By Robert L. Nemeskeri Although economic activity is essential for the functioning of our modern world, this activity is also responsible for the majority of the planet's pollution. In the emerging economies of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), governments are eager to encourage economic development, but they seem to give low priority to protecting the environment from the pollution that businesses can generate. Unclean business activities get green lights, while green activities often get red lights. There seems to be a conflict in the mind of CEE decision-makers between the need to develop the economy and the need to take care of the vital, life-supporting environment. Environmental non-governmental organisations sometimes seem to make the same mistake, behaving as if intensive business activity is always bad for the environment. For this reason, NGOs tend to treat businesses like the enemy, but in truth, business activities are necessary, and they also make funding of NGOs possible. By working with businesses, NGOs can do more to address pollution at its source and encourage cleaner production methods.   Benefits of clean production ignored There is a great economic potential to increase national competitiveness through more efficient resource management. Businesses can produce better quality goods and services by using less energy and raw materials and generating less waste. But it appears that CEE governments would rather encourage a system where national competitiveness is maintained, by keeping wages artificially low. NGOs could help governments and businesses see the bottom-line benefits of investing wisely in eco/resource-efficient technologies, methods and procedures. Even when they work in direct opposition to businesses, NGOs rely on the financial resources that business activity generates. To survive in such an atmosphere, NGOs have to think like businesses. This means that these organisations must seek to become more financially self-sufficient. But it also means that NGOs must try to be competitive - by being efficient with their resources and by performing the sort of work that society wants. Ultimately, the NGOs that do best will be those groups that perform activities that the public supports. Given the public interest in environmental protection, there is clearly backing for creative NGOs seeking to operate in CEE's new, more market-oriented economy.

Photo: BTA SUSTAINABLITY IS POSSIBLE: Zastava car factory in Kragujevac, Yugoslavia, restarting production in September 1999, just three months after it was destroyed by NATO bombing.