Business & Society, 16e (Lawrence)
Chapter 10 Managing for Sustainability
1) By setting a common standard for all firms, government can take the cost of pollution control
out of competition.
2) The first United States federal laws to protect the environment involved protecting navigable
waterways.
3) The EPA has identified carbon monoxide as the sole indicator of the overall level of air
pollution.
4) The Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 requires permits for most point sources of pollution, such
as industrial emissions.
5) Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976, the government regulates
hazardous waste from “cradle to grave.”
6) Efforts to prevent inequitable exposure to risk, such as from hazardous waste, are sometimes
referred to as the movement for environmental justice.
7) When the company that originally polluted a Superfund site can be identified, it is required to
pay for the cleanup.
8) The Clean Air Act of 1990 incorporated the concept of tradable allowances as a key part of its
approach to pollution reduction.
9) One potential cost of environmental regulation is reduced capital investment.
10) Environmental regulations, such as energy conservation, depress the economy.
11) Recent reports indicate that sustainability is becoming a less strategic part of business.
12) An ecologically sustainable organization is a business that addresses environmental issues
only when they pose an immediate threat.
13) Effective environmental management requires an integrated approach that involves all parts of
the business organization.
14) Current sustainability managers believe that the most important determinant of their success is
their subject-matter expertise.
15) Rewards and incentives are effective ways to make business people consider the
environmental impacts of their actions.
16) In the United States, the federal government regulates which of the following major areas of
environmental protection?
A) Air pollution.
B) Water pollution.
C) Solid and hazardous waste.
D) All of these answers are correct.
17) Air pollution is accurately described by which of the following?
A) Air pollution occurs when more pollutants are emitted into the atmosphere than can be safely
absorbed and diluted by natural processes.
B) A majority of the people in the United States breathe unsafe air for at least part of the year.
C) Air pollution caused by particulate matter is responsible for fewer than 600 premature or
unnecessary deaths annually.
D) The EPA has identified hundreds of “criteria” pollutants, relatively common harmful
substances that serve as indicators of overall levels of air pollution.
18) Which of the following statements is not true with respect to acid rain?
A) A primary source of acid rain is coal-fired utilities.
B) Acid rain occurs when carbon dioxide combines with water vapor in the atmosphere.
C) Acid rain is worse in some regions of the United States than others.
D) Acid rain degrades buildings.
19) Which of the following is not true about water pollution?
A) It affects crop yields.
B) It can be caused by pesticides and herbicides.
C) It can be caused by biodegradable products.
D) The Water Pollution Control Act maintains the integrity of all surface water in the United
States.
20) In the United States, most solid waste ends up:
A) Recycled.
B) Composted.
C) Incinerated.
D) In landfills.
21) Which country has made the greatest progress in reducing its solid waste stream?
A) United Kingdom.
B) Germany.
C) Sweden.
D) United States.
22) The Toxic Substances Control Act is accurately described by which of the following?
A) It required reductions in urban smog, acid rain, and greenhouse gas emissions.
B) It established a national policy to regulate, restrict, and, if necessary, ban toxic chemicals.
C) It promoted nontoxic chemicals and fuels for business use.
D) It authorized funds for treatment plans and toxic waste cleanup.
23) Environmental justice is a movement to:
A) Prevent inequitable exposure to risk, such as from hazardous waste.
B) Identify polluters and require them to pay for the cleanup of their toxic waste.
C) Reduce pollution at the source, rather than treat and dispose of waste at the “end of the pipe.”
D) Specifically restrict the use of dangerous pesticides which can pollute groundwater.
24) The Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) is
accurately described by which statement(s)?
A) It established a fund supported primarily by a tax on the petroleum and chemical companies.
B) It is regarded as one of the most successful environmental laws.
C) The funds collected are used to clean up sites where the original polluter cannot be identified.
D) Both of these answers are correct: It established a fund supported primarily by a tax on the
petroleum and chemical companies; and the funds collected are used to clean up sites where the
original polluter cannot be identified.
25) The annual EPA report Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) is an example of which environmental
policy type?
A) Cap-and-trade system.
B) Government incentives.
C) Criminal enforcement.
D) Information disclosure.
26) The process of firms buying and selling the right to pollute is an example of which type of
environmental regulation?
A) Command.
B) Control.
C) Market-based.
D) Emissions charges.
27) Emission fees are accurately characterized by which statement(s)?
A) Each business is charged for the undesirable pollution that it emits.
B) Companies emitting more pollutants end up paying more pollution taxes.
C) Revenues from emission fees can be used to support environmental efforts.
D) All of these answers are correct.
28) Under U.S. sentencing guidelines, how would firms facing environmental violations typically
be treated if they had an active compliance program and fully cooperated with investigators?
A) The same as any other violator.
B) Their sentence would likely be lighter.
C) Less prison time but higher fines.
D) In almost all cases, the firm would receive only a warning.
29) Possible costs of environmental regulation include all of the following except:
A) Unemployment.
B) Reduced capital investment.
C) Corporate restructuring.
D) Lowered productivity.
