Brussels, 25/05/2012 (Agence Europe) - The 2012 winners of the European Business Awards for the Environment have been announced. They are: Marks and Spencer (United Kingdom) for management, Aquamarine Power (UK) for productn Umicore (Belgium) for processn INENSUS GmbH (Germany) for international business cooperationn and Slovenské elektrárne, a.s. (Slovakia) for business and biodiversity.
Environment Commissioner Janez Potocnik announced the winners on Thursday 24 May during a Green Week, which ended in Brussels on Friday. The five winners successfully combine innovation, competitiveness and outstanding environmental performance.
“Resource efficiency is the key to a competitive, sustainable Europe. These companies show that it is not only possible but desirable to combine a healthy bottom line with environmental protection. They are green growth in action and I applaud them”, said Potocnik.
The winners were selected from a shortlist of 14 finalists. The jury, chaired by Claus Torp, Deputy Director-General at the Danish Ministry of the Environment, was made up of 20 experts from European and national authorities, academia, businesses and the green technology sector.
This year saw a record 156 submissions for the awards, a 10% increase on 2010. The greatest number of entries (62) was in the newly introduced “business and biodiversity” category. This new prize rewards the performance of a company that has demonstrated outstanding achievements in halting biodiversity loss and supporting natural ecosystems. (AN/transl.rt)