During the first years of the industrial revolution many companies did not see the pollution created by their operations as their responsibility. Their neglect lead to sever contamination of the land, water, and air that surrounded many of the industrial enterprises during that time. These toxic corporate practices had a large negative impact and in some cases deadly consequences for the communities that grew up around the industrial giants. When it became apparent that continuing to allow large corporations to avoid any responsibility for the damage they were doing to the areas near their plants, mining operations and construction sites the United States Government worked to develop a series of regulations and created the Environmental Protection Agency to monitor and regulate corporations across the nation. Since the development of these regulations environmental costs have become a major part of doing business. There are several expenditures modern day companies must be prepared to make in order to meet the new governmental and consumer environmental standards.

The first and perhaps most important environmental investment a company mush make is to include a plan in their budget that will ensure all of their enterprises comply with federal, state, and local environmental regulations. It is also important that a business develop a long term financial plan that will allow them to adjust for any possible future regulations. As science finds more and more data that suggests pollution caused by humans may be more harmful than was initially thought, governments are continuing to pass more and more legislation to help regulate corporations and keep communities safe. Failure to comply with government regulations can lead to debilitating fines or even force a company to cease operations completely.

Some increased costs do not come from governmental regulation but rather voluntary corporate initiatives as a result of consumer pressure. It is sometimes necessary for a company to spend money to institute more eco friendly practices or assist in a voluntary cleanup in order to raise public opinion about their product. After a corporate accident that has an impact on the environment, a company’s willingness to take responsibility and spring into action to lessen the negative impact can mean the difference between the company having a future or fading away. It can be much better for a company’s image and even their bottom line if they are ready to clean up immediately after a disaster.

Companies do not always require outside pressure to become more environmentally conscious. Some modern day corporations have joined the United Nations Conference in their beliefs that sustainable development is very important to long term success. A company who initially invests in eco friendly business practices and holds the well being of the environment as an important standard may experience higher start up costs than other less environmentally conscious corporations. In the long run though, they will be less likely to run into unexpected costs because of new regulations or loss of business because of poor public opinion.

Finally, companies who many want to become international should expect to have some investment required in order to help their operations comply with international trade agreement regulations.

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