THE project was one of those outlined at the Business and Environment Conference, held at The Central Science Laboratory, Sand Hutton, York.

Sir Ben Gill, former National Farmers' Union president and a farmer in North Yorkshire, was the keynote speaker at the event, which was the idea of commercial lawyers Denison Till, of York, which hosted it jointly with Yorkshire Forward, Business Link York and North Yorkshire, the University of York and Science City York.

Sir Ben, who addressed delegates, including chief executives, entrepreneurs, owner-managers and financial directors, said: "All too often, British businesses view environmental issues as an ogre imposed upon them and a lot of this emanates from the aggressive tone adopted by non-government organisations, which needs to be addressed.

"Britain needs to adopt a broader, holistic approach. This can be done by recognising the many new commercial opportunities, such as new technologies, alternative fuels and materials, available to businesses which, if properly exploited, hold considerable benefits for them and society as a whole."

Published: 08/06/2004