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  BCE Awards - From Commitment to Leadership 1975-2007

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Background

"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 who 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 are refocused as the ‘BCE Environmental Leadership Awards’, demonstrating the clear evolution from ‘commitment’ to leadership’.  


Where the World was when the Awards began

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 6.5m trees is the UK and Mohammad Ali beat Joe Frazier in the epic ‘Thriller in Manila’. However environmental issues where 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 focussed 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 in order 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 DEn (Department of Energy- became part of DTI in 1992). Their 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 a private sector Environmental consultancy and main sponsor of the Awards, AEA, that offers a wide range of Environmental Expertise.   

During the 1970’s 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 advises a wait and see policy may mean waiting until it is 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.“

Peter Parker - Founder BCE

 


1975 Winner British Petroleum

The first BCE awards allowed British Petroleum’s efforts to be recognised and also helped to raise awareness of environmental issues further.

There were only five winners in 1975, with British Petroleum taking top honours.  With Scotland having only recently discovered oil, British Petroleum were growing fast and had to show resourcefulness and adaptability in the way they expanded. This was demonstrated at Dalmeny Tank Farm in Lothian, Scotland.

Situated 3 miles inland from the Firth of Forth in South Queensferry, the 93-Acre site was formerly an old Bing ( a mound or heap of mining spoil/waste, left over from coal extraction. Usually heavily contaminated with heavy metal residues ) formed from spoil from oil-shale operations on site. It was redeveloped by BP to act as an onland storage facility for Crude oil.

Redevelopment of the land was carried out between 1973 and 1975 during which time 2.3million cubic yards of shale, clay and topsoil were removed. The site was reseeded with grass and 55 000 trees and shrubs were planted; this helped the site blend into the surrounding environment.

The tank farm was concealed within the Bing making it ‘invisible’ except from the air. The newly landscaped site hid seven, 260ft wide 60ft high tanks, each capable of holding 74,000 metric tonnes of crude oil. Alongside these were 3 ballast water tanks and two ‘recovered oil’ tanks. There were two, 48inch pipelines that ran from the farm to the Forth tanker terminal off Hound Point. One transported crude oil to the waiting tankers while the other allowed contaminated ballast water to be transported to the treatment plant at Dalmeny. Both of these were buried to reduce the visual impact.

The idea was developed by award-winning architect James Morris who also received numerous other awards for this project.

This project demonstrated an awareness of the visual impact of installations but on the whole wasn’t that much more environmentally friendly as a result of these measures. This shows how businesses still had a way to go in developing environmental policies. The environment was about how things looked, i.e. if an area appeared clean it was clean.

More recently British Petroleum have become BP and are gradually becoming less reliant on oil as the main source of income for the business. BP Solar, for example, are currently the 3rd largest producer of solar panels in the world. They have also invested heavily in ‘BP alternative energy’, which is made up of its wind, solar and hydrogen power businesses.

As one of the largest companies in the world BP are aware of the role they need to play in reducing climate change and improving sustainability. They measure emissions from their products, are involved in numerous emissions trading schemes and have carried out and funded research into carbon capture and storage technologies. BP are also concerned about sustainable transport and are continually looking for ways to reduce Carbon, NOx And SOx emissions. Their research includes biofuels, hydrogen fuels and development of cleaner oils and lubricants.

www.bp.com


1977 Winner Marks and Spencers

Marks and Spencer upgraded their Liverpool Store in 1976/77. They changed from being a ‘traditional store’ to a modern shopping area. The most significant development was moving part of the store underground. This increased the volume while the two-dimensional land use remained the same. Building management also became more efficient. By being underground the lower level had more natural insulation in the winter and was naturally cooler in the summer reducing the need for heating and air conditioning. Street level windows allowed natural light in. Waste packaging was compacted for more efficient transport and disposal.

The exterior of the building, Compton House, was cleaned with the adjacent roads closed and pedestrianised. M&S also made this new service area available to local shops keeping them in contention. 

In the citation given on the Liverpool store, the following statement was made by the judges.

“….is an example of a household name taking the lead in establishing new environmental standards, carried out with economy and imagination….”

M&S were awarded a premier award in recognition of their ‘human and social responsibility and environmental quality’.
 
Marks and Spencers are fast becoming one of the countries most forward thinking and environmentally conscious organisations.

