There’s no shirking green responsibilities

With the committee calling for legally binding cuts in carbon emissions of at least a fifth by 2020, regardless of concerns over the recession the government has no choice but to accelerate the shift towards a low carbon economy.

The implications for businesses are both daunting and wide reaching, but they are also laced with countless opportunities.

Regardless of the current economic problems the government is facing these targets will be adopted.

At the individual business level all this means that there will be countless opportunities for firms developing low carbon technologies, and generous incentives for those organisations that do take steps to deliver deep cuts in their emissions.

Equally, there will be enormous potential for those advisers and consultancies that can provide firms with the guidance and support they need to develop and implement low carbon technologies and processes that many remain unfamiliar with, whether in emissions advisory or even accounting and reporting.

The government-backed Carbon Trust will undoubtedly see its influence grow but it cannot provide support to the entire business community alone and it is reasonable to expect auditors, accountants and consultancies to expand their green services portfolios.

Faced with these realities the question for business leaders is not if to act, but when.

The temptation will be to wait until the economic recovery begins and the government’s plans for meeting the emission targets, and more importantly the incentives that will inevitably be on offer, are more firmly in place.

But this temptation has to be resisted. Historical precedents set by all technology revolutions show that those businesses which act early are the ones who reap the greatest rewards.

Regardless of the current economic pressures those companies that take proactive steps now to cut their energy use and ‘decarbonise’ their business models will not only be ahead of the inevitable regulatory curve, they will also be in the best position to exploit the opportunities presented by the emergence of the low carbon economy when the recovery begins.

James Murray is editor of businessgreen.com