Reference no: EM133026590

BP plans for a greener future.

While occasionally beset by flooding rains, much of Australia is, for most of the time, a wide brown land afflicted by drought- with water shortages increasing in city and rural areas alike. Water restrictions have become all too familiar in many rural and urban areas, and the cost of water is increasing. The management team at BP's Kwinana refinery in Western Australia realized more than a decade ago that their region could replenish. The plant needed water as fresh ('portable' or drinking-quality), steam (purchased from a third party supplier)and reclaimed ('grey') water for its various processes. BP set itself SMART objectives to bring into effect a water minimization program, using reverse osmosis to produce industrial-grade greywater. It thereby greatly reduced its use of potable water for cooling. The cost of building the plant to recycle the water was initially expensive, but the benefits have been financial - equating to savings of over $1 million annually- and environmental. New technology introduced in 2017 enabled more efficient land use and water savings of a further 25 per cent. Recently, the refinery reported it had met all its programs, objectives and targets for its water use. Having specific and measurable objectives to achieve was an essential part of the success of this plan.

Local governments have been successful in encouraging households to use less water and less electricity, providing consumption comparisons with 'same period last year' and with average use by other consumers. How could this approach be applied to industrial organizations? What kind of feedback would be most helpful? Would the question be best managed on the grounds of finance or sustainability? What different management approaches would these alternatives require?