Greener Marketing

A Responsible Approach to Business

Martin Charter

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781351283502
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

An examination of the progress of environmental marketing on a global scale. It considers how sustainability issues are increasingly becoming critical factors in how corporations meet the ever-growing demands and expectations of customers. The purpose of the book is to provide practitioners with best-practice examples and actionable recommendations on how to implement green marketing activities. It provides information and ideas for those involved in marketing on how to incorporate green considerations into the marketing mix, as well as providing perspectives on marketing for environmental managers. To achieve a comprehensive viewpoint, the book is split into three sections. The first sets out the strategic issues and rationale for green marketing, the second addresses tactical issues in more detail, and the third provides detailed, international case studies. Topics addressed by the contributors include the growing debate around products versus services, environmental product development and eco-innovation, green marketing alliances, environmental communications, green consumers, eco-tourism and the problems associated with green marketing in developing countries.

Part I
The Strategic Implications of Greener Marketing

Chapter 1
Environmental Issues as they Affect Business

Nigel Fisher

Project Manager, Bioscan (UK) Ltd¹

Introduction

Environmental awareness has grown considerably in recent years. Many people have heard of the major environmental issues, such as the greenhouse effect, the ozone hole, and deforestation. But how many people realise that every day they make decisions which will have environmental effects? For example, driving a car probably contributes to global warming, buying a hamburger in a foam container may further expand the ozone hole, and purchasing a teak table could encourage more deforestation in the tropics.

On an individual level, the impacts of each decision are very small. For industries and businesses, however, the aggregate effects of decisions can be much greater. Indirect effects come from the choice of resources and products that a company uses, but the selection of production systems also directly affects the environment, through the degree to which the system pollutes.

Environmental issues have already led to, and will continue to lead to, legislation and regulation which will ultimately affect the operation of world markets. Many businesses have responded by increasing their environmental awareness, taking the initiative and staying ahead of legislation. This trend is set to continue.

The first part of this chapter is designed to introduce some of the major environmental issues. The second part discusses the relevance and implications of these issues to selected industrial sectors. These subjects are presented from an environmental viewpoint which may be unfamiliar to some of those working in industry and commerce. This different perspective should be useful, if only to see what influences consumers and policy makers. For those readers who already have an understanding of the environment, it is hoped that this will be a useful summary of current issues.

Pollution

What is Pollution?

Pollution has been defined as ‘something present in the wrong place, at the wrong time, and in the wrong quantity’.² This may be rather imprecise, but it conveys the basic fact that it is not necessarily the pollutant itself which is the problem but the quantity of it in relation to the environment’s ability to cope with it. Many substances which we regard as ‘pollutants’ occur naturally in much greater quantities than those created by human activity, but it is possible that human activity generates them faster than environmental systems can deal with them. Unwanted and potentially harmful changes are the result.

Atmospheric Pollution and Acid Rain

The late twentieth century has seen a massive increase in the quantities of sulphur dioxide (SO₂), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), and hydrocarbon compounds emitted into the atmosphere. The main sources of these pollutants have been power stations, industrial plants, and motor vehicles. Man-made emissions of SO₂ and NO_x are now approximately equal to all natural emissions.³

These pollutants can form acidic compounds, which are deposited directly from the air (‘dry deposition’) or by rainfall (‘wet deposition’). The latter is also known as ‘acid rain’. These compounds can be deposited thousands of miles from their point of origin. British power stations have been implicated in the acidification of Swedish lakes, and Eastern European industries in the death of German forests.

Air pollutants, such as those emitted by motor vehicles, can directly affect human health. SO₂, NO_x and ozone (O₃) can cause breathing difficulties, and many hydrocarbons are carcinogenic. Lead pollution has been linked with impaired brain function in children—emissions from vehicles using leaded petrol are a major source. However, the levels of lead measured in the blood of people in Britain have been falling since the mid 1970s⁴ in part because of the introduction of unleaded petrol.

The Greenhouse Effect and Global Warming

The greenhouse effect is caused by a complex mixture of compounds in the atmosphere: carbon dioxide (CO₂); nitrogen oxides (NO_x); methane (CH₄); chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and water vapour (H₂0). These allow short-wave radiation (ultra-violet and visible light) from the sun to reach the surface of the earth, but prevent the escape from the atmosphere of the longer-wave (infra-red) radiation emitted at the earth’s surface. This leads to an accumulation of heat in the atmosphere, as in a greenhouse. Without the greenhouse effect, the earth would be cold and barren, but the temperature balance is the critical factor. This century has seen a large increase in the quantities of ‘greenhouse gases’ in the atmosphere. CO₂ is released whenever fossil fuels are burnt and forests are cut down; CH₄ is released from paddy fields and from animal wastes, and CFCs have been widely used in industry. Other pollutants such as ammonia (NH₃) and carbon monoxide (CO) have indirect effects which can increase the levels of CFCs and CH₄. The main man-made sources of CO are the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, and oxidation of methane; NH₃ is released by the reduction of nitrogen fertiliser and from animal wastes.⁵

The response of the world’s climate to the increased levels of greenhouse gases has been predicted using computer models. Most models suggest that global temperatures will increase by between 1.5—4.5°C by the middle of the twenty-first century. The uncertainty is due to inadequate knowledge of the operation of the world’s complex climatic systems.

