Tuguegarao Archdiocesan Schools System

LYCEUM OF TUAO
Centro 02, Tuao, Cagayan, 3528
Email address: lyceumoftuao1965@yahoo.com.ph
BUSINESS ETHICS AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

NAME OF TEACHER: AMY LIBERTY P. CASIBANG, LPT / 0915-953-8600

MODULE NUMBER: 10 (1 WEEK)
MODULE TITLE: Environmental Management

Lesson 3.3 Environmental Management

Learning Objectives
In this lesson, you should be able to do the following:
● Define environmental management and sustainable development.
● Apply the principles of sustainable development and the approaches to environmental management to local
situations.
● Explain the important role of businesses in environmental management and sustainable development.

People are just tenants of this world. Indeed, the Earth had existed for billions of years before human beings emerged.
However, the relatively brief existence of humans has already caused alarming changes and irreversible damages to the
planet: depletion of natural resources, destruction of biodiversity, and climate change, among others. The current
generation is challenged to prevent the situation from getting worse.

Many consumers think that businesses were among the significant contributors to pollution and environmental
degradation. Hence, they increasingly demand accountability from corporations and companies. Such a shift in the
consumer’s mindset has caused businesses to rethink their role in promoting environmental sustainability. Enlightened
businesses have integrated environmental management in their core business operations.

Environmental Management
Environmental management is the process of observing, monitoring, reporting, developing, executing, and evaluating
the environmental policies of a business organization. It seeks to attain a desirable environmental state under the
prevailing socio-economic and technological conditions. It is achieved by enhancing the beneficial links between its
resource system and the environment.

The world is rapidly changing, and society no longer accepts businesses that focus on maximizing profits without
minding the impact of their operations on the environment and natural resources. The new standard for modern
companies is to incorporate environmental protection policies as part of their social responsibility. The management
policies and programs aim to minimize the negative impact of business operations on the environment. It also ensures
that the industry takes an active role in promoting sustainable development.

Sustainable development is the balance between economic progress and environmental protection. It includes the idea
that businesses should meet the present needs of society without compromising the future generations' quality of life.
Fairness is at the heart of this concept, as it promotes the equitable distribution of benefits across generations (Lawrence
and Weber 2020).

Environmental Indicators
In environmental management, specific variables determine the effectiveness of policies. These variables are vital to
assessing whether a business enterprise adheres to the sustainable use of natural resources. Some of the most important
environmental indicators, parameters, and importance are as follows.

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 Tuguegarao Archdiocesan Schools System
LYCEUM OF TUAO
Centro 02, Tuao, Cagayan, 3528
Email address: lyceumoftuao1965@yahoo.com.ph
 Air
Air indicators measure the quality of air and air pollutants emissions such as sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, ammonia,
volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, and other harmful substances. It includes the analysis of the air quality
on human health. Air pollution is an environmental issue that refers to contaminated and low-quality air in an area.

 Water
Water indicators are presented as variables to measure the water quality and quantity, pressures on water quality, and
regional ecosystems. It also examines the household use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers, municipal wastewater
management, use of plastic particles, freshwater quality and quantity, and release of harmful substances into the water.
Aside from air, water pollution is also one of the major problems in the environment.

 Climate
Another environmental indicator is the climate. Part of the climate indicators is climate changes, greenhouse gas
emissions, precipitation change, sea ice level, and snow cover status. The United Nations defined climate change as
long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns. Climate change indicators are fundamental, especially in the
agricultural, fishery, and forestry sectors. These three sectors mainly produce raw materials that are greatly affected by
climate.

 Wildlife and Habitat

Environmental management involves human living and protects other living things such as animals and plants. Wildlife
and habitat indicators examine biodiversity, habitat, ecosystem health, and biological resources. It also measures
species index, the status of wild species, population trends of wildlife, trends in conserved areas, the ecological integrity
of national parks, and aquaculture management. It is crucial to protect all lives in the forest and their habitat. Their
existence balances all ecosystems on Earth. If the ecological balance is destroyed, expect vast environmental problems.

Sustainable Development Goals

Sustainable development is a mission that needs the cooperation of the whole world to protect and sustain the quality of
the environment that suffices the needs of the present and future generations.

