Chapter 12
Making Your Products
Environmentally Friendly
In This Chapter
Defining hazardous materials and dangerous goods
Staying current on materials legislation
Managing customer and supplier compliance
A
t the beginning of this Part, we discuss in general terms what it means
to “go green,” along with some of the main characteristics of “green
people.” The chief concern of any green person or company lies in whether
their actions and the products they make or use are friendly to the earth,
safe, ethically produced and made, recyclable, and energy-efficient. In short,
both green people and green businesses are careful to consider the effect of
their decisions not only on their own quality of life, but also on the quality of
life of everyone around them. Going green is about considering our impact in
all that we do, from cooking with organic food using energy efficient appliances
to manufacturing pesticides in Vapi, India.As our many examples in this chapter demonstrate, it’s extremely unwise for
any company in business today to shirk its regulatory obligations; noncom-
pliance carries the potential of stiff penalties and lost good faith, either of
which can prove fatal. The way to ensure that you stay on top of the compli-
ance game in all your dealings, and hence profit in the process, is to imple-
ment a comprehensive GRC program that embeds environmental and
sustainability initiatives in every aspect of your operations. The sooner you
do, the happier you, your customers, and your suppliers will be. If that is not
enough of an incentive for change, consider that after you take just a few basic
steps, you’ll have joined the ranks of many others who are doing their share
to protect and preserve the environment. In this chapter, we show you how
to put the focus on making your products green (and no, we’re not talking
about green beer and shamrock cookies for St. Patrick’s Day).