Like many small business owners, I was recently navigating my way safely to work through the snow, I was fully expecting the issue of climate change to come to the forefront in the media once again. At least it would give us a brief break from them talking about the recession. Climate change affects us all and is an issue that keeps popping up, making it pretty hard to ignore. Increasingly, companies are being asked to have a greater understanding of their carbon footprint and doing something to reduce it.
Like anyone, I think I do my ‘bit' by recycling cans and cardboard at home and turning off lights when I am not in the room. In reality we spend the majority of our waking hours at work and this is when we are least environmentally conscious.
Current recommendations from the EU Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol already aim to make corporate accounting for sustainability as rigorous and auditable as current financial reporting procedures. By adopting a system that is fully integrated into a leading business and accounting software package now, businesses can empower themselves for the future.
I understand times are hard and the ‘R' word is on everyone's mind, but being environmentally aware of your organisations carbon footprint doesn't have to be expensive. It can be very easy to measure Carbon emissions with no extra admin burden on your finance department, bringing you in line with future legislation where carbon data will have to be captured and reported to the same levels as ‘standard' business information.
Green issues are a hot topic for companies of all sizes, with many organisations setting themselves targets in preparation for the UK legislation coming into force. I was in Marks and Spencer's at the weekend and their Plan A campaign means you have to pay now to get a plastic bag. It's at times like that, I realise how many plastic bags I have thrown away over the last 30 years!
The reality for us all in small to medium sized businesses is what affect big businesses will affect us. Over time, driven first by the customer demands and later by government targets and legislation, the requirement for Accounting for Carbon Emissions will spread into UK industry, and will influence buying decisions in the midmarket. It is likely that the ability to report on carbon emissions will become a prerequisite for mid-size companies.
The fact is, it is one thing to say you are green and environmentally friendly, it is quite another to be able to show it and have the figures to back you up. Having a system in place will mean you would be able to monitor targets for carbon emissions reduction, and provide evidence to customers, suppliers, staff and stakeholders that the company is measuring carbon emissions in accordance with industry best practice.
With potentially more snow on the way the issue of climate change is not going to go away, and in reality you can't know how to reduce your organisations carbon footprint, until you know and understand what that footprint is.
For more information visit www.dhcltd.com
