ABSTRACT
This chapter begins by exploring key definitions and concepts from the natural sciences that relate to environmental management. The activity– aspect–impact model is introduced as a standard way to relate to the interactions between an organisation and the wider environment.
An overview is then provided of key environmental problems considered at a variety of levels and scales, from global to local, and covering both pollution and resource consumption issues. This section may be considered as both a ‘state of the environment’ overview and as a summary of impact categories that an organisation may be linked to, directly or indirectly, as a result of its activities.
Finally, we explore the concept of sustainability and highlight its place both in terms of the international agreements that gave rise to it and in relation to the longer- term thinking that is emerging at the forefront of government policy and business planning.
