Earth Day turns 40 today. And environmentalism is more chic than ever. Forty is the new 20, you know. But Earth Day reminds us of far more than the fact that it's cool to be green. It reminds us of all that needs to be done to ensure the health of the planet for many generations to come. Earth Day, April 22, also serves as a reminder of all the business opportunities being born from that necessity each and every day.
Much has changed over the past 40 years and environmentalism takes a much higher precedence in our consciousness than many could have imagined four decades ago. Today, many communities and businesses have effective recycling programs in place, and conservation and exhaust pollution are top of mind in many industries, including construction and equipment manufacturing, where EPA's Tier-4 emissions standards are now making their way into new equipment rolling off production lines and into rental fleets.
Awareness of climate change is more widespread than ever, yet the problem is still what seems to be an impossibly long way from being solved. But the challenge presents an unprecedented opportunity to build a healthy, prosperous, clean energy economy going forward. And with the economy slowly fighting its way back from recession, rental companies have an opportunity to seize a share of the market in burgeoning environmental applications such as wind turbine maintenance, recycling center upkeep, hydroelectric dam and ethanol plant construction and maintenance, and many, many more “green” applications for their fleets of rental equipment.
In today's economy, the union of environmentalism and business opportunity makes good sense. RER is currently talking to rental companies throughout North America to learn more about the green applications that are putting construction equipment back to work. The market is full of opportunities and the necessity of such environmental work only promises to grow over the next 40 years and beyond. If your rental business is making a difference, and growing its business with environmental opportunities I'd love to hear from you. Send an email to [email protected] and tell me how your company is taking advantage of this growing niche of environmental applications. You may be featured in our upcoming June cover story.
Happy 40th anniversary Earth Day. Here's to 40 more and a markedly healthier planet in 2050.
For more information on Earth Day, visit www.earthday.org/.
