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Environmental Business Ethics

Conference Paper · January 1999

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Zelenka Josef
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Environmental Business Ethics
RNDr. Josef Zelenka, CSc., FIM UHK

Abstract
The importance of prerequisites of shallow and deep ecology in terms of environmental
protection has been discussed for a long time. Environmental business ethics is a synthesis of
both approaches. Its dimension is not restricted by the immediate influence of the firm on
environment only. However, it also includes communication among all groups involved and
responsibility for complex influence of product in its life cycle.

Introduction
As a consequence of deep, long term negative environment changes and missing natural
resources, a part of the global society of the end of the 20th century is looking for that problem
solution. Society analyse potential in the science, technology, legislative, economy and other
society change. At the same time people discuss a basic question about human and biosphere
interconnection. There are discussion about human, group and the whole Earth society rights
toward the rights of the future human generations and the whole biosphere. General question is
human responsibility for today and future biosphere evolution. This is a field of environmental
ethics.
Many different types of the environmental ethics exist – antropocentrical ethics,
psychocentrical ethics, biocentrical ethics, ecological holism etc. Every kind of environmental
ethics discuss human responsibility in connection with human abstract thinking which give
human's ability to predict own influence on the biosphere.
Today business with huge consumption of resources, side effects of product's production
and a strong influences on consumer's (through marketing) has a basic negative influence on
the biosphere and human society.

Business, consuming and antropocentrical ethic

In the human history step to step grow local and from the industrial and green revolution
beginning global influence of production sphere, agriculture and product's consuming on the
environment. Business and consuming development we can in optimal case mark only as a
antropocentrical ethics which goal is to fulfil human, group or the whole society need's. In the
rest of this article we will discuss antropocentrical ethic only because this type of environmental
ethic is closest to practice.
Many author's1 suppose that antropocentrical ethic is not adequate to human position in
biosphere and your greate responsibility. At detailed analysis we can find basic contradiction
between antropocentrical ethic and human changed reality:
 Decreasing of environment quality has a negative influence on the human population (ozone
hole and unfiltered short-wave UV radiation, harmfull chemical residua in food, smog, acid
rain etc.)
 Decreasing of environment quality decrease esthetical feeling in undisturbed landscape and
decrease today's and future safety feeling

1
Singer P.: Practical ethics, Cambridge University Press, 1993, 2. issue
 Decreasing of environment quality has a negative influence on human immediately
exploited fauna and flora (damaged forests, inland and seawater fish extinction etc.)
 Resources depletion restrict rights of next generations on fulfilling of similar level of needs
 Growing population density and megalopolis cause social, hygienic and health problem's
(stress, lack of fresh water, lack of food, criminality etc.)
 Product consumption structure has direct negative influence on population condition and
health (alcohol, cigarettes, too big deal of meal in food, drugs etc.)

Basic premise of antropocentric ethic is a complex fulfils of human needs. Today's nature
science characterises biosphere as a complex system. Influence on any part of biosphere can
have complex and difficult predictable consequences. We can make a clear conclusion –
fulfilling of human needs depend not only on the ”renewable and non-renewable resources” but
also on saving of the other parts of biosphere. These biosphere parts are not today exploiting as
resources but it may be future resources or they can be conditions for exploitation of resources.
As an example we can chose tropical plants or tropical organisms with potentially medical
influence, importance of saving all vital parts of trophic chain or generally saving biodiversity.
If we include human information needs in our thinking we must require the whole universe
undisturbed too. Cleare conclusion – there is a close interconnection between different types of
environmental ethic, we can take antropocentrical ethics as a basic for the following discussion.

Environmental ethic and sustainable development

Sustainable development is in close form described in 27 articles long „Declaration on
environment and development”, Rio de Janeiro 1992. In articles from 1 to 4 are
anthropocentrically declared basic's of conception:

Article 1
Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. They are entitled to a
healthy and productive life in harmony with nature.

Article 2
States have, in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of
international law, the severing right to exploit their own resources pursuant to their own
environmental and developmental policies, and he responsibility to ensure that activities within
their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas
beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.

Article 3
The right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet developmental and
environmental needs of present and future generations.

