There are a number of different environmental and social effects which should be considered when examining economic activity.
Economic activity is only sustainable where its impact on society and the environment is also sustainable.
Environmental footprint:
In the same way that humans and animals leave physical footprints that show where they have been, so organisations leave evidence of their operations in the environment. They operate at a net cost to the environment.
The environmental footprint is an attempt to evaluate the size of a company’s impact on the environment in two respects:
– The company’s resource consumption.
– Any harm to the environment brought about by pollution emissions.
A measurement of the resource consumption and pollution emissions in terms of harm to the environment in either qualitative, quantitative or replacement terms.
Economic activity has social and environmental effects. In general terms, that activity is only sustainable where the long-term impact on the environment and effect on society is sustainable. If the impacts are not sustainable, then the economic activity itself is unsustainable.
In terms of organisations, the effect of their social and environmental activities, i.e. their social and environmental footprints, must be sustainable. Lack of sustainability implies that the organisation is also not sustainable.
Social Footprint:
Social footprint is a measure of the impact or effect that an entity can have on a given set of concern or stakeholder interests.
It is the impact on people, society and the wellbeing of the communities. Impact can be positive (Such as job creation and community benefits) or negative, such as when a plant closure increases unemployment and the local community suffers.