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Environmental Performance Indicators Created for Bay Area Business Best Practices

Environmental Performance Indicators Created for Bay Area Business Best Practices

Published 06-03-02

Submitted by Bay Area Council

The Bay Area Council launched a unique, dynamic Environmental Best Practices program today to assist businesses and employers in enhancing environmental responsibility. The program allows businesses to confidentially assess their environmental procedures, receive immediate feedback and find out how they compare to others in the region. Participants in the program complete a Top 40 checklist questionnaire online survey that is then anonymously compiled and displayed in a variety of confidential charts, and points participants to a set of more than 300 Environmental Best Practice resources to help improve their operations and performance. The Bay Area Council will use the composite statistics derived from the surveys to better inform public policy decisions and recommendations and to assist companies in adopting environmental best practices.

"We know that local companies are employing environmental best practices in the Bay Area to improve business productivity, cut waste and reduce costs," said Sunne Wright McPeak, the president and CEO of the Bay Area Council. "What we don't know is what specific areas need work and where Bay Area companies are doing well. This program will help us, and companies in the region, identify the most pressing environmental issues on which to focus."

There is no current standard for environmental performance indicators, so the program will help shape and evolve as global consensus on such standards emerges. Business organizations are uniquely positioned to use their resources and the Bay Area culture of innovation to grow their organizations in an environmentally sound and responsible manner. For example, companies in the Bay Area are implementing energy efficiency measures, creating solutions to transportation problems with private enterprise shuttles and using sustainable building materials in their offices.

"Many local business leaders are at the forefront of improving economic performance while enhancing the environment," continued McPeak. "Environmentally-responsible business practices can be a potent source of competitive advantage."

The program begins with the Top 40 Environmental Best Practices Checklist -- an online survey -- whose purpose is to provide employers with a user-friendly set of priority actions to become more environmentally responsible. It is organized as a self-assessment tool to guide their implementation of environmental best practices and to let them know confidentially how they compare to other businesses that have completed the checklist.

The survey seeks to help employers discover:

-- How will your company's environmental performance stack up in comparison to community peers?
-- How will your company answer when consumers or investors ask about your environmental record?
-- Does your company have the vision and tools for effective corporate environmental management that meet the broader challenges of sustainable development?

"Environmental problems pose one of the top five challenges to the region's long-term economic prosperity. Businesses have to play their part, and they are. Indeed, wise business leaders know that environmental quality is a key ingredient for long-term profitability," concluded McPeak.

About the Bay Area Council

The Bay Area Council (www.bayareacouncil.org) is a CEO-led, business-sponsored public policy organization founded in 1945 to promote regional economic prosperity and quality of life. The Council presents a strong, united voice for more than 275 major Bay Area employers and coalition partners to help shape public policy affecting transportation, housing and land use, environmental quality, economic development, sustainable development, water policy, energy, education and workforce preparation, and telecommunications infrastructure.

Bay Area Council

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