Article 4
In order to achieve sustainable development, environmental protection shall constitute an
integral part of the development process and cannot be considered in isolation from it.

At other declaration articles is a concept of practical realisation of sustainable

development conception and many human society global problems are explained –
demographic, loss of cultural identity, danger of war, economic differences between countries
etc. We can make clear conclusions:
 Harmonic evolution of human society and biosphere will be reality if people solve their
global problems including environmental ethic problem.
 There is a big amount of environmental ethic problem - possibility of genetic changes of
living things, possibility of direct organism manipulating (neurone electrostimulating),
euthanasia (life quality and right to finish own life).
 Economy and business are vital parts solving of human global problems.
 Process of continual discussion and attempts of actual problems solving must be start.

Business ethic and environmental ethic reflection

Enterprise oriented on long term success operates with terms as business culture, ethic
codex, quality policy, environmental policy, and business strategy. Customer, high product
quality (and influence on the environment in near future) are priorities of enterprise. Ethic codex
today s enterprise very often include:
 Comply written and oral general ethic and quality standards for given profession
 High professionality and continual training and education of employee
 Only one profession of employee
 Professionally specific requirements – independence, true information for public etc.

As a reaction on consumers pressure in developed countries and as a part of marketing

(enterprise goodwill) there are new environmental resolves in enterprise ethic codex. These
resolves declare decrease of enterprise influence and their products on the environment as a
priority. Any examples:
 Environmental Communication Declaration of the International Public Relations
Association (IPRA) include responsibility that every provided information and advertised
products are in conformity with sustainable development
 FEANI ethics codex declare responsibility toward nature, environment, safety and health
 Swissair declare responsibility toward environment from point of view saving resources and
recyclation (aircrafts with minimal fuel consumption, packaging recyclation etc.)

Environmental management
Building of environmental management systems is a most complex enterprise approach.
Basic for environmental management system is environmental policy. Environmental policy
must follow from environmental - ethic principles given business and be a part of business
culture. For example - environmental policy of Syndicate for chemical and metallurgy
production declare protection of environment and environmental company profile as a priority
(environmental risk minimisation, cooperation in regional projects, open communication with
employees and public etc.).
Sustainable society
Sustainable society must make many changes in everyday life including deep ecology
and discussions many dimensions of environmental ethics. Antropocentrical oriented
environmental ethics can be basis for business and consumer behaviour and contain following
principles:

Business Environmental Ethic Codex

 Environment protection as a priority
 Continual improvement of enterprise culture
 Continual improvement of enterprise environmental profile
 Production only environmental harmless products
  Declaration of responsibility on product during the whole product life cycle
 Periodical communication about enterprise influence on the environment with every
interested party (consumers, stakeholders, individuals etc.)

Consumer Environmental Ethic Codex

 Minimisation of own influence on the environment
 Purchase environmental harmless product’s only
 Part of income grant to different projects – environment improve, education in third
countries
 Prefer mental needs against material needs
 Improve own live style

Conclusion
Basic environmental ethic requirement of human and biosphere interconnection –
human responsibility to fauna, flora and ecosystem functions toward today's and future
generation's (better apply biocentrical point of view – toward rare thing – life) occur in
antropocentrical form in business and consumption at developed countries. Responsibility is
reduce on resource protection, decreasing main influences on environment and protection
chosen plants and animals. Main contradictory is non-changed: business is extensive in matter,
human consume is extensive too and absolute quantity of products increased. Character of many
businesses is non-compatible with environmental ethic (meat industry, logging industry,
automotive industry).
For developing countries can be environmental ethic requirement following:
 Population stabilisation as a result decision of systematically educated population
 Minimisation of society influence on the environment throw ecotechnology and looking for
development different from developed countries (looking for third way)
 Protection and development of traditional domestic people harmony with local ecosystems
(”natural ethic”)

Information Sources
1. Declaration on environment and development, Rio de Janeiro 1992
2. Environmental Communication Declaration of the International Public Relations
Association (IPRA) , IPRA, Nairobi 1991
3. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
4. Singer P.: Practical ethics, Cambridge University Press, 1993, 2. Issue
5. Sikula A.: Applied Management Ethics, Irwin 1996, ISBN 0-256-20368-7

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