The ACCC recently announced that it will be cracking down on "greenwashing" by Aussie businesses, which refers to making false or misleading claims about their environmental or sustainability practices.
According to an initial internet sweep conducted by the ACCC, more than half of the businesses investigated for making environmental claims were found to be misleading their customers!
These misleading claims ranged from overstating climate action to developing their own certification schemes and revealed that many organisations are using vague terms like "sustainable" and "environmentally friendly" without providing reliable forms of evidence to back up their claims.
Any businesses making claims about their environmental credentials would do well to consider maintaining a formally certified environmental management system in accordance with the international ISO 14001 standard.
ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is an independent, non-governmental international organisation recognised world-wide – surely you can’t get more reputable than that!
Not only will you gain a 'green logo', but the process will likely identify potential operational improvements and efficiencies that can lead to financial savings.
Implementing a structured process such as ISO 14001 to address environmental and product/service delivery concerns from the community can steer your organisation towards a more environmentally-focused direction, and boost employee morale and pride in their work.
If you want to demonstrate your environmental corporate conscience and avoid the pitfalls of "greenwashing," subject your business to external independent scrutiny against the most well-known environmental management system in the world – ISO 14001.
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