Implementation Of Environmental Management Practices Research Articles

Specialist accommodation operations in North Queensland: barriers to the implementation of environmental management practices

There are situational variables affecting the implementation of environmental management practices by specialist (or boutique) accommodation operators located near protected areas in Far North Queensland. These styles of accommodation are small, owner-operated establishments offering special activities, features or services to the guest and have a high host?guest interaction. From a survey sample of 101 specialist accommodation operations, 30 owners were personally interviewed at their establishment to better understand key factors affecting the implementation of environmental management practices for water, energy, waste and other sustainable practices. Environmental management techniques that are both simple and cost-effective are easily implemented by specialist accommodation operators. However, situational factors such as cost, lack of knowledge, climatic conditions, available municipal infrastructure and legislation appear to impede the uptake of some sustainable management practices.

An Empirical Study of Environmental Awareness and Practices in SMEs

With increasing awareness of environmental issues, there has been rising demand for environmental-friendly business practices. Prior research has shown that the implementation of environmental management practices is influenced by existing and potential stakeholder groups in the form of external pressures from legislators, environmental groups, financial institutions and suppliers, as well as internally by employees and owner/manager attitudes and knowledge. However, it has been reported that despite business owner/managers having strong “green” attitudes, the level of implementation of environmental-friendly practices is low. In order to explore the connection between pressures for improved practices and the management actions taken, this article examines how influence from various stakeholders is related to awareness of environmental issues, and how this awareness relates to actions taken within the businesses to reduce the environmental impact of their operations. The results indicate that legislation does result in general environmental awareness, and that organizations are then willing to␣change their business processes and environmental strategies. However, despite their actions they have little awareness of the benefits that might arise from cost reductions from their environmental-friendly practices. Those influenced by their suppliers act to reduce waste, but do not put into place formal environmental management systems, or use environmental messages to market their goods or services. Nevertheless, it can be argued that they have a real commitment to environmental issues, as evidenced by a willingness to voluntarily contribute to environmental organizations.

Environmental pressures and impacts of public sector organisations: the case of the Portuguese military

Public institutions are beginning to realise that they must shift their management towards sustainability. Thus, public sector, including defence services, environmental performance evaluation is a growing reality. The main objective of this research was to assess the environmental pressures and impacts profile of the Portuguese defence sector. A questionnaire survey was conducted involving all Portuguese military units that have a person in charge of environmental issues. Respondents generally reported that the majority of their activities have few serious environmental problems. These results could show the respondents' general perception of the increasing implementation of environmental management practices in military units and probably some lack of knowledge, but also a standard based on compliance with regulations. Many environmental pressures in the Portuguese military are related to primary environmental problems, such as water supply, wastewater and solid waste, showing that the integration of environmental awareness and practices into the Portuguese military is quite new.

Developing and implementing an environmental performance index for the Portuguese military

AbstractAt an international level, the implementation of environmental management practices in military facilities is now a growing reality, particularly with the implementation of environmental management programmes and/or systems. The main goal of this research was to assess the Portuguese military sector's environmental performance through an index – the MEPE index – in a simplified and useful manner. A second goal was to measure the units' self‐assessment against the environmental profile of the military sector as evaluated through the index, to determine how far they match. The index was deeloped on the basis of the data obtained in a national questionnaire, which was carried out to evaluate environmental practices adopted by military units. Results show that the Portuguese military's overall environmental performance is poor, reflecting that this is quite a new issue in military organizations. Among the military branches the Air Force reveals the best environmental results. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Distribution, Fate and Effects of Pesticide Residues in Tropical Coastal Lagoons of Northwestern Mexico

Analyses of pesticide residues in sediments, water and biota of the Altata - Ensenada del Pabellon coastal lagoon system in Sinaloa, Mexico, showed the presence of organochlorine and organophosphorus compounds. For all the compounds analysed, concentrations in sediments were higher near the points of water discharge from ponds and drainage from the agricultural area. Among the organochlorines, total DDTs displayed the largest sedimentary reservoir, followed by total endosulfans and chlorpyrifos. In sediments, as well as in biota, pp′-DDT concentrations were lower than those of DDT metabolites, which confirms the reduction in the previous massive use of this compound in agriculture. Endosulfan is currently used in the region and endosulfan residues in lagoon sediments attained levels considered to be toxic to meiofauna, therefore constituting an ecological risk to lagoon ecosystems. There was a large sedimentary reservoir of chlorpyrifos but its ecotoxicological risk is difficult to assess due to lack of adequate comparative data. Nevertheless, concentrations of chlorpyrifos which approach acute toxic levels for shrimp were recorded in lagoon water. This suggests that drainage from agricultural fields during high runoff may, on occasion, cause mass mortality of shrimp and fish. Organophosphorus pesticides are widely regarded to degrade very rapidly in aquatic systems. Experimental research performed with 14C-labelled chlorpyrifos and parathion has shown that they may be stabilised for relatively long periods of time through sediment-water partitioning. This extension of their environmental half-lives increases their potential for impacting on coastal ecosystems. Since organophosphorus pesticides are highly toxic for aquatic organisms at concentrations generally lower than organochlorines, their presence in the lagoon water and sediment is a matter for much concern. The increased use of tropical coastal lagoons for shrimp and fish farming requires the implementation of environmental management practices to protect these ecosystems from the impact of agricultural activities. Environmental management aims to preserve the ecosystem integrity of these coastal lagoons and, through improving the water quality, to allow the development of aquaculture and reduce human exposure to pesticide residues in food.

An analysis of environmental management, organizational context and performance of Spanish hotels

This paper addresses the factors that determine the deployment of environmental management practices and its effects on firms’ financial performance. Empirical evidence supporting this investigation is gathered from the Spanish hotel industry. Our results find support for the notion that age of facilities, size, chain affiliation, stakeholder environmental pressures, and their use of operations management techniques exert a lasting influence on the degree of implementation of environmental management practices by hotel firms. Moreover, our findings show a positive relationship between environmental management practices and firms’ financial performance.