Question: MKD Transportation owns and operates a fleet of container ships and tankers that transport goods around the globe. Company executives have just been contacted by the media with a credible report that one of their ships is leaking an oily substance off the coast of Belize. If true, some of the world's most beautiful coral reefs could be in danger. On the other hand, the captain of the ship in question has not notified the company of any problem, and cleanup could be very costly.

Environmental groups and the government of Belize have demanded that the company admit responsibility and immediately begin cleanup.

1) If they clean up the environment, they could advertise their green image and reduce the focus on what they originally did to the environment.

2) If MKD uses this approach, executives will likely deny any responsibility when responding to media reports.

If possible, they will likely contact the ship's captain and advise him to try to move the ship as soon as possible. It is very unlikely that they will comply with the demands of the government of Belize or environmental groups.