Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
(Costanza et al., 2004) provides a strong foundation for managing
sustainable growth.
Sustainable growth in the context of a business entity, such as a plastic
processingoperation,hasamorelimitedscopeandideallyseekstodecouple
the profitability and financial growth of the entity from adverse
environmental and social impacts of its operations. This is not a trivial
undertaking as the two are intricately connected. In practical terms, it
involves a sharp transition in managerial thinking and business planning.
Thischangeinthinkinghastodowithassessingbusinesssuccess;insteadof
the simple metric of profitability, the businesses now needs to also take into
account environmental and social merits of the venture.
In planning, this translates into optimization of three sets of objectives
simultaneously, as often depicted in
Figure 2.2
(
left
) and summarized in
terms of the interrelated dimensions of people, planet, and profit,
sometimes referred to as the “triple bottom line” (Elkington, 1998).
Figure 2.2
Sustainable development depicted in simple diagrams.
Some examples of typical goals within each of these “bottom lines” are as
follows:
1. People (social equity): Community development, education, career
training, human rights, fair wages, worker rights, employment security,
employer advancement, ethical practices, and lack of discrimination