‘Plan A’ is a 5-year, 100 point, £200M plan which will allow M&S to become Carbon Neutral and sustainable. The following is the motivation for the scheme’s introduction:

“We’re doing this because it’s what you want us to do. It’s also the right thing to do. We’re calling it ‘plan A’ because we believe it’s the only way to do business. There is no ‘Plan B’”

The focus is in 5 key areas: Climate Change, Raw Materials, Waste, Fair Partner (Fair Trade) and Healthy Eating.

Climate Change: M&S realise that they can reduce both their direct and indirect impacts, which is why they are aiming to help both customers and suppliers cut their carbon emissions.
Raw Materials: All raw materials will be from sustainable sources where possible.

Waste: A particularly ambitious aspect of plan A in the intention not to send anything to landfill and ensure that customers need not throw any product away.
Fair Partner: They hope to help people in their supply chain by ensuring fair-trading on all of their products.

Healthy Eating: M&S will also encourage staff and customer, across the country to eat more healthily.

In order to help them achieve these goals Marks and Spencer have entered into a unique 5-year partnership with BRE. They aim to implement many of these changes by 2012. In addition to this BRE will help reduce the impact of the current refurbishment plans as M&S aim to increase store space by 20%.

This is being run in conjunction with their ‘we’re in this together campaign’. It’s designed to be a ‘partnership’ between M&S and it’s customers to help tackle climate change. They offer a website that allows you find out the progress being made. It also offers a task list for customers to complete, once they do a task it totals the amount of CO2 saved per individual.

M&S have also partnered with other companies like B&Q, MoreThan, O2, HSBC and British Gas, among others, in order to offer incentives for customers. For example, MoreThan will offer a 15% insurance discount to eco-car drivers as well as offsetting the first 3000 miles driven, while Tesco are offering half-price Compact-Fluorescent light bulbs.

www.marksandspencer.com


Where the World was in the 1980s

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 where 5. massacred in Tiananman 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 1980’s turned out to be the warmest decade with 7 of the 8 warmest years recorded up to 1990. Even the coldest years in the 1980’s were warmer than the warmest years in the 1880’s.

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 mans history”. This could cause sea levels to rise by up to a metre research say. 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 and in 1987 saw the warmest year on record and an ice core from Antarctica revealed an extremely close correlation between carbon dioxide 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 it’s influence.  A meeting of climate scientists in Toronto subsequently called for 20% + cuts in global CO2 emissions by 2005.

ETSU extended it’s activities to energy efficiency / transport programmes. Emissions standards were set for power stations.


1984 Winner Thorpe Park

The leisure complex that sees visits from hundreds of thousands of children and ‘adults’ every year belies its humble beginnings. Now owned by Tussauds the park is intended to rival Alton Towers and Blackpool’s Pleasure Beach.

Thorpe Park started life as flood land and between 1940 and 1970 was owned by the Ready Mix Concrete Group (RMC). It was used as a ‘wet working’ Gravel Pit, the excavation of which left behind numerous lakes.

In 1970 RMC were granted planning permission to fill in the lakes, however a year later the permission was amended to allow the lakes to remain. This was cheaper and easier and landscaping work was started. Between 1972 and 1978 a water park with over 10 000 plants and trees, was built on site. It was intended to be half amusement park, half exhibition, with the theme of ‘The History of the British People as a Maritime Nation’.

The transformation of the area from a wasteland to a commercially viable enterprise earned Thorpe Park a Premier award this year.

The park continued to expand by adding rides and shows like a 3D cinema and waterbus trips and in 1984 was awarded a Premier award at the BCE Awards.

Thorpe Park was bought over by The Tussauds Group in 1998 and has adopted their environmental policy. This involves waste recycling, reduction of energy use, water conservation schemes and noise reduction programmes. Thorpe Park also supports local initiatives. They were the initial sponsors of Runnymede Borough Council’s ‘Yellow Bus’ initiative and they continue to support the expanded version. The scheme used an American Style school bus to transport pupils to and from school. This reduced the amount of traffic on the roads and the associated pollution.

www.thorpepark.com


1988/1993 Winner CenterParcs

One of the 1988 winners repeated their feat in 1993 with a similar concept. CenterParcs is intended to provide an active holiday location in a natural environment that can be enjoyed all year round. Corporate and social responsibility was a key idea in running the park. Local biodiversity was the main attraction for guests, whether they realised it or not, CenterParcs recognised this and actively protected the local environment. Planting was done sympathetically with native broadleaf species and selected grass and wildflowers species, where possible local produce was bought and natural materials were used to build the villages.

