Law 531 Week 2 Alumina's Risk Exposure

Alumina's Risk Exposure

After reviewing the Alumina simulation, anyone can see how easy a business can find itself in the confines of a courtroom or arbitration. For any business, the company leadership must take the time to understand the tort and regulatory risk exposure associated with its industry. Alumina leadership must identify environmental risks associated with the industry, understand how each risk relates to tort laws and regulatory statutes in place, and then design policies and procedures to mitigate risk exposure through preventive, detective, and corrective measures.

Alumina’s business endeavors include auto part and aluminum packaging material manufacturing, bauxite mining, alumina refining, and aluminum smelting (University of Phoenix Simulation, n.d.). Several environmental concerns arise when dealing with these business ventures. In the manufacturing venture, workers find themselves at risk for breathing in aluminum dust (Lenntech, n.d.). Lung damage and pulmonary fibrosis are known side effects of breathing in the dust (Lenntech, n.d.). With bauxite mining, the risk associated includes aluminum contaminating the surrounding waters and plants from soaking up ground and rain water (Lenntech, n.d.). To obtain alumina from the bauxite ore, a refinery uses caustic soda, which is highly reactive and corrosive (International Aluminum Institute, 2011). Once extracted, the refinery heats up the alumina to gain aluminum oxide (International Aluminum Institute, 2011). For refineries, manufacturing, and smelting facilities, the plant processes release into the air and surrounding water bodies inorganic fluorides, sulphur oxide, carbon dioxide, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, organic perfluorocarbons, tetrafluoromethane, and hexafluoroethane (International Aluminum Institute, 2011). Each of the components previously listed affect the local and sometimes global environment.

Possessing an understanding of the effects of daily operations, senior...