Chapter 8 Communicating Sustainability, but Producing Pollution: The Case of the BP Oil Spill

It is indubitable that society expects organizations “to employ their assets in a socially responsible manner” (Cordeiro, 1997, p. 1390) and also to be seen to be doing so. BP is a case of interest as in July 2000 the company launched a public relations campaign to appeal to the public as an environmentally-friendly “green” energy company. The company rebranded with “Beyond Petroleum” as a tagline, alongside a new logo of a fresh sunburst replacing the solid shield of BP. In the wake of the consumer boycotts of Exxon and Shell that clearly demonstrated how intense public feeling was about environmental issues, BP made a decision to invest in renewable energy. Although it was only a small investment compared to their commitment to fossil fuels, it was widely promoted. Their stated quest was to produce the cleanest burning fossil fuels and to become a producer of solar energy that would provide sustainable fuel to reduce carbon emission levels with products that were “safe, practical and affordable” (Verschoor, 2010).