Sherwood Forest Village was the first one to open in the UK in 1987. It had 794 villas, 41 apartments, and grounds of 400 acres. It offered a short break location in a tranquil forest location and gave people the chance to ‘get back to nature’ through various outdoor activities like walking, cycling and canoeing.

By 1993 there was another park in Elveden with another due to be opened in 1994 in Longleat. Both sites demonstrated an awareness of environmental issues and CenterParcs were awarded a ‘Premier Award’ in 1993 for its efforts. 
 
Centreparks continue to demonstrate the same care for the environment in all 4 centres nationwide, this is illustrated by their mission statement ‘Every day, the perfect break, naturally’

Centerparcs is an example of how businesses were starting to realise that all of their operations had an impact on the environment. They weren’t interested in just one project but incorporated environmental ideals into the whole ‘life-cycle’ of the business.

www.centerparcs.co.uk


Where the World was in the 1990s

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; Britain saw Mad Cow Disease and in the US the Oklahoma bombing killed 800 people.  Some 8000 were killed in Bosnia.  The Channel Tunnel opened connecting England to France and the Euro was introduced

The 1990’s 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 cop-operation.

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 0.5degrees 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 is 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 industrialized 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 advises over 1 million consumers today
In the 90s in there are hardly any condensing boilers.  By 2007 –approx 90% of market for domestic boilers.  There are hardly any “A” rated white goods.  By 2007 - “A” is 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 carbon dioxide capture and storage. 


1989/1990 Winner Sainsbury's

Sainsbury's won back-to-back awards in 1989 and 1990 for two of their stores, Wolverhampton and Streatham.

St George's Parade in Wolverhampton saw the listed, derelict church of St George the Martyr being redeveloped and incorporated into the scheme. The Streatham store also saved a derelict building, this time an old silk mill built in 1820. By using these buildings, Sainbury's reduced the environmental impact during the construction phase of the development and helped preserve historically important buildings.

Sainbury's impressed the judges in both years for its consideration in all aspects of operations from site development, landscaping and architecture. In both buildings, and others developed in the same period, Sainbury's demonstrated a comprehensive approach to managing its environmental impact. Everything from energy consumption to the products it sells were considered. Sainsbury's also tried to encourage staff and customers to change the way they thought about environmental matters.

The launch of its own range of cleaning products called 'Greencare', which were specially formulated to 'give priority to the environment', was included in the winning entry and played a part in the company winning the award twice.

This demonstrated a new tactic being employed by retailers in trying to attract customers. They identified the fact that people were becoming more conscious of the consequences of their activities and concerned about the environment. It was the start of a now common trend among retailers, Sainburys showed it was willing to change its practices radically in order to reduce its impact on the environment.

www.j-sainsbury.co.uk


Where the World is- the 21st Century

"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 remains as Prime Minister with Gordon Brown due to succeed him. George Bush becomes president of US.  The  9/11 disaster strikes and war on terrorism is launched leading to the war in Iraq .  Poverty in Africa is very much in the headlines as is the environment.

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 ½ million people a year. In 2003 a heat wave scorches Europe where over 35,000 people die as a result. And in 2005 150 nations agree to launch talks on mandatory post 1012 reductions in green house gases. The G8 Leaders Act – at the G8 summit at Gleneagles, climate change is on of the two main issues addressed by leaders of the 8 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 catostrophe in New Orleans killing almost 2000 people. In 2004 the deadliest Tsunami in history following an Earthquake in the Indian Ocean killed 300,000 people. 

Many regulations are introduced: the Climate Change Levy , Emissions Trading; Environmental regulations - Packaging Regulations, Landfill Tax, Waste from End of Life Electrical and Electronic goods and Vehicles.  Congestion Charging is introduced in London; recycling and zero waste become 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)


2001 Winner The Eden Project

Opened in March 2001, for the Eden project even to get this far seems an impressive feat. Two construction companies, Sir Alfred and Robert McAlpine, worked for 18 months without being paid, something that, understandably had never happened in either company's history. Not only that, but they then gave the project a loan that was to be repaid only if the Project was successful.

