As the recession hits bottom lines, will profits take precedence over green initiatives or will businesses give carbon regulations the support they need? Teresa Hitchcock reports

How are businesses reacting to the downturn in economic activity? Will they be tempted to 'green-wash' through the recession, will they genuinely try to make sense of the 'green is good for business' argument, or will they simply not bother to do either?

Despite the negative impact of recessions, it is often said that they have beneficial effects in forcing economies and businesses to restructure themselves to meet new challenges and new opportunities. This restructuring provides the necessary basis for a future upturn.