Enterprise Carbon and Energy Management Systems Support Company Sustainability
You could argue that corporate decision-makers certainly earn their remuneration these days, as a business can face so many different challenges from so many different directions. Not only are competitive pressures unrelenting due to the downward economy, but costs are also rising, especially when it comes to the traditional sources of energy. The decision-makers could be forgiven for failing to hear the growing calls from environmentalists as sustainability becomes an issue of equal importance. Fully 80% of companies do not understand this or are not willing to take action, but this must change.
Carbon emissions will be fully restricted as we enter the new world. Each organization has to take responsibility for the energy it uses due to its very existence. This energy emits carbon and these emissions have been shown to cause significant environmental damage. Enterprise carbon and energy management systems have been designed to help companies deal with this problem, enabling them to measure the size of a carbon footprint, the emission inventories and reductions necessary.
Every organization needs energy to function. When energy is used it emits carbon and such greenhouse gases have been proven to cause long-term environmental damage. As we move forward, every organization must therefore take responsibility for the energy it uses and the carbon emissions it produces. There will undoubtedly be financial repercussions, as well as societal backlash.
If a company is not in possession of all the data, facts and figures associated with its operation, it may not be able to assess the size of its carbon footprint and act. To start off with, each individual asset must be scrutinized and its contribution to the problem determined. Enterprise carbon and energy management systems have been designed specifically for this purpose. When all the information is correlated together, management will be well placed to make educated decisions.
It is no longer acceptable to compose a corporate sustainability report that owes more to good public relations than hard facts. Watchdogs, the consumer groups, legislators and the media will begin to pick apart such reports and they must be accurate and based on realistic data.
In the United Kingdom, parliamentarians have enacted tough legislation, which will effectively bring market-based approaches to bear on organizations as they purchase the rights to use energy. All eyes are certainly on this new scheme and its repercussions.
Pres. Obama has indicated his support for market based approaches to climate control. He has already forced federal agencies to begin the process through his executive order. Agencies will need to employ enterprise carbon and energy management systems as they strive to control their energy use and emissions and conform with his directive.
Companies are used to providing financial documents and executive summaries, which are widely distributed and reviewed. A corporate sustainability report will likely become a required document in its own right and will show how willing the company is to take responsibility for its carbon emissions.
Daniel Stouffer has much more information about enterprise carbon and energy management systems and why a visit to www.verisae.com can benefit you.