Environmental Impact in the Workplace

Question: Discuss about theEnvironmental Impact in the Workplace. Answer: Introduction The activities of business have positive and adverse effects on the environment. Depending on the impact these activities have on the environment, it could affect the organisation hence its survival and stability. This report investigates the impact of my groups activities on the environment and suggests ways on improving the environmental impact. Background Commercial cooking involves large scale cooking with an intention to sell in restaurants or to large parties ("Meaning of commercial cooking", 2016). Commercial cookery provides the knowledge and skill required to prepare all types of foods. Commercial kitchens help to make fast foods, and in the process of doing so, it has negative impacts on the environment. Purpose This report seeks to examine the negative environmental impact of commercial cooking and aims to recommend ways on how to improve or eliminate it. Scope This report investigates the activities carried out in a commercial kitchen and their effect on the environment. It also explores on the additional activities that follow once cooking is done. Discussion Like any other commercial kitchen, my workplace occupies a moderate space. It has various cooking stations that include grill, fry, saut, pizza and dessert assembly sections. It is equipped with different kitchen equipment that suits the needs of the various locations. It utilises different sources of energy to carry out cooking such as electricity, charcoal for grills and gas. Being a large scale producer of fast foods, it also has a large output of waste. Waste is any material or product discarded after a process is completed. In a kitchen, leftovers and containers find their way into garbage bins. However, the disposal of this waste not always efficient and pollutes the environment. In my workplace, we have been faced with frequent delays of garbage collection. These delays affect the hygiene of our kitchen and our public image. As a way to deal with these problems, the kitchen proposed a dumping site where this waste could be disposed. However, this way of disposing of the waste has polluted the environment surrounding the dump site. The quality of soil used for farming in the area has deteriorated. Besides, our way of disposing of waste water has created little ponds in the area creating an environment for mosquitos to thrive in. Occasional use of charcoal when grilling was proposed by management as a way of reducing the cost of fuel. This pollutes the air in our working environment. With the disposing ways identified above, it is evident that my working place has negatively on the environment and the lives of others. It is, therefore, necessary to improve on how we dispose of our waste. Recommendations In disposing of waste, it would be preferable if the waste is grouped in either biodegradable or non-biodegradable. Biodegradables decompose readily and can be discarded in the dump site since it affects the hygiene of the kitchen. However, the non-biodegradables cannot be disposed of the same way since they pollute the environment (An et al., 2014). In this case, the sanitation worker can dispose of them since they are less prone to attracting bacteria thus not affecting the kitchen hygiene. For waste water, the kitchen should create a better drainage system so that the waste water ends up in the sewerage system where it can be recycled. The management should also review their decision to use charcoal for grilling to reduce smoke pollution (An et al., 2014). Conclusion This report is an insight on the environmental impact of a commercial kitchen. It gives a detailed summary of ways my workplace pollutes the environment. Besides, it provides recommendations on how their disposing methods can improve. References An, Y. Et al (2014). 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The author's reply to the discussions on Commercial cooking by electricity atLondon, Birmingham and Edinburgh. Journal of the Institution of Electrical Engineers,71(427), 188-191. Walsh, S. Walsh, C. (2010). Commercial cookery. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Pearson Australia. What Makes a Commercial Kitchen? (2016). Smallbusiness.chron.com. Retrieved 23 October2016.