Although it is usually associated with environmental protection, sustainable development has four dimensions: society,
environment, culture, and economy. These four dimensions are the focus of the United Nations (UN) in enumerating
the 17 sustainable development goals.

The UN's Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG) is a global partnership calling for the urgent action of all nations,
both developed and developing. These goals must be achieved by 2030. It sets the ideal that eradicating poverty and
other deprivations must be accompanied by strategies to promote health and education, eliminate inequality, and create
economic growth while addressing climate change and fighting to protect our seas and forests.

Environmental Management Practices

Companies worldwide have taken initiatives to respond to the calls for sustainable development goals. Although
different companies have different strategies in environmental management, some of the conventional approaches are
the following (Lawrence and Weber 2020):

 Life-Cycle Analysis (LCA) measures a product's lifelong impact on the environment. It gathers information on
the effect of producing a particular product from the cradle to the grave. It helps companies determine which
stage of the product life cycle—from the extraction of raw materials, design, manufacturing, distribution, and
use to disposal—does environmental impact occur. Knowing this, they can draw up strategies to reduce the
adverse effects, improve their products, and provide alternatives.

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 Tuguegarao Archdiocesan Schools System
LYCEUM OF TUAO
Centro 02, Tuao, Cagayan, 3528
Email address: lyceumoftuao1965@yahoo.com.ph
 Industrial ecology designs factories and distribution systems in the most resource-efficient way. It analyzes
how to save raw materials and reuse wastes, energy, and other by-products.
 Extended product responsibility promotes the idea that companies should be responsible for the product they
produce even after selling them. For example, companies are expected to design their products in the most
energy-efficient way possible. Moreover, some companies employ a cradle-to-cradle approach, where products
can be disassembled when they are no longer useful, and anyone can use their parts to create another product.
 Carbon neutrality encourages companies to produce net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases. Since almost all
activities have earth-warming gases, companies can achieve net-zero emission by reducing their own and
offsetting the remainder by reducing others'. For example, some companies fund activities that remove carbon
dioxide from the atmosphere, such as tree planting.

CLOSER LOOK

The 17 SDGs
The Sustainable Development Goals are as follows:

1. No Poverty: eradicate extreme poverty by 2030 for all people everywhere and ensure that all men and
women have equal access to economic resources and other forms of property, inheritance, natural resources,
and appropriate new technologies.
2. Zero Hunger: eliminate hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable
agriculture.
3. Good Health and Well-Being: reduce the global maternal mortality rate to less than 70 per 100,000 live
births. It also emphasizes ending preventable deaths of newborns and children under 5.
4. Quality Education: ensure that all girls and boys complete free, honest, and quality primary and secondary
education, leading to effective learning outcomes.
5. Gender Equality: end discrimination against all women and girls everywhere.
6. Clean Water and Sanitation: achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water
and sanitation by 2030.
7. Affordable and Clean Energy: ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy.
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth: promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and
productive employment, and decent work for all.
9. Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure: build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable
industrialization, and foster innovation.
10. Reduced Inequalities: empower and promote social, economic, and political inclusion, irrespective of age,
sex, disability, race-ethnicity, origin, religion, or financial status.
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities: ensure access for all to adequate, safe, and affordable housing and
essential services and upgraded slums.
12. Responsible Consumption and Production: implement the 10-year framework of sustainable
consumption and production programs and chief the sustainable management and efficient use of natural
resources.
13. Climate Action: strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural
disasters

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 Tuguegarao Archdiocesan Schools System
LYCEUM OF TUAO
Centro 02, Tuao, Cagayan, 3528
Email address: lyceumoftuao1965@yahoo.com.ph

14. Life Below Water: prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution, including marine debris and nutrient
pollution from land-based activities by 2025.
15. Life on Land: protect, restore, and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems and sustainably
managed forests, combats desertification and deforestation, and halts and reverses land degradation and
biodiversity loss.
16. Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions: promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable
development, provide access to all, and build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels for
peace and justice.
17. Partnerships for the Goals: strengthen the implementation and revitalize the global partnership for
sustainable development.