BGlobal Warming: The Business Response

According to Danin Kahn, founder of the Sydney-based energy consultancy and green products retailer Todae, for a modest outlay of several thousand dollars it should be possible to reduce the energy consumption of an average business by 25 percent. The return on that investment will be dependent on the overall energy usage of the business itself, but in the meantime workers can feel secure in that they have assisted the planet.

Kahn says the first step is to perform an energy audit, which looks at how the business is consuming power in the key areas of lighting and equipment, air conditioning, and water heating. It can then set to work devising ways to minimise energy usage.

Some steps are free, such as setting all printers to double-sided printing by default, which halves both paper consumption and energy usage. Kahn says companies should also eliminate wasteful practices such as printing e-mails, and should instead invest in electronic archiving solutions.

Personal computers and servers are large consumers of technology. Kahn says upgrading old monitors to flat-panel LCD screens reduces power consumption by at least two-thirds.

Companies should also strive to ensure that computers are powered down when not in use. This includes banning use of screen-savers, as these still draw significant power while running. In this way the ANZ Bank recently cut 4 percent of its power bill.

Water coolers and boilers are another target for energy savings. Kahn says that hot water boilers commonly found in staff kitchens can draw up to 0.5 kilowatt hours of electricity every hour of the day (equivalent to about 5 percent of the power used by an average household). The application of a simple time switch should see a return on investment in just a couple of months.

Air conditioning is another target, accounting for 30 percent of average energy bills. Companies without automated systems are prone to leave them running after hours. Implementing a time switch can prevent this problem.

"Turn your air conditioning off earlier and see what happens," Kahn says. "By ensuring that it is turned on and off at the right times, I reckon you could easily knock 10-15 percent off your energy bill."

While not all power usage can be eliminated, numerous electricity suppliers now offer green power alternatives. Energy retailer, Jackgreen, offers a service including 10 percent green power that it says is no more expensive than mainstream providers. The cost increase of switching to power from 100 percent green sources can be fractional in comparison to a total energy bill.

According to Howard Parry-Husbands, director of the environmentally oriented marketing consultancy Pollinate Green, having a climate strategy can also make good marketing sense, especially in terms of maintaining the integrity of a brand. Parry-Husbands says his company’s Green Pulse research shows that 75 percent of Australians are very concerned about the environment, while up to 90 percent are choosing a green alternative, or will where it is available.