Research Questions/Research Objectives

Discuss the learning outcomes and literature review on hydrocarbons pollution in environment?

There was a time when industries were limited and industrial production was limited.  With huge population growth and industrialization, organizations have expanded into different parts of the world. This has definitely increased the overall levels of industrial production but it has also brought certain concerns for environmentalists and society. With time the hydrocarbons pollution in the environment has also increased (Nezu, 2010). There could be various factors for an increase in the hydrocarbons pollution. The most widespread factors among all is the rise of industrialization. It can be said that hydrocarbons pollution has adverse effect on living organisms and it is important that steps should be taken to reduce the levels of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment. There are three major stakeholders that shall work together in order to maintain the levels of hydrocarbon in the environment. These are industrialists, government and people of society. The government would have to develop the policies and strategies to keep a check on the levels of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment (Kaushik, 2009). It is important that manufacturers and industrialists should develop an internal culture in the organization that demand a reduction in the levels of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment.

The objective of this research paper is to analyze and discuss the factors responsible for hydrocarbons pollution in the environment. The research project would also discuss and highlight some of the solutions for this problem. This research proposal is developed to highlight the way research would be carried out for this project. The specifics objectives and research questions for this research can be highlighted as:

• To analyze and discuss the factors responsible for hydrocarbons pollution in the environment.
• To analyze and discuss some of the solutions to reduce the levels of hydrocarbons in the environment.
• To discuss and analyze the challenges in implementation of programs for reduction of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment

One of the most important learning objective is to learn about the ways hydrocarbons in the environment are polluting the nature and environment. The learning objectives of this research proposal can be discussed as:

• The research proposal would help to discuss the various causes of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment. This research proposal would provide a platform to study the factors responsible for pollution. It would give an opportunity to have a 360-degree view of the problems surrounding the pollution levels.
• The research project would also give an opportunity to study the ways government is handling the issues. The study would help to analyze the roles of each of the stakeholders and the ways stakeholders have come together to overcome the issues of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment 
• The research project would also give an opportunity to analyze the various solutions of the problem. It would help to gather the thought point of different stakeholders and it would help to design policies and solutions to this problem.

(Chen & Ouyang, 2011) highlighted that hydrocarbons pollution is an alarming problem and it is high time that all the stakeholders should come together to solve the problem. The hydrocarbons pollution in the environment have a slow impact but over the years, it would destroy the natural balance of the environment. The hydrocarbons pollution are not good for flora and fauna. In the article, authors have discussed the various reasons for an increase in the hydrocarbons pollution. It can be said that population explosion is one of the major reason for an increase in the levels of hydrocarbons. With an increase in the population level, the needs of people have increased and this has put a pressure on industries to produce more. There is only a limited amount of renewable energy in the environment and industries has to rely on non-renewable sources of energy to increase industrial output. Moreover, the cost of renewable sources of energy is high than the nonrenewable sources of energy. Therefore, industries have continued to use non-renewable sources of energy and as a result, hydrocarbons pollution in the environment has increased.

(Plaza & Cameotra, 2011) discussed the factors behind hydrocarbons pollution in the environment. This problem is not a country specific problem but it is a global problem. Every country would want to grow and develop and manufacturing sector is the backbone of economy for any country. One of the side effects of development of manufacturing sector is increase in hydrocarbons pollution. It is important the government and industries should have a balance between development and pollution. However, the high use of hydrocarbons is inevitable for industrial growth and development. Moreover, developed nations like USA, Europe have already polluted the environment with high use of hydrocarbons and the emerging nations like China and India may not want to compromise on their development a lot due to hydrocarbons pollution.

Learning Outcomes

(Das & Chandran, 2010) discussed some of the solutions to the problem of hydrocarbons pollution in the environment. It is important that renewable sources of energy should be pushed in order to reduce the pollution. The problem with renewable sources of energy is that it demands initial investment. This problem can be resolved if government is able to provide some subsidy or tax rebate to organizations who wish to use renewable sources of energy. The bottom line is that organizations should be encouraged to use renewable sources of energy. It would take some time to reach a stage where pollution level could be controlled. However, it is important that organization should look have a long-term vision. The technology can also play a role to control the levels of hydrocarbons pollution. It is important that organizations should invest in research and development activities. People also have a role to play to control the hydrocarbons pollution. It is important that society should support the companies that have good sustainable polices in place. All the stakeholders should join hands in order to ensure that sustainable development can happen. It would mean that society, industries and government should come together for a better and green future.

This research work use a mixed method of research. The research work would be completed with both primary and secondary research. The primary research would help researcher to collect real time information from respondents. A survey would be developed to collect the data from respondents. There would be two types of surrey. One of the survey would be for corporate and employees of organizations. The second survey would be for common people in the society. Both the survey would have close-ended questions so that people can find it easy to answer the questions (Kellenberg, 2009). The questionnaire would be mailed to respondents and it is expected that respondents would mail back the survey with their answers. To complete the primary research a sample size of 200 people would be taken. Out of these 200 people, 100 would be employees and 100 would be from society. Once the data is collected, the next part in primary research would be to analyze the data. The data analysis would be done using simple tools like Microsoft Excel and SPSS. It is important to mention that that data collected from respondents may contain certain elements if biasness. It is important to filter the data and fill the missing values at the time of data analysis. The primary research would be both quantitative and qualitative in nature. The quantitative study would involve the data analysis of data collected form respondents. The qualitative study would include the study through focus group. There would be focus group interview that would help to get an understanding and perspective of different stakeholders. The group discussion would be done with management of employees, learned people in the society and government officials.  

Along with primary research, this research project would also focus on secondary research. The secondary research for this research project would be done on Internet and web. The online library would also act as a good source of information. It is important to mention that not all the sources of Internet can be trusted (Demerouti, 2013) . As a part of secondary research only peer reviews journals would be considered. The secondary research would help to gather an understanding of the previous research work in this area. The secondary research would start with primary research and would continue until the point primary research is done. The secondary research would be qualitative in nature.

The expected timelines for this research work can be highlighted as:

References

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Haritash, A. K., & Kaushik, C. P. (2009). Biodegradation aspects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs): a review. Journal of hazardous materials,169(1), 1-15.

Kellenberg, D. K. (2009). An empirical investigation of the pollution haven effect with strategic environment and trade policy. Journal of international economics,78(2), 242-255.

Pacwa-PÅ‚ociniczak, M., PÅ‚aza, G. A., Piotrowska-Seget, Z., & Cameotra, S. S. (2011). Environmental applications of biosurfactants: recent advances.International journal of molecular sciences, 12(1), 633-654.

Peng, C., Chen, W., Liao, X., Wang, M., Ouyang, Z., Jiao, W., & Bai, Y. (2011). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in urban soils of Beijing: status, sources, distribution and potential risk. Environmental Pollution, 159(3), 802-808.

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Talke, K., & Heidenreich, S. (2014). How to Overcome Proâ€ÂChange Bias: Incorporating Passive and Active Innovation Resistance in Innovation Decision Models. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 31(5), 894-907.

Van den Heuvel, M., Demerouti, E., Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2013). Adapting to change: The value of change information and meaning-making.Journal of Vocational Behavior, 83(1), 11-21.

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