Social and environmental changes are driving businesses in the 21st century. While some see sustainable practices as additional expenses, evidence shows they can be beneficial in the long run. Nielsen found that 80% of consumers value companies implementing environmental programs, highlighting the demand for sustainability. The concept of Sustainable business involves thinking ahead and minimising environmental impact. To achieve this, businesses can adopt sustainable practices. Now this brings up a question, what exactly are these practices composed of?
Sustainable practices
Sustainable practices consist of a wide range of varieties, one of which is Energy-efficient practices. These practices include:
Energy conservation: Conserving energy is one of the strategies that companies can take as their first step in transforming into a sustainable business. Energy conservation can be implemented by making conscious choices and implementing measures that can maximise energy efficiency. One such measure is to switch all lighting to leds, leds are the most efficient lighting source available on the market so far, lasting 25 times longer than normal light bulbs using 75% less energy as well.
Waste reduction: In this digitalized era, waste reduction can be easily tackled by reducing paper usage. Cut off any unnecessary use of paper, with the help of technology, a large portion of documents, mails, letters, can be sent via email, and other media platforms. Beside minimising paper use, other waste reduction methods include less plastic waste by switching from disposable cups, plates, to reusable alternatives instead.
Renewable energy initiatives: Wind power, Solar, hydro power are some examples of renewable energy. Due to the initial expensive investment cost, business enterprises fail to see the actual potentials that this renewable energy holds, not only does it reduce electricity bills, and lower carbon emissions, it also gives back money in the long run.
Real-life examples of sustainable practices in action
The newly built Angkor Wildlife & Aquarium, for instance, has a 500.5 kWp on-grid solar system installed at their Aquarium. This system is expected to save them about $120,000 dollars a year on their energy bills.
Laguna Resort has implemented a much smaller scale system yet it ultimately saved the resort $9800 yearly. They implemented a 20 kWp off-grid hybrid solar system which is roughly 25 times smaller than Angkor Wildlife & Aquarium.
As for Siem Reap Airport Fuel Station, they managed to annually save $19,600 with only a 40kWp off-grid hybrid solar system.
All these examples indicate that even a small scale system will make up a significant saving on electricity bills every year. This proves that investing in energy-efficient practices will not only benefit the environment but also offers significant cost savings for businesses.
Written by: Khoun pichponleukanika, Junior Researcher at ASIP
Reference
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Anonymous. (n.d.). Siem Reap Airport Fuel Station. Retrieved from https://www.nrg-renewables.com/project/total-cambodia
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