30) Every environmental regulation must be initially evaluated for its costs and benefits in a
process called:
A) Strategic planning.
B) Cost savings.
C) Regulatory impact analysis.
D) Command and control legislation.
31) Environmental regulations stimulate some sectors of the economy by:
A) Creating jobs in industries like environmental consulting, asbestos abatement, and instrument
manufacturing.
B) Saving jobs in industries like fishing and tourism when natural areas are protected or restored.
C) Compelling businesses to become more efficient by conserving energy.
D) All of these answers are correct.
32) A firm in the pollution prevention stage of the corporate environmental responsibility model is
best described by which statement?
A) Using innovation to create new sustainable technology.
B) Focusing on all environmental impacts of the product life cycle.
C) Minimizing or eliminating waste before it is created.
D) Incurring losses due to environmental costs.
33) General Electric’s “Ecomagination” effort to invest in clean technology is an example of:
A) Pollution prevention.
B) Product stewardship.
C) Clean technology.
D) None of these answers is correct.
34) Which stage of corporate environmental responsibility focuses on the full life cycle of a
product?
A) Pollution prevention stage.
B) Clean technology stage.
C) Product stewardship stage.
D) Green management stage.
35) Being able to continue their activities indefinitely, without altering the carrying capacity of the
Earth’s ecosystem, is a characteristic of:
A) Ecologically sustainable organizations.
B) Concerned citizens.
C) Codes of environmental conduct.
D) Environmental regulations.
36) Ecologically sustainable organizations are accurately explained by which of these
descriptions?
A) Making and transporting products using minimal energy.
B) Using more natural resources than they replenish.
C) Designing products with limited durability.
D) Both of these answers are correct: Making and transporting products using minimal energy; and
using more natural resources than they replenish.
37) The role of chief sustainability officer is described by which statement(s)?
A) Typically reports to the CEO.
B) Supervises staff across functional areas.
C) Requires strong interpersonal skills.
D) All of these answers are correct.
38) Sustainability leaders have found that the most effective environmental management approach
involves:
A) A team of line managers from across the business organization.
B) Leadership from top-level executives who make all corporate decisions.
C) Only shareholders.
D) An engaged board of directors that dictates strategy.
39) When businesses form voluntary, collaborative partnerships with environmental organizations
and regulators to achieve specific objectives this is called:
A) Inter-organizational alliances.
B) Environmental partnerships.
C) Cross-functional teams.
D) Command and control.
40) Studies have shown that green marketing has been most successful at what level?
A) Product.
B) Service.
C) Brand.
D) Executive.
41) Companies that reduce pollution and hazardous waste, reuse or recycle materials, and operate
with greater energy efficiency achieve a competitive advantage due to:
A) Technological innovation.
B) Product differentiation.
C) Green marketing.
D) Cost savings.
42) When companies develop a reputation for environmental excellence, and they produce and
deliver products and services designed to attract environmentally aware customers, this is called:
A) Technological innovation.
B) Strategic planning.
C) Brand differentiation.
D) Cost savings.
43) When environmentally proactive companies seek out imaginative, innovative new methods for
reducing pollution and increasing efficiency, they are adopting which strategy?
A) Technological innovation.
B) Product differentiation.
C) Brand differentiation.
D) Cost savings.
44) Companies that cultivate a vision of sustainability must adopt sophisticated strategic planning
techniques to:
A) Increase the competitive advantage of other global organizations.
B) Detect the limited number of internal factors that influence the employee performance reviews.
C) Allow their top manager to assess the full range of the firm’s effects on the environment.
D) Increase the number of government regulations that are passed to reduce pollution.
45) According to the discussion case, Hydraulic Fracturing—Can the Environmental Impacts Be
Reduced?, the primary purpose of fracking is to:
A) Extract crude oil and gas.
B) Mine shale.
C) Recover lost hydrocarbons.
D) Collect water through backflow treatment.
46) What are the appropriate civil and criminal penalties for companies that violate environmental
laws? What types of guidelines exist for sentencing environmental wrongdoers?
47) Briefly describe acid rain. Do you think a command-and-control or market-based regulatory
approach would work better to reduce acid rain emissions, and why?
48) Commercial buildings and industrial facilities account for a major share of a company’s
environmental impact. Identify one business that has implemented green building standards and
describe the advantages they have gained from their efforts.
49) Cost-benefit analysis seeks to weigh the relative costs and benefits of various alternatives, to
see which one gives the “best value.” Of the various areas of environmental protection discussed in
this chapter (air, water, and waste), which one do you think has been the best value? Which has
been the worst value? On what basis do you think so?
50) Do you think businesses should voluntarily undertake environmental efforts, beyond those
required by law? Why or why not?
51) Describe the sustainability management practices of a business firm with which you are
familiar. Which stage of the corporate environmental responsibility model best fits this firm, and
why? Looking again at this same firm, what steps might its managers take to improve its
environmental performance? In answering this question, consider the various elements of effective
environmental management.
52) Discuss the following statement: “Effective sustainability management makes firms more
competitive.”