Economic development is the factor determining the volumes of generated waste, the intensity of production, the level of individual consumption as well as consumption patterns. It results in environmental threats, which are addressed through practical application of the circular economy concept. The key goal of the latter is to manufacture and use products in the most efficient way and also to manage the resulting waste in an economically and environmentally appropriate manner. In relation to the above, the purpose of the article is to conduct a multivariate comparative analysis covering the European Union countries in terms of their levels of circular economy implementation, with special attention being paid to Poland. The article discusses the concept of circular economy, its principles and major activities. The EU and national-level documents which describe the basics of circular economy are briefly overviewed. The empirical research was carried out using multivariate comparative analysis based on the indicators describing circular economy implementation in all European Union countries. The final part of the article assesses the level of circular economy implementation in Poland specifically.
There are the following forms of protected areas functioning: national parks, nature reserves, landscape parks, landscape protected areas and areas of Natura 2000. Main goal of the protected areas is to protect natural resources from dezintergating and save them from not being properly used. The goal may be achieved if the economic activity will be proceded according to the rules of the sustainable development in the protected area, for example eco, ecological agriculture and agrotourism.
Abstract. Th e interest in the problems of environmental protection and, in particular, reverse logistics, results primarily from the growing awareness for environmental issues in the society as well as applicable and changing legal regulations. Th e representatives of various areas of social and economic life understood as intersector cooperation is becoming more and more desirable also in relation to environmental protection. Reverse logistics begins to be in the centre of activities carried out by inter-sector partnerships, through such actions as reuse of packages, minimising energy consumption and pollution connected with transport and recycling of package discards, among others. Th is article aims at showing the application of reverse logistics in the activities undertaken within the framework of inter-sector cooperation in Poland, by entities of social economics(social cooperatives). Th e case study method is applied.
The article describes the level and structure of company’s expenditures attributed to the prevention of the occupational safety and health risks. The survey was conducted on food companies in the Lodz region. The research reveals that over the period of 2008–2012 the number of work accidents increased by about 29% while the prevention-related spending increased by merely 2.5%. This situation must be negatively assessed because the company’s activity in the area of occupational safety and health at a workplace should not be reduced to providing workers with basic resources enabling them to conduct the entrusted activities. The expenditures on prevention programs were too low and ineffective. Moreover, the increase of the occupational safety and health spending did not have any impact on the changes in the number of accidents at a workplace.
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