Ролевая игра по теме "Загрязнение реки"
методическая разработка (11 класс) по теме

A  role-play

      Polluting the river

Situation

        Your company makes refrigerators which are very well-known in your country and around the world.                                                                                                                       Your factories provide employment         for many people. The company is regarded as a responsible employer; pay, working conditions and job security there are good. It is common knowledge that chemical waste from the manufacturing process drains into the stream which flows through the factory site on into the nearest river. This has been happening for as long as the factory has been there. The pollution it causes low-level, but the damaging         effects on the stream and its animal and plant life seem to get worse as production has increased. No complaints have been made about this, but a journalist from a local paper has now asked to visit the factory as part of a report that they that they are preparing on pollution in the area.                 The management of the company is meeting today to decide if you should do anything about the pollution.

You must decide with your colleagues:

• how serious the problem is
• what, if any, action should be taken

Role:   The  President

Chairing the meeting: you have called this meeting, will chair it, and must make sure a decision is reached today. Listen to your colleagues, ensure they all give their point of view on the problem, and try to bring the discussion to a joint agreement. If there is no agreement, you yourself will have to take the final decision.

        Role:   The Marketing Manager

You only recently found out about this problem and think radical action should be taken without delay. You don’t know anything about the technical aspects, but as one of market leaders, and as you are dependent for sales on your excellent up-market image, you think it is essential the company avoids the certain scandal which would arise if the facts were published in the media or became known to the state or the unions. Whatever the cost, this pollution must be stopped immediately.

        Role:    The Personnel Manager

You have been working in the company for many years and really can’t understand what all the  fuss is about. Who would be silly enough to tell the press about this problem? After all, anyone in the factory would be too worried about losing their job to say or do anything. The local and state authorities, in your opinion, already know the facts and would rather not admit it, for fear of the factory closing down. As for unions, they are only interested in wage rises, and you know that they know that an expensive solution to the pollution problem would mean no rises at all to several years to come. Your favorite argument is that while it's true that there are no fish in the river, there haven’t been any for many years, so why start worrying about it now?

        Role:  The Chemical Engineer

You are the only person who really understands the technical aspects of the problem, which are:

                  - A lot of acid waste drains into the stream every year. This waste is an inevitable part of the manufacturing process. It kills off animal and plant life for some distance downstream.                 - At some other plants the acid is boiled away, a process which adds about 10% to production costs. Slightly toxic gas is released, but nobody seems to notice it if a plant is in an industrial region. If this boiling process were to be used at your plant, the cost would be greater.                                                                                                        - Because your plant is in a residential area, the gas would have to be filtered, adding to a further 5% to production costs.

        Role:   The Financial Controller

You admit there is a problem with pollution and are worried as anyone about it becoming known. However, your factory is not so profitable and you really don’t want any new spending at the moment. The factory is situated in an out-of-the-way place that you have higher salaries to attract qualified personnel, and transport costs are higher both for supplies and sales, because the factory is so far from your main markets. You think it might be better to close the plant and transfer production to another place.

        Role:    The Head of Research and Development

You are concerned by the pollution and agree with marketing and image arguments. However, you are worried that if the action is taken at one plant, you might be forced to do something more to prevent air pollution at other plants. After all, if under pressure from ecologists, the local press, the unions of the area, you started filtering the gas at one area, sooner or later you’d be forced to same thing at all your company’s plants.

Outline of roles

A :  The President: is worried about the risk of scandal but also about the cost of stopping the pollution.                                                                                        B :   Marketing Manager: thinks radical action should be taken without delay to protect the up-market image of the firm.                                                                                C :  Personnel Manager: thinks nobody would be foolish enough to admit that pollution exists, and that if it has not been problem for many years, why should it be now?                        D :  Chemical Engineer: will explain technical aspects- at other factories the waste is boiled away, adding 10% to production costs; this gas could be filtered, adding a further 5% percent to costs.                                                                                                E : Financial Controller: suggests it might better to close the plant and transfer production to another place.                                                                                        F : Head of Research and Development: worried that if action is taken at one plant, it will have to be taken at all company’s factories

                A  commentary

Managers of firms do not automatically assume that pollution must be at any price. And if it is stopped, it is more likely that it is because of the possible damage a scandal would do to the company sales and reputation than because of the immorality of polluting the environment. Halting or reducing pollution cost more money and jobs, and any management would have to take this into account.