Fewer Connecticut businesses are engaged in sustainability practices than three years ago, according to a survey released Wednesday by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association.
Of the 434 businesses participating in the CBIA survey, 66 percent they are engaged in sustainability, down from 74 percent when the survey was last conducted in 2010. The first survey in 2007 showed 47 percent of firms were going green.
Cost was cited as the main barrier to sustainability, cited by 65 percent of the respondents. Connecticut has developed several programs such as the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy, or C-PACE, to eliminate or reduce the upfront costs for businesses.
Among those actively engaged in sustainability, 90 percent were involved in energy efficiency, 77 percent in waste management, and 74 percent in green purchasing. Installing renewable energy was the No. 1 outlook for future activities.
The majority of respondents, 77 percent, were small businesses with fewer than 50 workers. Industries represented includes manufacturers, professional services, retail, nonprofits, construction, wholesale, healthcare, finance, real estate, insurance, and technology.
The survey had a 9 percent response rate among the 5,035 companies emailed the questionnaire. The margin of error is 4.8 percent.
