Ten points on the environment for Indonesian business executives
Ten points on the environment for Indonesian business executives
By Bruce E. Marsh
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian businesses and industries are being bombarded with environmental jargons such as the Bapedal Business Performance Rating, WALHI, HIDUP, eco-labeling, clean production, green products, ISO standards, regulation PP-51, sustainable development, ANDAL, AMDAL, RKL, and RPL, not to mention all the growing public relations pressure.
Rather than run for cover, now is the time for business and industry to become proactive environmental leaders. Here's a quick checklist of ten Environmental Business Practices (EBP):
1. Get top management involved. If you are serious about the environment then quickly they will be too and that attitude will roll on down through the organization.
2. Do an "internal" or "external" environmental audit before BAPEDAL comes knocking at your door.
3. Review environmental policies. There are plenty of examples of policies which help to frame a company's approach to environmental management. You don't have to reinvent the wheel, but you should try to support "green" products, recycling, and environmental education.
4. Review the environmental organization and provide sufficient resources to support the environmental effort. Get some good consultants and university experts on your team as well.
5. Know what your competition is doing, talk to them about their problems and concerns (especially through trade associations) and then keep ahead of them!
6. Hold employees responsible for their treatment of the environment - make people understand the company is serious.
7. Take an environmentalist to lunch, listen to him/her, fund a project and ask for help.
8. Involve the local community by providing them with information about your operation. List the benefits your company brings to Indonesia and figure out how to maximize these while minimizing the negative impacts.
9. Key government leaders need to understand your problems and accomplishments. Communicate with these key leaders so they can help you.
10. Look at your lifestyle -- are you recycling, saving energy and conserving water? If not, why not? If you are having trouble living right, then others are, too. Maybe this is a business opportunity for you. Finally, people need to enjoy nature and get away from the city bustle on a regular basis.
The environmental wave is hitting Indonesia. The danger is that people are focusing on the negative environmental impacts and almost ignoring the very real positive impact businesses bring in the way of jobs, taxes, foreign exchange, technology transfer, education and economic support. If you follow the 10 EBPs listed above then people both inside and outside your company will listen to you when you discuss these positive business practices. When you tell them a proposed regulation is too expensive or not appropriate, they will believe you and work with you.
Lots of businesses are making fantastic progress in Indonesia because good environmental management saves dollars and is the right thing to do. Many projects save dollars immediately and the rest will over the life of an operation. Good environmental management will prevent Indonesia from going the way of many western countries which require strict, tedious environmental laws and legalized bureaucracies. Business people need to get involved in the environmental discussions. Business people have resources, knowledge and can-do expertise that is badly needed in the environmental arena. Good business is good for the environment. Without a healthy economy, the environment and people will suffer. You can be an environmental business leader and do the 10 EBPs now or pay dearly for help later!
Bruce Marsh is an environmental manager at PT Freeport Indonesia.