Located in a 15 Ha, 60m deep china clay pit, Eden was, in 2000/01, intended to be a living theatre for the public and academics alike. The overall goal was, and still is, to study plants, their ecosystems and their relationship with man in order to encourage sustainable living. The two 'conservatories' or biomes are the largest in the world. But building these structures was only one of the many obstacles that had to be overcome for the project to become a success. The site chosen for the project was hardly fertile agricultural ground, the landscape was a barren, sterile waste ground with numerous steep gradients. It was, effectively a crater.

The fact that the china clay pit that once shaped the economy and landscape of Cornwall has become 'the eighth wonder of the world' and a major contributor to the local economy demonstrates that development need not be the environmentally damaging practice it is so often thought to be.

The project's approach to construction and operation was one of the contributing factors to it being awarded the Peter Parker award in 2001.

Eden's initial waste plan has evolved from one of 'Zero Waste' to a more sustainable 'waste neutral' ambition, which considers the whole life-cycle of the waste.

The Eden Project has become many things to many people: a charity, an education centre, an art studio, concert venue, a science institute and general environmental and horticultural Mecca, making it more than just a 'Green theme park'. Almost a living organism itself, Eden is constantly evolving, making no two visits the same.

The Eden Project demonstrates another evolution in environmental awareness. Not only is it providing a leisure experience but it is also trying to educate customers in environmental issues.

www.edenproject.com


2004 Winner Renewable Energy Systems Ltd

This year's winner of the Peter Parker Award demonstrates the importance that is being placed on renewables. With CO2 emissions and energy security being two major concerns, renewable energy is becoming an increasingly important step towards sustainability.

Renewable Energy Systems Ltd (RES) is a UK-based company demonstrating outstanding environmental performance in one of the world's fastest moving industries. Formed in 1981 as a part of the Sir Robert McAlpine Group (Eden project) it is now one of the biggest and most successful renewable energy companies in the world.

It was chosen as this year's winner for creating the world's first zero-emissions commercial office development. It used the most up to date technologies, building techniques and energy efficiency measures to provide all heating, cooling and power needs. This also includes a visitor centre to promote these ideas.

There is a 225kW wind turbine, 1400m2 underground heat store, 170m2 photovoltaic array and biomass boiler with 5ha of Miscanthus as an energy crop, among other things.

Sustainability was considered in all aspects of this build. Using an existing building instead of building from scratch, sustainable architecture was used to reduce resource use, building techniques and locally sourced materials were considered and the zero emission running of the building are all examples of this. RES is also concerned about its impacts outside the site. Staff are actively encouraged to use public transport. Travel tickets are subsidised, the pool car is a hybrid and interest-free loans are offered for staff to purchase bikes.

: www.beaufortcourt.com


2007 To be added after the BCE Awards Ceremony on 4th June 2007


Where the World and the Awards are from Commitment to Leadership

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, life-cycle 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, i.e. 'we'll clean it up when we've finished'; to a more sustainable outlook, i.e. '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 old 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's difficult to know whether it's the pressure from consumers that is forcing businesses to reconsider how they operate, or whether 'greener' businesses are forcing consumers to consider their lifestyles. Most likely it's a combination of the two. One thing is for sure, more people are concerned. When compact fluorescent bulbs 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' like 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 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 i.e. wind, solar etc, or conservation, for example the phase out of non-efficient bulbs.

Many of the past winner’s efforts have been consigned to history. Some companies have gone out of business while others have been amalgamated with other organisations. The earlier winners have only limited information available, possibly because the importance of their work wasn’t realised.

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.

There is no doubt, 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 is dependant in it.

"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.

Region leading the way on green issues

The Northern Echo, 12 May 2007

 

List of Winners

Where the World was when the Awards began

1975-1999
2000 onwards

1975
British Petroleum (Dalmeny Tank Farm)

1977
Marks and Spencers

1984
Where the World was in the 1980s
Thorpe Park

1988/1993
Where the World was in the 1990s
Center Parcs

1989/1990
Sainsbury's

2001
Where the World is in the 21st century
The Eden Project

2004
Renewable Energy Systems Ltd

2007
To be added
Where the World and the Awards are


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