Scottish small businesses are the most aware that their activities could be harmful to the environment and are the most likely to take action to reduce their environmental impact, when compared to the UK average. 

That's the finding of newly published survey, SME-nvironment 2005, undertaken for small business website NetRegs (www.netregs.gov.uk).  However, what the survey also highlights is that there is still a lot of work to be done as only 7% of Scottish businesses thought that their activities could harm the environment!

SME-nvironment 2005 was carried out using a random sample of small businesses across the UK in 15 business sectors.  Over 5500 businesses in the UK responded to the survey, of which 1300 were Scotland-based.  Generally speaking, the smaller the business the less time and resource will be made available to address environmental issues.  This survey follows on from a similar one conducted in 2003 in which over 8,000 businesses were contacted (click here for news story on 2003 Survey).

Key findings:

• 42% of Scottish businesses had acted to reduce their environmental impact, compared with the UK average of 31%. 
• Over a third (35%) of businesses had an environmental policy.  This is 10% higher than the UK average. 
• There was a low level of legislative awareness, with only 14% of businesses able to name a piece of environmental legislation.  This is the same as the UK average. 
• Overall, the level of environmental awareness and activity among small businesses across the UK was low, particularly among micro SMEs (0-9 employees).

SEPA Chief Executive, Campbell Gemmell, said: "Scottish businesses are leading the way in the UK in understanding their environmental obligations, but these survey results still make stark reading.  Too many businesses are not implementing simple measures to reduce the negative impact they make, whether it is from road transport, storing chemicals or producing waste.

"It is important for small businesses to take steps to lessen their environmental impact, not least to avoid unnecessary expense and fines. But what most don't realise is that 'going green' can also improve their profit margins through measures such as using resources more efficiently.

"Nearly half of those surveyed said they would like more help from the Government.  Most were unaware that this already exists in the NetRegs website, which has been specifically designed to help small businesses."

For more information:

• Survey Results