[Printer Friendly Version]   [How to E-mail This Article to A Friend]

AROUND THE WORLD 4: Chinese Companies Environmentally Aware

Some of China's biggest and most important companies are intent on improving environmental standards and practices, according to a survey by World Wildlife Fund.

All of the companies participating in the survey said protecting the environment was important, with more than half indicating that it was part of their company's core values.

According to WWF, this is unexpected given environmental concerns associated with China's rapidly growing economy.

"The survey shows that a significant group of Chinese companies are more environmentally aware than they are often portrayed," said Peng Lei, WWF Trade and Investment Programme. "If they can show global leadership, they could not only help solve many of China's environmental problems, but also the world’s."

The survey also showed that 22 percent of respondents are implementing tougher environment standards than legally required, with 13 percent calling for even stricter mandatory rules. These standards are related to reducing CO2 emissions, waste pollution and using energy efficient technologies.

"As China emerges as one of the world's biggest economies, it has massive potential to become a leading world exporter and investor in sustainable goods," said Dennis Pamlin, at WWF's Trade and Investment Programme. "China could set the agenda as a global champion for sustainable business solutions."

However, WWF says if this is to happen, the Chinese government has to offer financial incentives to the leading companies, while both companies and governments in the European Union, Japan and the U.S. should adopt policies that support progressive business in China.

The survey also showed that there is a need to deal with the laggards in China, as some respondents expressed concern that a large group of companies are still trying to either lower standards or break the law.

Article courtesy of The World Wildlife Fund

Visit their website at wwf.org


Write your own story telling us what you think about this article!

Read AROUND THE WORLD 1: Photographic Census in Spain