Week 7 response papers

Week 7 Response Papers Response to Discussion Post Beginning January it will be illegal for individuals to get rid of their unwanted electronic products in their regular disposal points. In agreement with the student, unnecessary electronics should be taken to an authorized (registered) recycler for proper management as an effective means of controlling pollution. It is correct to state that the separation of electronic equipment will assist in managing different types of wastes and encouraging the recycle of such materials as plastics and metals. In my view, the manufacturer should establish a sustainable system to manage energy intensity, toxic emissions, and material intensity as suggested by Cohen (2011).
In agreement with the student, the move to have manufacturers bear the burden of disposing their products has changed the benchmarking activities of companies. Companies have to change their manufacturing and business processes as noted in response to the new regulation at least to some extent (Esty and Winston, 2006). Since the companies have to bear the burden of disposal, it is important for them to create partnerships. Partnering with other players will assist organizations in ensuring responsible recycling as in the case of Dell and FedEx.
Once again, in agreement with the student, it is important for employees in the service industry to be trained on environmental audits. This is because effective sustainability is achieved by involving everyone in the company as noted by Ahmed, Montagno, and Sharma (2004). Marshall and Toffel (2005) note that sustainability can be extremely elusive if people are ignorant of facts related to the environment and waste management. This means that at all levels, workers should be trained about environmental auditing.
References
Cohen, S. (2011). Sustainability metrics [Video file]. Web. Retrieved from http://www. youtube. com/watch? v= lmdDnqBh-Zg
Esty, D., & Winston, A. (2006). Green to gold: How smart companies use environmental strategy to innovate, create value, and build competitive advantage. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
Marshall, J., & Toffel, M. (2005). Framing the Elusive Concept of Sustainability: A Sustainability Hierarchy. Environmental & Scientific Technology 39(3): 673–682.
Response to Student’s Discussion Post 2
Companies will have to change their benchmarking activities so that they become more responsible in the disposal of outdated electronic products as noted by the student. This is influenced by the fact that used electronic equipment such as computers, TVs, and cell phones are some of the quickly growing wastes in the world (ScienceDaily, 2009). The disposal of CRT monitors and tube TVs has been a thorny issue as the student notes. It is true that it is more effective to control pollution and encourage sustainability by assigning producers the burden of managing wastes as opposed to disposing old electronic equipment in landfills in agreement with Blewitt (2008).
The student introduces two important factors in the waste management and sustainability debate – the issues of legality and accountability. Indeed, without accountability, the fight for sustainability would be impossible to win according to Marshall and Toffel (2005). In terms of cost, in my view, the companies have to spend more to manage waste which may reduce their revenues. However, the new law is bound to propel companies faster toward embracing favorable and effective environmental policies.
In my view, the student is right in stating that teaching all staff how to perform simple environmental audits is an effective way of ensuring sustainability. When people across all levels come together, propose ideas, and discuss them to find the best solutions, the results are bound to be better and the means to them (the results) more effective. As noted by Marshall and Toffel (2005), the beginning of success in the struggle for sustainability comes in knowledge. In this respect, employees should be trained on how to track improvements in performances that relate to the environment.
References
Blewitt, J. (2008). Understanding Sustainable Development. London: Earthscan.
Marshall, J., & Toffel, M. (2005). Framing the Elusive Concept of Sustainability: A Sustainability Hierarchy. Environmental & Scientific Technology 39(3): 673–682.
ScienceDaily. (2009). Growing problem of e-waste: Bringing harmony to electronic waste disposal. Retrieved from http://www. sciencedaily. com/releases/2009/09/090904103340. htm