would probably not have considered. Our carbon footprint, lifecycle analysis and sustainable development are very new concepts. The 2006 winner of the Peter Parker Award shows just how far we've come in our environmental awareness: instead of just 'hiding' our activities, we're totally changing them.
There are some common themes though. For example, land reclamation has been the subject of numerous projects over the last 30-40 years. The City of Stoke-on-Trent's Land reclamation scheme in 1975, NCP's Shipley Lake reclamation in 1976 and Colliery Reclamation in 1978, Yorkshire Brick Company's Land Restoration Project in 1991 and the Eden Project in 2001 are some examples of this.
There is also evidence of environmental 'fashions'. In 1992, B&Q announced plans to become completely peat free. This was in response to public concerns over peat extraction, particularly in Ireland, after the impacts of destroying peatland become more widely known.
There has gradually been a shift from and 'end-of-pipe' ethos (ie 'we'll clean it up when we've finished') to a more sustainable outlook (ie 'let's try to reduce our impact right from the start'). This is partly due to improved legislation and partly to an increased awareness of how what we do affects the environment. Companies are now improving the environmental performance of their products through improved design. For example, one of the winners in 2003, Clinical Design Ltd, designed an inhaler to be 100% recyclable with a minimum of parts so they are more reliable.
Some companies are concerned about the impact their workforce is having on the environment. In 2002, Sony UK Ltd built BREEAM-accredited housing for 1,200 of its staff on brownfield land. This was also evident in other winners, like British Steel's Environmental Training Programme in 1994 (now part of the Corus Group) and Natwest's 'Leading By Example' initiative in 1998.
The evolution of businesses is very much a chicken-and-egg scenario. It is difficult to know whether the pressure from consumers is forcing businesses to reconsider how they operate, or whether 'greener' businesses are forcing consumers to consider their lifestyles. Most likely, it is a combination of the two. One thing is for sure, more people are concerned. When compact fluorescent lamps were first introduced, they were seen as a gimmick that wouldn't last. Now the UK Government is to phase out all non-energy efficient light bulbs by 2011. Similarly, ten years ago, A-rated goods had only a negligible market share whereas now 'A' is the standard in many sectors. Condensing boilers, which were almost unheard of ten years ago, now hold around a 90% market share.
Resources are being better used as more people seek help in becoming more environmentally friendly. The Energy Saving Trust (EST) advised only 60,000 people/businesses a year ten years ago, this has now risen to over a million.
It has become fashionable to be environmentally conscious. Celebrities buy 'eco cars', such as the Toyota Prius so they can travel in style, but still care for the environment. People no longer have to be tie-dye-wearing hippies to be more eco-friendly. In fact, it is gradually becoming 'forced' upon us as non-eco-friendly products are taken off the shelves and people who drive big cars and use certain products are ‘frowned upon’.
Again, energy security is a concern. With a shortage of oil and gas supply shortages looming, an inherent distrust of nuclear power and increasing demand, much of the environmental work carried out today is concerned with energy, be it through generation (eg wind, solar) or conservation (eg the phase out of non-efficient lamps).
Some past winners have gone from strength to strength, some have merged with other businesses and some have gone out of business. What is certain is the role these environmental leaders have played in bringing environmental performance to the front of the minds of businesses, large and small. This was, and is, facilitated by awards like the Business Commitment to the Environment Environmental Leadership Awards.
There is no doubt, that it is important for all businesses to ensure care and consideration for the environment. This is a fundamental requirement of all the day-to-day activities of the business.
The future depends on it.
Region leading the way on green issues
"Currently, every country in the world has to find a way to lower its carbon emissions and, undoubtedly, those who do it first will be the ones which reap the dividends."