80% of small businesses have made changes to ensure their firms are more environmentally friendly, according to research conducted on behalf of Alliance & Leicester Commercial Bank by YouGov.

Over 800 SMEs were surveyed, and while 29% said that they expected the improvements to lower their energy costs over 60% revealed that the main motivation was personal principles.

Over 40% revealed that they had spent up to £15,000 on initiatives to make their business more environmentally friendly.

As well as reducing a firms carbon footprint going green can reduce a companies expenditure through lower utility bills and by reusing items - more important than ever in the current economic crisis.

"With the economic downturn set to continue, businesses are looking at adopting new ways to reduce overheads and by incorporating a number of initiatives to save energy, considerable cost savings can be made," said Steve Jennings from Alliance & Leicester.