How do businesses negatively affect the environment?

Question

For a school project. I have: products that they produce, waste of resources.

I could use about three more good ones that can support my topic.

Thank you!

Answer 1

industry produces smoke and puts pollutants into the air

busses, cars, airplanes put pollutants into the air (busses being a business, and cars being a means to travel and sell for a business)

Answer 2

In a free market, business have to try and produce at the lowest price possible.  That means they don't take externalities like pollution if account in their production practices.  So they tend to use the lowest cost method, even if it is a relatively pollution intense method.

Answer 3

To produce products at lowest possible prices companies cut corners environmentally.  Some toxic chemicals are less expensive than the better choices so companies choose the cheaper product.  Also the way property taxes are done (the newer the equiptment the more tax you pay) is counter to getting more efficient equipt. for example a mining co could be using a 100yr old digger that spews pollution and get taxed very little however if the company invested in new efficient equipt. (a large digger could cost millions) they would get taxed at a higher rate since the digger is new and end up paying through the nose making it more economic for them to keep the old one which spews polution just to save money.

Manufacturers of metal parts would have oils and lubricants to get rid of as well as solvents how the business deals with the waste of course determines its impact do they filter and reuse or just chuck it out.

All businesses use electricity and when that electricity is made from polluting scources...

Large manufacturers with high speed equiptment can produce waste when an error occurs making the product they produce which would effect much more product on the high speed machines than smaller.  EX a paper mill has a roller that tears the paper a low speed machine might waste a few feet of paper a high speed could waste hunmdreds of feet before the error is noticed.  

Some companies still dump waste inappropriately

Just the making of things and advertising getting people to buy things they otherwise might not buy is wastefull