Have companies around the globe really become “house-proud”, or is planet earth just in for a spring cleaning? It is hard to say – but one thing is for sure; the environmental sector is en-joying a boom. The market for pollution control technology is on a steep exponential growth curve, which seems to be interminable. Especially the European companies put down their names for an immense part of the expansion. But what is the precise nature of this sudden environmental con-cern?
After all the deteriorating state of the environment is ardly a novel phenomenon, to say the least. Just how vigorous this potential goldmine is going to be for the clean- up industry ac-tually depends on law and order, so to speak. That is to say that one of the main reasons for the turn up is new legislation. Recent EU-directives as to pollution may cause heavy demands on the purse of one company and consequently pour that money down the pockets of the clean technology indu-stry.
Moreover the deadlines for plants to meet EU-directives are getting close, and everything se-ems to show that the laws will be enforced. Yet far from all companies have to meet with the raised finger of the law to start investing in their environmental responsibilities. Investments on a volunta-ry basis are often due to the fact that it makes good ecnomic sense or because it gives the corporate image a face- lifting. Seen from a geoprahical point of view Germany and primarily eastern Europe form tremendously good breeding ground for the sale of clean-up equipment.
As a result of opencast mi-ning of lignite coal in Poland, for example, a huge lean-up is left, which will amount to billions of dollars. However accidents also occur at sea, where a spate of oil tanker disasters are likely to fill out the order book at oil cleaning industries. Nevertheless a stroke of bad luck is far from necessary in order to make firms under-stand their green obligations. The power of the consumers has been on the increase over the last few years, and the public environmental image means more to a firm than ever before.
The average con-sumer going down to the rocer’s for a few necessaries is starting to attach importance to something else than just the product itself. How is the detergent wrapped – is the paper bleached? Is this bottle reusable? Are these outdoor tomatoes? – and so on. Personally I don’t think that you notice it, as you’re walking alongside the shelves in the local supermarket – but you do pay more attention to ecological messages on the products than you did just 5-10 years ago.
After all this is a topic very much in the public mind, so I guess it’s quite natural to get involved one way or the other. I know from my own experiences that we have started to put down se-veral ecological products on the shopping list at home, when going to the grocer’s. Products like: carrots, rye bread, milk, and cheese appear regularly on our shopping list and always in ecological form. But just recently another common purchase was substituted; red wine, French red wine to be exact, had to give way to a Spanish bottle instead.
The day by day “revolution” on the dinner table was my mother’s contribution to the prevention of the French uclear tests. French products in gene-ral was banned on our shopping list – and still are. How far her exertions have got appreciable effect with monsieur Chirac is dubious – but many a little makes a mickle, as they say! On a more global scale this environmental consciousness of the consumers was to be witnessed just a couple of months ago. The sinking of the drilling rig “Brent Spar” at open sea cau-sed an outcry all over Europe, and customers “rippled their muscles”.
Shell, the mastermind behind the sinking, was boycott y a vast number of both bulk buying companies and ordinary consumers which resulted in a more environmentally friendly solution at last. To my mind this way of carrying one’s point is absolutely excellent. Henceforward I feel that the consumers should utilize “the power of their shopping list” far more frequently. As to “Brent Spar”, we kept that one afloat and got it sent to the breakers pre-venting the environment from further molestation. Let’s only hope that this will go for the French nuclear weapons as well – before it’s too late! “Consumers, unite! “
