Environmental policy recommendations concerning SMEs
Recent demographic research has shown that SMEs account for approximately two-thirds of all employment in the European Union. There is also an increasing trend that SMEs are creating more new jobs than larger enterprises. SMEs have also been identified as a significant driver for European competitiveness and for this reason have been targeted by research and funding efforts. An example of such a research effort is the SMES project supported by the ENV 2C Programme. Several institutes for higher learning assembled to examine the relationship between SMEs and environmental practice. The important role of SMEs in the European economy indicates that they can have a significant impact on the environment. An in-depth market survey was performed, targeting not just SMEs but also SME consultants and industry specific focus groups. In order to attain results representative of the European spectrum, companies in Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland were investigated. The results are based on several hundred questionnaires and face-to-face interviews, a sample large enough to draw conclusions. An interesting outcome was the discovery that an SME's competitiveness was not related with its environmental performance or tendency to adopt environmentally friendly policies. Nor was the environmental attitude of the firm's management an influential factor, though most firms displayed a positive attitude towards the environment. Hence, it cannot be argued that a proactive environmental approach diminishes competitiveness. What was clear was that firms that adopted more environmental initiatives realised benefits in terms of creating new jobs. This also dispels another common myth that environmental measures put people out of work. The EC was interested in learning what obstacles inhibit SMEs from adopting environmental initiatives. Feedback from both SMEs and consultants to SMEs indicates that mainly lack of capital but also lack of expertise and competing priorities are the important factors. Yet some industries (e.g. furniture) and regions (e.g. Germany) were more likely than others to adopt such measures. In the process of identifying the best business practices of these leading firms, the project's partners also assessed the applicability of these practices for different regions and different industries. The valuable end result of the research is a set of comprehensive recommendations to SMEs and policy makers on both national and European levels. The recommendations exploit the existing conditions for success while targeting measures to fill in the remaining gaps. The findings are being disseminated to a wide audience. This work will help Europe maintain a sustainable environmental position as it strives to become the world's most competitive economy.
