Green Awards for eco-friendly businesses

Ramani KANGARAARACHCHI

The National Green Awards will lead businesses, social groups and institutions into one common goal which will conserve the environment creating new areas for eco industries.

Environmental Authority Chairman Charitha Herath told Daily News Business the existing regulatory systems are not sufficient to protect and enhance the quality of environment to ensure the sustainability of the environment in the country.

The National Green Awards will encourage businesses to go beyond compliances to protect the environment giving more knowledge to them on green industries. It will also help to recognize their products locally and internationally.

The award is introduced to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Central Environmental Authority.

The award ceremony will be held at the BMICH on August 23.

There will be over 25 awards covering 10 industrial sectors such as health, apparel, food, mineral and hotel.

This award scheme will be an alternative system to controlling pollution and greening the environment other than existing command and control approaches and education and awareness progammes.

Therefore this award scheme will influence people in a positive way to adopt a self-made environmental policy within the institution to apply for the high productivity in Sri Lanka enhancing the environmental sustainability.

“The industrial community have intra business competition to win the shrinking markets and trying to find new avenues of products to the market. The CEA will use this competition mainly to control industrial pollution for greening industries and finally end with a green environment,” Herath said.

Referring to the expected outcomes he said granting government recognition to industries with advanced environmental practices, development and adoption of novel strategy, enhancing environmental consensus of the industrialists are some of them