Implement and Monitor Environmentally Sustainable Work Practice

0 LA021053, Assessment 1, BSBSUS401 Ed
© New South Wales Technical and Further Education Commission, 2016 (TAFE NSW – WSI), Archive version1, March 2016
BSBSUS401:Implement and monitor environmentally
sustainable work practice

Case Study Template BSBSUS401
Task one: Investigate current practices in relation to resource usage
*Please note if you conduct this assessment on your home office you must also include how you could apply your answers to a mid-size
organisation.
Provide a brief overview of your workplace or home office (a short paragraph is sufficient).
I work as an Accounts assistant in a mid-sized accounting firm where there is lots of paper is being consumed in our daily operations. All client datais
kept in hard copy files and folders. Though there are provisions for soft copy invoices and statements, invoices and statements are issued physically
also, as per client's requirements. Moreover, daily administrative expenses are corded in vouchers.
Provide a half-page description of the Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (POEO Act). You can directly access the objectives of the
Act at http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au/maintop/view/inforce/act+156+1997+cd+0+N
(If you live in another state, use the legislation applicable to your state).
Protection of the Environment Operations Act 1997 (POEO) is an Australian Act aiming to protect the environment from excessive use of natural
resources. The scope of the Act basically revolves around the environment in New South Wales and surrounding in order to protect, restore and
enhance the quality of the same in most sustainable and time and cost-effective manner. The Act also aims to ensure that the community gets
optimum value out of the green practices by the businesses in terms of low pollution, carbon emission, waste management and use of renewable
energies. Finally, it may also be construed that the Act intends to improve the administrative and legislative efficiency in thecountry regarding
environmental policies and respective measures (Legislation.nsw.gov.au, 2018).
1 LA021053, Assessment 1, BSBSUS401 Ed 4
© New South Wales Technical and Further Education Commission, 2016 (TAFE NSW – WSI), Archive version1,
March 2016

The Act is applicable to the business as discussed herein in the sense that the consumption and usage of paper in the office is being regulated by
the Act and the management must abide by the guidelines and legal pronouncement as contained in the Act in the regard.
Conduct an environmental review of paper usage in your workplace or home office by filling in the audit report on the following page. This report will
identify the environmental impacts of using paper; the average monthly consumption; current purchasing practices; and any non-compliance.
AUDIT REPORT
Resource Audit of Paper usage (or electricity, fuel, chemicals, etc.)
What work processes and data did you
analyse in order to conduct this audit?
(staff surveys, documentation, invoices)
Work processes observed:
Routine operations in respect of book-keeping and record-keeping; billing; processing and
reviewing the client's work of preparation of financial statements after taking a printout of the
client's data and documents etc.
Actual Data analysed:
Bank reconciliation statement, bank statements, audit report, invoices and vouchers etc.
Environmental impacts The environment may be affected by the wide and excessive usage of paper as the paper is
primarily produced and processed from the cutting trees which are one of the primary sources
of greeneries and green energies. In other words, excessive paper usage leads to
deforestation which adversely impacts the environmental balance and biodiversity.
Stakeholders The person who may influence the sustainability practices within the given organisation is the
owner cum proprietor of the business. He may need to be convinced and motivated for
sustainable use of papers in the office as stationery and only then green approach may be
successfully implemented within the workplace.
Resource consumed per month (use
average) Approximately 1 ream of paper contains 500 sheets and estimate has shown that the
business consumes 100/150 sheets on a daily basis. Conceding 20 working days in a month,
5 reams of paper will be required each month for the business.
Purchasing practices Presently the accounts manager buys paper from 2/3 vendors, as and when available and
LA021053, Assessment 1, BSBSUS401 Ed 4 2
© New South Wales Technical and Further Education Commission, 2016 (TAFE NSW – WSI), Archive version1, March 2016

necessary. The practice may be improved by way of implementing a strategic and well-
planned sustainable procurement policy which will ensure green practices as well.
Paper (or another resource) usage non-compliance (or bad practice) with sustainable business practices
Describe the problem Explain why it does not comply with
sustainable practices
Non-compliance (or bad practice) 1: Presently, the firm uses normal paper
which may not be produced using
recovered paper fibres.
The Act mentioned above suggests that the
papers processed not out of recovered paper
fibres may consume more woods and hence
there remains the scope for consumption of
green energies and hence deforestation.
Non-compliance (or bad practice) 2: The vendors presently are not assessed in
terms of their own sustainability practices in
relation to their procurement and
processing.
If the vendors' processing and procurement
operations are not in line with the relevant
legislation and directives, the same may
tantamount to the violation of laws and
regulations in this regard.
Non-compliance (or bad practice) 3: Also, the packaging of papers is not
verified presently to check whether it meets
the standards as stipulated by the Act in
this regard.
The packaging should consume recycled
material and if the vendors’’ packaging process
is not in conformity with the standard, that again
may vitiate the basic purpose of sustainable
practices.
3 LA021053, Assessment 1, BSBSUS401 Ed 4
© New South Wales Technical and Further Education Commission, 2016 (TAFE NSW – WSI), Archive version1,
March 2016