The (un)sustainable ESG commandment-“You shall not waste”: A Czech case study

The (un)sustainable ESG commandment-“You shall not waste”: A Czech case study

Článek Scopus

Regarding Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) regulations, the Delegated Regulation 2023/2772 brought European sustainability reporting standards (ESRS), to be used by a growing pool of European businesses. By embracing ESG and meticulously following ESRS, European businesses should actively participate in the pro-sustainability multistakeholder model. It is highly relevant to study the effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy of this mechanism. Methodologically, this can be done in three stages: (i) to review ESRS and identify one of the key and intersection values, (ii) to observe the official embracement of ESRS, in particular of this value, by large businesses ranked as ESG leaders and (iii), to focus in a detailed manner on their attitudes to this value as revealed by their websites. “No wasting” is such a value, endorsed by academia, society at large and various law provisions including ESRS E5. However, a case study suggests that large Czech businesses ranked as ESG leaders in 2023, are officially engaged with only some ESRS, and “no-waste” does not apply to them. The complementary explorations of their website suggests that they are not interested in no-wasting and that their ESG is immature. This points to a gap between EU policies and the law’s drive for sustainability, consumer protection and general development of the internal single market and European businesses preferences, regarding CSR and ESG. The ”You shall not waste” commandment, as set by the EU, is not yet sustainable for a pro-sustainability-oriented EU.

Regarding Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) regulations, the Delegated Regulation 2023/2772 brought European sustainability reporting standards (ESRS), to be used by a growing pool of European businesses. By embracing ESG and meticulously following ESRS, European businesses should actively participate in the pro-sustainability multistakeholder model. It is highly relevant to study the effectiveness, efficiency and legitimacy of this mechanism. Methodologically, this can be done in three stages: (i) to review ESRS and identify one of the key and intersection values, (ii) to observe the official embracement of ESRS, in particular of this value, by large businesses ranked as ESG leaders and (iii), to focus in a detailed manner on their attitudes to this value as revealed by their websites. “No wasting” is such a value, endorsed by academia, society at large and various law provisions including ESRS E5. However, a case study suggests that large Czech businesses ranked as ESG leaders in 2023, are officially engaged with only some ESRS, and “no-waste” does not apply to them. The complementary explorations of their website suggests that they are not interested in no-wasting and that their ESG is immature. This points to a gap between EU policies and the law’s drive for sustainability, consumer protection and general development of the internal single market and European businesses preferences, regarding CSR and ESG. The ”You shall not waste” commandment, as set by the EU, is not yet sustainable for a pro-sustainability-oriented EU.

CSR | ESG | ESRS | EU | sustainability | waste

CSR | ESG | ESRS | EU | sustainability | waste

BALCERZAK, A.; MACGREGOR PELIKÁNOVÁ, R.; ROGALSKA, E.

01.01.2026

Budapest Tech Polytechnical Institution

Acta Polytechnica Hungarica

9

23

Maďarsko

155

174

20

https://acta.uni-obuda.hu/23_9_10.pdf