An increase in global temperatures could lead to a rise in sea levels (as ice caps melt and ocean waters expand on heating) and to possibly permanent shifts in weather patterns. These effects could lead to flooding of low-lying coasts (such as eastern England, the Netherlands and Bangladesh), and to declines in agricultural productivity in major food-producing areas (such as the Great Plains of the USA). Changes in annual rainfall or temperatures might benefit some areas. In contrast, some tropical islands (such as the Maldives) could be completely inundated by rising sea levels. In 1988 the Toronto Conference called for a reduction in global emissions of greenhouse gases by 50% over the period 2030—2050, and set a target of reducing CO₂ emissions by 20% of 1988 levels by 2005. The UK Government has said that by 2005 it will have returned CO₂ emissions to 1990 levels if other countries have done the same. Measures to reduce levels of CO₂ include reafforestation, and greater fuel economy and efficiency.

The Ozone Hole

Ozone (O₃) in the upper atmosphere has the effect of absorbing incoming ultra-violet radiation (UVR). This is a beneficial effect for life at the surface of the earth as exposure to large doses of UVR is harmful to most organisms.

Since the late 1980s there has been increasing concern that ‘holes’ have been occurring in the ozone layer over the polar regions, and that thinning of this layer has been occurring over the whole globe.

It is thought that the main cause of ozone depletion has been the release into the atmosphere of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). These decompose to release chlorine (Cl), which reacts with ozone to form other compounds which do not absorb UVR. CFCs have been used since the 1930s as propellants for aerosols, as refrigerants, and as industrial solvents. It has been predicted that every 1% decrease in ozone in the upper atmosphere will lead to a 1% increase in fatal skin cancer around the world⁶—the incidence of skin cancer in Australia has increased fivefold in the last fifty years. It has been suggested that rising levels of UVR could also have detrimental effects on plankton, which could be disastrous for the food chain in oceans and seas all over the world.

The main international convention on this issue is the Montreal Protocol of 1987, which set targets for reductions in the use of substances which deplete the ozone layer. Many industries have responded to this issue by finding substitutes for CFCs. Products such as non-aerosol sprays, and safe disposal schemes for refrigerants, are now more widespread than only a few years ago.

Fresh Water Pollution

Water is an essential resource and the quality of water is one of the most important indicators of the quality of the wider environment. Water pollution affects aquatic habitats and species, and can be a health hazard for humans. It reduces the degree to which the water can be used for industrial, agricultural and domestic purposes.

In Britain, until recently, the main concern was pollution of watercourses by industry. Environmental controls have led to a reduction in this sort of pollution, and have led to notable events such as the return of salmon to the Thames. Reductions in water quality are now being caused by agriculture and sewage treatment works, and pollution, through both industry and agriculture, has resulted in an overall decrease in water quality in many rivers and streams. Survey work undertaken by the National Rivers Authority showed an overall decrease in river water quality from 1980 to 1985. The survey for 1985 to 1990, the results of which were leaked to Friends of the Earth, showed that nearly 4,000 miles of waterway had deteriorated since the last survey.

Elsewhere in Europe the situation is similar. Heavy metal pollution (mostly from industry) in the Rhine in Germany and France has decreased from a peak in 1980, but nitrate pollution (mostly from agriculture) has increased.⁷

In developing countries the main problem is more basic: 46% of populations in less developed countries (LDCs) had no access to safe drinking water in 1985.⁸ Public health problems, such as the 1991 cholera epidemic in Peru, are often the result.

In developed countries, water has been undervalued as a resource, and as a result water is often used at levels which in the longer term cannot be sustained. It is likely that in the future water will become more expensive, and that efficiency of use and recycling will have to increase. This, and the likely introduction of a policy of ‘the polluter pays’, will mean that those industries which take a lead in adopting non-polluting technologies and water-efficient production systems will be at an economic advantage.

In the UK proposals include widespread water metering and the need for water companies to commit greater resources to the prevention of leakages from mains.

Marine Pollution

Marine pollution incidents, such as the Torrey Canyon and Exxon Valdez oil spills, raise concern about the effects on the marine environment. However, the greatest problems are the result of long-term processes, such as the discharge of effluents and waste.

Discharges from the various nuclear installations on the west coast of the UK have led to the Irish Sea being the most radioactive sea in the world.

In 1988 the UK discharged 8.5m tonnes of sewage sludge into the seas around Britain,⁹ some of which returned to pollute beaches. The UK Government has committed itself to ending the dumping of sewage sludge at sea by 1998, which should help to improve the water quality around Britain’s coasts.

Electromagnetic Pollution

There is increasing interest in the potentially harmful effects of electromagnetic radiation (EMR) on humans. The last fifty years have seen a large increase in the extent and strength of EMR at frequencies which may effect humans. The main sources of these fields are electricity transmission systems, TV/radio transmitters, and microwave generators. At locations close to communications and navigation equipment and near power lines, EMR is several times higher than natural background levels.

EMR can have effects on the brain and other tissues, and it is known to raise body temperature.¹⁰ Although a direct effect has not been proven, EMR has been linked with increased levels of cancer in people exposed to high levels, and it is thought to increase susceptibility to ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title
• Copyright
• CONTENTS
• Acknowledgements
• Foreword
• Introduction
• Part I: The Strategic Implications of Greener Marketing
• Part II: The Practical Implications of Greener Marketing
• Part III: Case Histories
• Further Reading
• Useful Addresses
• Index